Martha Harris Hitchcock was pivotal in the 1938 founding of the Woodrow Wilson Birthplace Foundation, now the Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library & Museum, and also a close friend of First Lady Edith Bolling Wilson.
The public is invited to celebrate with WWPL on Tuesday, August 19, at 10 a.m. in a ceremony to rename the museum’s gift shop after Hitchcock, who lived from 1878 to 1965. The renaming is made possible through a generous gift from the Gilbert M. and Martha H. Hitchcock Foundation of Omaha, Nebraska, which she established in 1943.
“This gift is a beautiful tribute to a woman whose vision and commitment helped establish this institution nearly a century ago. We are deeply grateful to the Hitchcock Foundation and to Mr. Kountze for honoring Mrs. Hitchcock in this way, and for helping us continue to welcome and inspire visitors for years to come,” WWPL President & CEO Robin von Seldeneck said.
Neely Kountze, President of the Board of Trustees of the Hitchcock Foundation since 2005, will be in to celebrate at the gift shop, which will offer 20 percent off all purchases for the day. Kountze has served as a trustee for 40 years. A fifth-generation Nebraskan, he is proud to carry forward the legacy of his great-aunt Martha Hitchcock by continuing the foundation’s partnerships with impactful nonprofits, now including a tribute at the WWPL.
Martha Hitchcock‘s husband, Sen. Gilbert M. Hitchcock of Nebraska, was a newspaper publisher and influential chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee during Wilson’s presidency. He was a leading advocate for Wilson’s vision for a League of Nations.
The newly named Hitchcock Gift Shop is within the Wilson Visitor Center on the museum campus at 230 East Frederick Street in downtown Staunton. The Hitchcock Gift Shop features books, gifts and local goods inspired by Wilson’s legacy and Staunton’s rich history.
The mission of the Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library is to promote an understanding of the complexity of the life and times of President Woodrow Wilson, his influence on the world, and his relevance today and for the future.
Support AFP
Share
Rebecca Barnabi
