Robert Mark Hitch ³

From "A Hitch Orchard," Daisy Hitch Davies, 1931: "Robert Mark Hitch was a Sergeant in Company M, 2nd Georgia Volunteer Regiment, in the Spanish American War. He was a member of the Savannah Bar Association, the Georgia Bar Association, and the American Bar Association. He was a member of the S.R., S.C.V., the Georgia Historical Society, a Mason, and a Presbyterian."

The "National Cyclopedia of American Biography" has a biography of Robert M. Hitch as follows:

"HITCH, Robert Mark, lawyer, was born in Morven, Ga., Feb. 14, 1872, son of Robert Marcus and Martha Serena (Fall) Hitch, grandson of William Winder and Nancy (Hunter) Hitch, great grandson of John and Katherine (Hanna ) Hitch, and great great-grandson of Luther and Mary (Nicholson) Hitch. Luther Hitch, a native of Somerset County, Md., served in the American Revolution. Robert Marcus Hitch was a physician. His son attended Morven Academy and was graduated A.B. at Mercer University in 1892. Admitted to the Georgia bar in that year, lie began the practice of law in Quitman, Ga., in association with his brother, Calvin Milton Hitch, as Hitch & Hitch. In 1893 he moved to Savannah, Ga., where he practiced until the close of his life. During 1893-96 he was with the firm of Garrard, Meldrim & Newman, and during 1896-98 practiced independently. From 1898 to 1904 he was a member of the firm of Alexander (A. Leopold) & Hitch. In the latter year he became senior member of Hitch & Denmark (Reiner Lane), which in 1921 became Hitch, Denmark & Lovett (Archibald Battle), with which he was associated until his death. The firm specialized in banking, manufacturing, commercial, corporation, real estate, insurance, and railroad law, and represented, among others, the Citizens & Southern -National Bank, Savannah Sugar Refining Co., National Gypsum Co., Pan American Petroleum Corp., Mexican Petroleum Corporation of Georgia, American Oil Co., Sinclair Refining Co., Goodrich Silvertown, Inc., Certain-teed Products Corp., National Surety Corp., laid the Prudential Insurance Company of America. In addition to his law practice Hitch was secretary and a director of the Savannah & Atlanta Railway Co., and a director of the Savannah Sugar Refining Co., Savannah River Lumber Corp., Stevens Shipping Co., and Southern States Iron Roofing Co. As a young man he served in the Georgia National Guard, rising to the rank of captain. When the Spanish-American War broke out he enlisted as a private, and at the close of hostilities was serving as a sergeant in the 2d Ga. Volunteer Infantry. Hitch also took a prominent part in politics. During 1900-01 he was a member of the lower house of the state legislature. In 1908 he was a presidential elector from Georgia; for ten years was chairman of the Democratic Executive Committee of the state's 1st Congressional District, and on several occasions served as a member of the State Democratic Executive Committee. During 1937-38 he was mayor of Savannah. He also served at various times as chairman of the executive board of Charity Hospital, Savannah, and chairman of the Committee on Disaster Preparedness and Relief of the Savannah chapter of the American Red Cross. He was a member of the American, Georgia State and Savannah bar associations, International Law Association, Trade and Commerce Bar Association of New York, American Academy of Political and Social Science, Sons of the Revolution, Sons of Confederate Veterans, United Spanish War Veterans, Georgia Historical Society, Telfair Academv of Arts and Sciences, Poetry Society of Georgia, the Masonic order (32d degree), Knights of Pythias, IOOF, and the Oglethorpe and Savanna Golf clubs. Mercer University conferred in honorary LL.D. degree on him in 1933. His religious affiliation was with the Independent Presbyterian Church, Savannah, which he served as elder and trustee. Hitch was married twice: (1) at Cedar Springs, S.C., Nov. 21, 1900, to Virginia Eppes, daughter of Newton Farmer Walker, superintendent of the South Carolina Institution for the Deaf, Dumb and Blind; she died in 1935, leaving two children: Virginia Eppes, who married Benjamin Alexander Oxnard, and Robert Mark Hitch; (2) in Atlanta, Ga., June 15, 1938, to Mildred (Shelton) Brooke, Daughter of William Arthur Shelton of Atlanta, Ga., a minister and educator, and former wife of Arthur Leo Brooke; they had two children: William Stroud, and Sarah Battle Hitch. His death occurred in Savannah, Oct. 8, 1940."

In the Federal Census of 1920, Robert M. Hitch is listed in a household in Savannah, Chatham County, Georgia as follows: - Robert M. Hitch, age 47, born in GA - Virginia Hitch, age 39, born in SC - Virginia Hitch, age 16, born in GA - Robert M. Hitch Jr., age 11, born in GA.

  Events

• Graduation, 1892, Mercer University, Macon, GA. ⁴

• Occupation: Lawyer, 1893, Savannah, Chatham Co., GA. ⁴

• Occupation: Member of the General Assembly from Chatham County, Jan 1900, GA. ⁴

• Occupation: Member of the State Democratic Committee, Between 1902 and 1904, GA. ⁴

• Occupation: Presidential Elector from GA, 1908, GA. ⁴

• Occupation: Chairman, Democratic Executive Committee, Between 1908 and 1916, 1st Congressional District, GA. ⁴

Robert married Virginia Eppes Walker, daughter of Dr. Newton Farmer Walker and Virginia Dandridge Eppes, on 21 Nov 1900 in Cedar Springs, Spartanburg Co., SC.^{1 2} (Virginia Eppes Walker was born on 11 Apr 1875 in Spartanburg, SC,^{1 10} died on 15 Dec 1935 in Savannah, Chatham Co., GA ^{8 9} and was buried about 18 Dec 1935 in Bonaventure Cemetery, Chatham Co., GA.)

Robert next married Mildred Shelton, daughter of William Arthur Shelton and Unknown, on 15 Jun 1938 in Atlanta, Fulton Co., GA.² (Mildred Shelton was born in 1902 in OK ⁸ and died on 03 May 1987 in Atlanta, Fulton Co., GA ^{8 9}.)