Howard Hitchcock (31 March 1866 – 22 August 1932) was mayor of the

City of Geelong The City of Geelong was a local government area about southwest of Melbourne, the state capital of Victoria, Australia. The city covered an area of , and existed from 1849 until 1993. History Geelong was the second municipality in Victoria, ...

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

from 1917 to 1922, and a member of the

Victorian Legislative Council The Victorian Legislative Council (VLC) is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Victoria, Australia, the lower house being the Legislative Assembly. Both houses sit at Parliament House in Spring Street, Melbourne. The Legislative Co ...

for

South Western Province South Western Province was an electorate of the Victorian Legislative Council. It was one of the six original upper house Provinces of the bi-cameral Victorian Parliament created in November 1856, initially it had five members. Victoria was a ...

from 1925 until 1931. He was also a

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...

who organised the funding and construction of

Great Ocean Road The Great Ocean Road is an Australian National Heritage listed stretch of road along the south-eastern coast of Australia between the Victorian cities of Torquay and Allansford. Built by returned soldiers between 1919 and 1932 and dedicated t ...

Early life

Hitchcock was born to George Michelmore Hitchcock and Annie, ''née'' Lowe in

Geelong, Victoria Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in the southeastern Australian state of Victoria, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River, a ...

on 31 March 1866. He attended the Flinders State School and other private schools, before working as an assistant in the family firm

Bright and Hitchcocks Bright and Hitchcocks (also known as Brights) was a department store in Geelong, Victoria, Australia, operating on the same site from 1855 to 1979. The building remains today on the south-east corner of Moorabool and Little Malop Streets in cent ...

at 18 years of age. After five years he became a junior partner in the company, and on 16 April 1890 he married Charlotte Louisa Turnbull, née Royce. He became a managing director in 1912 when his father died. In 1926, Hitchcock sold the company to five of its employees.

Work on the Great Ocean Road

Hitchcock was a leading proponent in the development of the

on the south-west coast of Victoria. In 1918, the Great Ocean Road Trust was formed as a private company, under the helm of president Hitchcock. The company managed to secure £81,000 in capital from private subscription and borrowing, with Hitchcock himself contributing £3000. Money would be repaid by charging drivers a toll until the debt was cleared, and the road would then be gifted to the state. Hitchcock died of heart disease on 22 August 1932, before the road was completed in November 1932, and was buried in

Geelong Eastern Cemetery Geelong Eastern Cemetery is a cemetery located in the city of Geelong, Victoria in Australia. The cemetery dates back to 1839. 141 Ormond Road, The Eastern Cemetery Gatehouse is listed on the Victorian Heritage Register. Notable interments * Th ...

after a service at the Yarra Street Wesleyan Church. His car was driven behind the governor's in the procession along the road during its opening ceremony. He was survived by his wife, and a memorial was constructed in his name on the road at Mount Defiance, near Lorne. He is still affectionately considered the "Father of the Road".

References

Notes

Geelong Foundation web site - "Benefactors: The Philanthropist Howard Hitchcock"
retrieved 4 July 2006.
Barwon Heads web site - "The Great Ocean Road"
retrieved 4 July 2006.
Visit Geelong web site - "Historic Characters"
retrieved 4 July 2006. 1866 births 1932 deaths Australian philanthropists Mayors of Geelong Members of the Victorian Legislative Council Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Officers of the Order of the British Empire {{Australia-mayor-stub

Early life

Work on the Great Ocean Road

See also

References

Notes