Mount Hope Story Archives - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

July 3, 1989: Governor Okey Patteson Dies

On July 3, 1989, West Virginia’s 23^rd Governor Okey Patteson died at age 90. As a child, the Mingo County native had moved with his family to Mount Hope in Fayette County, where he later sold cars and real estate.

Tragedy struck in 1932, when Patteson was 34. While bird hunting with his brother-in-law, Patteson leaned his loaded 12-gauge shotgun against his car, thinking the safety was on. When he slammed one of the car doors, the shotgun went off, shooting his feet from under him. Doctors in Beckley amputated both of Patteson’s legs below the knees and fitted him with artificial limbs. Within four months, he was walking again and driving his own car.

A Democrat, he was elected Fayette County sheriff, then managed Clarence Meadow’s successful gubernatorial campaign in 1944. Patteson became a key assistant to Governor Meadows, earning the nickname the “Great Persuader.”

Patteson succeeded Meadows as governor in 1949. During his four years in office, Okey Patteson broke ground for the West Virginia Turnpike, but he’s best remembered for his then-controversial decision to place West Virginia’s first medical school in Morgantown.

New Drug Treatment Center to Open in Mount Hope in August

Construction is underway for a new drug treatment center in southern West Virginia.

WVVA-TV reports Open Minds Recovery Services is expected to open by mid-August in Mount Hope. The 100-bed facility will treat males dealing with drug addiction.

Facility manager Calvin Woolwine says that while a $500,000 state grant is covering the costs of specialists and renovations, how many patients they’ll be able to serve dependents on support from surrounding counties.

Woolwine asked the Raleigh County Commission for additional funding on Tuesday. Commission president Dave Tolliver plans to review the proposal.

Woolwine said the center will focus on turning prisoners into patients, possibly saving money and lives along the way.

He says if things go well, they will plan to open a facility for women as well.

Mount Hope Bans Drilling Waste Disposal in Injection Wells

Mount Hope has banned disposing oil and gas drilling waste in injection wells that pump the material underground.

Mount Hope Council on Tuesday approved an ordinance prohibiting the disposal of drilling waste in injection wells within the town’s borders.

Mayor Michael Kessinger told The Register-Herald that the ordinance is in response to a disposal site in Lochgelly, which is less than 10 miles from the town.

Kessinger said he hasn’t been able to find out from state regulators whether it’s possible for waste at the Lochgelly site to infiltrate Mount Hope’s watershed.

Mount Hope’s ordinance is modeled after one adopted by Oak Hill.

Ex-Police Officer Charged With Crime Seeks Return

A former Mount Hope police officer’s certification was not revoked after he was charged with domestic battery.

The Charleston Gazette-Mail reports the charges were dropped in an agreement with the Mason County prosecutor.

The officer entered into a pre-trial diversion agreement that required him to attend classes and be placed on unsupervised probation. The officer stopped working for the department, but has notified the state’s law enforcement training and certification program that he is interested in again pursuing police work.

The Law Enforcement Professional Standards Program is responsible for the training and certification of officers in West Virginia. Certification becomes inactive when a police officer leaves a police department.