The son of Elias Hitchen and Betsy Halstead, he was born at Todmorden in July 1905.
He was educated at Todmorden Secondary School,[1] from there he studied applied chemistry at the University of Manchester.
[2] He later moved to British India with his wife, Louise, where he gained employment as an industrial chemist.
[5] He scored 12 runs in his four first-class matches,[6] in addition to taking three wickets with his right-arm fast-medium bowling.
[7] He remained in India following independence in 1947, where he continued to play for the Europeans who had lost their first-class status from 1948.