Peter Tilden Hitchcock

Peter Tilden Hitchcock

AGE: 81 • Jackson

Peter Tilden Hitchcock, 81, passed away on Tuesday, May 14, 2013, after a long battle with Parkinson's Disease. He was the son of the late Horace Gaylord Hitchcock and Elinor Tilden Hitchcock of Bronxville, NY. He was the grandson of the late Charles Joseph Tilden and Katherine Myers Tilden. Peter graduated Summa Cum Laude in 1949 from Phillips Exeter Academy and Cum Laude from Princeton University, class of 1953. While in attendance, he went to Officer Candidate School and upon graduation, he served in the United States Navy during the Korean War. He was released from active duty on Honorable Discharge, having attained the rank of Lieutenant, Senior Grade. In 1959, he received a Juris Doctor degree from Columbia University School of Law, New York City. While there, he met his beloved wife, Cecily (Ceci) Kohlsaat Hitchcock of 55 years.

He joined Allied Chemical Corp. (later Allied Signal, now G.E. Honeywell) where he served as Counsel for many divisions, eventually becoming Assistant General Counsel. In 1980, he accepted a position with Conoco Chemical (later DuPont) and did extensive international legal work and later was a founding Executive of Vista Chemical, later acquired by Condea of Germany. He retired in 1994. Peter was active in politics, as Chairman of the Republican Municipal Committee of Mountain Lakes, NJ. He was also active at St. Peter's Church, Mountain Lakes.

After his retirement, he and Ceci spent several years at Hilton Head Island, S.C. In 2002, they moved to Jackson, NJ and continued to split their time between Jackson and Sandisfield, Mass., living at "Thurtilperk Hill", his family home since 1923. Most recently, he was a member of Trinity Church, Princeton.

Besides his beloved wife, Ceci, Peter is survived by two daughters, Sharon Myers Hitchcock of Brooklyn, NY and Courtney Hitchcock Cole, her husband Richard and grandson, Nicholas Tilden Cole of Bluffton, SC. He is also survived by his brother, Father Horace Gaylord Hitchcock Jr. of Hawaii.

A Mass of Christian Burial, officiated by Father Russell Griffin and Father H. Gaylord Hitchcock, brother of the deceased, will take place at the Church of St. Uriel the Archangel, 219 Philadelphia and 3rd Avenue, Sea Girt, NJ on Saturday, May 25 at 11 a.m. A luncheon will follow in the Parish Hall. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Wag On Inn Rescue (an organization that rescues animals from kill shelters up and down the Atlantic Coast), 400 W. Park Ave., Oakhurst, NJ 07755. Arrangements are under the direction of the George S. Hassler Funeral Home, 980 Bennetts Mills Rd., Jackson.