Early in 1994 a temporary military display was set-up in the old Western Auto Building in Hinton by Rev. Carl Edwards, Carla Leslie, wife of Hinton Mayor James A. Leslie, and other WWII veterans in honor of Veterans Day. Filled with momentum after immense interest and visitation to the temporary exhibit was successful, a few area veterans, among them the Rev. Carl Edwards, Charles Skidmore, Bill Phillips, and Carla Leslie met at the National Guard Armory to discuss putting together an effort to make the display permanent. The group quickly organized, elected officers and appointed Carla to be the director of the museum effort on behalf of Summers County veterans to spearhead the formation of a permanent veterans museum.  Carla and her husband, Mayor James Leslie, traveled to Washington, DC to meet with officials at the Pentagon/Department of Defense to receive documents and to kick-off Hinton’s recognition of its veterans commemorating the 50th year anniversary of the end of World War II. Hinton was then designated as an official World War II Commemorative Community. Upon return, the hunt was then underway to find a permanent site to house the many artifacts and military memorabilia that had been donated by Hinton and Summers County veterans. An opportunity soon presented itself when the new high school was built leaving the old Carnegie Library building vacated on Ballengee Street.  The Summers County Board of Education was approached by the City of Hinton with a proposal to house the museum in the old building. The structure was in poor condition with plumbing and electrical issues, termite damage and leaking ceiling, peeling paint and no functioning furnace or bathroom. Volunteers set out to save the building through donations and the will to pursue the dream of creating a museum for the veterans to house their memorabilia soon took shape. An added bonus was a World War II exhibit put together by the WV Department of Culture and History and loaned to the Veterans Museum for display in the lower level of the museum. Through sheer dedication and hard work, the museum was officially opened on May 30, 1997, with a huge celebration led by city and state officials in the street intersection of Ballengee Street and 4th Avenue. Governor Cecil Underwood, was on hand for the dedication which included a military fly-over by the WV National Guard, 130th Air Lift Wing, a JROTC precision drill team, military representatives and speakers from the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and Coast Guard, and Hinton Area Kids in Dramatic Studies presented patriotic music and hundreds of veterans and interested citizens attended the event. It was, indeed, a day in history for the City of Hinton, West Virginia and its veterans. Below are past articles and photos published in the Hinton News documenting the project. See the video of the dedication ceremony: Veterans Memorial Museum Dedication ceremony

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