Ethan Allen Hitchcock was born in Vergennes, Vermont, in 1798. He joined the army and eventually became the commandant of cadets at West Point before fighting in the Mexican War where he won two brevets. After retiring from the army in 1855 he moved to St. Louis where he wrote several books on military matters.

On the outbreak of the American Civil War Hitchcock joined the Union Army as a major general. He served mainly as a staff officer.

Ethan Allen Hitchcock died in 1870 and his book, Fifty Years in Camp and Field, was published in 1907.