The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2001-07.
Hitchcock, Gilbert Monell
1859–1934, American newspaper publisher and political leader, b. Omaha, Nebr. A lawyer, he founded (1885) the Omaha Evening World, combined it (1889) with the Morning Herald, and was proprietor of the World-Herald until his death. He was a supporter of William Jennings Bryan until in 1910 the two split in a quarrel that shook Democratic politics. He was a U.S. Representative (1903–5, 1907–11), and, as Nebraska’s first Democratic Senator (1911–23), he was notable for his strong support of President Wilson’s policies in World War I. As chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs and then as Democratic minority leader, he led the fight in the Senate for the Treaty of Versailles and the League of Nations.
