hitch was born in boonville, missouri to arthur m. hitch and bertha johnston. his brother was thomas kemper hitch. he was educated at kemper military school before leaving for the university of arizona, where he became a member of the delta chi fraternity and received a ba in economics in 1931. after pursuing graduate studies at harvard university during the 1931-1932 academic year, he received a rhodes scholarship to oxford university, where he received a second bachelor's degree in 1935 and the oxbridge ma in 1938. that year, he became the first rhodes scholar to join the university's faculty as a fellow of the queen's college, oxford.