Once in Nebraska, Hitchcock opened a law office, combining with the practice of his profession an agency for several insurance companies and a general real estate business.
Political career Hitchcock was appointed a
United States Marshal from 1861 to 1864; a Republican, elected as the
Nebraska Territory Delegate to the Thirty-ninth Congress and served from March 4, 1865, to March 1, 1867, when the Territory was admitted as a State into the Union. He was appointed surveyor general of Nebraska and Iowa from 1867 to 1869. In 1870, Hitchcock was elected as a
Republican to the
United States Senate and served from March 4, 1871, to March 3, 1877. He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection. Hitchcock served as the chairman of the
Committee on Territories in the Forty-fourth Congress. He was involved in newspaper publishing and various businesses. In 1873 Hitchcock introduced the
Timber Culture Act a follow-up act to the
Homestead Act. The Timber Culture Act was passed by Congress on March 3 of that year. This act allowed homesteaders to acquire 160 acres of land by planting 40 acres of trees. At the end of eight years from the date of entry, the settler could make final proof if the necessary conditions had been fulfilled. Five additional years were allowed to make proof, or a total of thirteen years from the date of entry. The claimant had to prove that the trees had been planted and cultivated and that not less than 675 living trees per acre had survived. An affidavit or "timber culture proof" had to be completed by the claimant and two witnesses before the final certificate and patents were issued. == Personal life ==