The Wheeling Hall of Fame Board has revealed the names of 12 individuals to be honored at the 2025 induction ceremony this summer. The announcement was made by Mayor Denny Magruder and Hall of Fame Board Chairman Robert DeFrancis on Thursday at WesBanco Arena, the home of the Hall of Fame.

DeFrancis, in announcing the 2025 induction class, said, “This year’s inductees all have impacted greatly the city of Wheeling and beyond because of their time, talent or treasure. They all deserve to be remembered in this Hall in recognition of the outstanding contributions in their careers and in the good they have done in their lives.”

The 2025 induction ceremony will take place on Saturday, June 28, at WesBanco Arena. The ticketed, catered dinner event is open to the public and will start at 6 p.m. Tickets are priced at $45 and can be purchased online at WesBancoArena.com or by calling the box office at 304-233-7000, Monday through Friday, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The last day to buy tickets is Wednesday, June 25. Tickets will not be available at the door. It is strongly recommended that anyone interested in attending purchase their tickets before the deadline.

The Wheeling Hall of Fame, located inside WesBanco Arena, will now honor 178 notable individuals. Established by Wheeling City Council in 1977, the Hall of Fame recognizes achievements in six categories: Business, Industry and Professions; Education and Religion; Music and Fine Arts; Public Service; Philanthropy; and Sports and Athletics. The Hall of Fame Board consists of 18 Wheeling residents and a city council representative.

JESSE A. BLOCH
1879-1951
(Public Service)

A successful businessman, West Virginia House and Senate member, and community leader for more than 50 years, Bloch sponsored the state’s first workers’ compensation legislation and cast the deciding vote by which the state Legislature approved the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. He joined Bloch Brothers Tobacco in 1900, serving as president from 1937-47, while volunteering with the Wheeling Housing Authority, Ohio Valley General Hospital, Boy Scouts, Red Cross, and the Ohio County Anti-Tuberculosis League. In 1940, family members donated their parents’ home, Elmhurst, to the Home for Aged Women, now a retirement home for men and women. He joins his grandfather Samuel and grandson Stuart in the Wheeling Hall of Fame.
 

BILL CORNFORTH
1950-
(Education and Religion)

A dedicated educator from 1972-2023, he served at several schools, including 43 years at Wheeling Park High School. His courses ranged from Acting to Speech, Interpersonal Communication to Debate, and Language Arts. His mission was to inspire students to become excellent communicators. He directed more than 60 plays and musicals for Wheeling Park High, Wheeling Jesuit University, Towngate Theatre, and the West Virginia Penitentiary. For Wheeling Park High’s Speech and Debate team, first as assistant and then as head coach, he guided numerous state and national finalists. As head coach, he led teams to 17 state championships. He regarded his career as a teacher to be a privilege and a gift.
 

SCOTT DAVIS
1956-
(Sports and Athletics)

This West Virginia Golf Hall of Fame inductee was a Triadelphia High School graduate. At Marshall University, he was the NCAA Long Drive champion in 1976. After working at Oglebay’s Speidel Golf Club, he won the 1978 West Virginia Amateur title before turning pro as a four-decade PGA of America and WV PGA Golf Professional in southern West Virginia. He won the WV Open championship four times and was Low Senior four times; was a 10-time WV PGA Player of the Year, a four-time Senior WV PGA Player of the Year, Tri-State PGA titlist, Tri-State Tour champion, and Tri-State Match Play titlist; and competed in 18 national Club Professional events and six Majors’ championships.

JEANIE CALDWELL DOUGHERTY
1844-1935
(Music and Fine Arts)

Jeanie traveled the world as an independent, working artist. Widowed at 30, she devoted her life to making art and seeing the world. A classically trained artist in realism, pen and ink, portraiture, and nudes, she desired to be a well-rounded artist. Interested in politics, a global life, and an awareness of what was going on around her, she strived to find equality and surrounded herself with people who valued her as an equal. Locally, her art was advocated by fellow Wheeling Hall of Fame member George Kossuth, who, in the mid-1940s, discovered her paintings hidden for half a century in his home, the former Caldwell homestead in North Wheeling.

 DR. HARRIET B. JONES
1856-1943
(Business, Industry and Professions)

A leader in women’s and public health, Dr. Jones was the state’s first licensed female physician and was a member of the State Medical Association, Ohio County Medical Society, and American Medical Association when there were few female physicians. She built and ran Wheeling’s first women’s hospital at 15th and Jacob streets for more than 20 years. The first president of the Ohio County Anti-Tuberculosis League, Dr. Jones traveled the state by rail and car to educate citizens on preventing the disease. Advocating women’s suffrage, she was instrumental in getting West Virginia University to admit women. Elected in 1924, she served two terms in the West Virginia House of Delegates.

BRIAN E. JOSEPH
1956-
(Business, Industry and Professions)

Life-long curiosity and a passion for innovation and science inspired Joseph’s remarkable career of invention and serial entrepreneurship. His Ohio Valley-based Touchstone Research Laboratory created hundreds of inventions with extraordinary success in materials development, new products, and aerospace testing. Touchstone has spun-out companies that manufacture revolutionary materials, design new manufacturing processes, and test technologies in a wide array of industries, including next-generation aircraft and rockets. Joseph served as J.B. Chambers Foundation president, West Liberty University board chairman, and as a member of the Wheeling Vintage Race Boat Regatta Committee. He is devoted to mentoring children and young adults, encouraging them to pursue science, innovation, and community leadership.

RICHARD P. MEHEN
1922-1986
(Sports and Athletics)

A high school, college, and professional basketball honoree, this Wheeling High School graduate joins his older brother Bernie in the Wheeling Hall of Fame. They were the first two high school players named all-class 1st Team All-State three times before starring at the University of Tennessee. In college, Dick was a 2nd Team All-America selection and two-time 1st Team All-Southeastern Conference. Mehen played five seasons of pro basketball: two in the National Basketball League with the Toledo Jeeps and Waterloo Hawks plus the first three seasons of the NBA with Waterloo, Baltimore Bullets, Boston Celtics, Fort Wayne Pistons, and Milwaukee Hawks. His pro career included 2,067 points, 505 rebounds, and 480 assists.

MARTHA CLARK PARLIN
1887 – 1968
  &
 ROBINSON S. PARLIN
1887 – 1982
(Philanthropy)

 These unheralded Wheeling residents, she a teacher – he a federal employee, living frugally, marrying late in life, and leaving no descendants, established charitable trusts with substantial financial assets directed to promote the health and welfare of physically or mentally challenged children and the blind. Since these trusts were created, more than $10 million has been distributed to local charities benefiting children and making Wheeling one of the smallest communities in the nation with multiple prominent benevolent organizations assisting challenged and underprivileged children.

FRANCES MARY SCHOOLCRAFT
1948-
(Education and Religion)

                This educator, who earned her master’s degree plus 45 hours in Speech and Theater, began her career at Triadelphia High School. Beginning in 1976, she taught at Wheeling Park High School, developing the Speech and Theater program. She directed more than 100 performances and coached more than 125 first-place award-winning speech students. After retirement, she was employed by the national/international Loews hotel chain, teaching public speaking and creativity. Fran amassed many educational activities and awards before her retirement in 2004; but, to her, the highlight was her speech team winning first place in the State of West Virginia speech and debate tournament for 25 consecutive years.
  

CLIFF SLIGAR
1933-2021
(Public Service)

A visionary public safety leader best known for his service to the Wheeling Fire Department, Sligar became a firefighter in 1955, serving as Chief for 24 years from 1971-95. He was instrumental in adding EMS service to the department and started an EMT/Paramedic program with local colleges and health care providers to enhance medical services. He also worked with NASA to develop breathing apparatus for firefighters and created a countywide 911 center in 1988 and later the Belmont County, Ohio, 911 Center, serving as its first director. A Wheeling city councilman from 1996-2004, he was a firefighter who cared deeply about his city, handling high-stress safety crises with the public’s safety in mind.

CHARLES L. SONNEBORN, SR.
1883 – 1961
(Philanthropy)

This prominent Wheeling business and civic leader had a principal role in establishing Wheeling Park and the Wheeling Park Commission. Rather than developing the property where Wheeling Park now is located, he offered the option to purchase the property to the Wheeling Chamber of Commerce and the City of Wheeling. By December 24, 1924, the community raised the necessary funds to purchase and equip Wheeling Park, making it the first public park in Wheeling. He and his family were significant donors to improvements for Wheeling Park, including the entrance gates, Sonneborn Shelter, Frank Rock Garden, and the living plants spelling “Wheeling Park” on National Road.