The legacy of Ohio Valley General Hospital and Ohio Valley Medical Center will remain a visible part of Wheeling for years to come, thanks to a slew of people.

Recently, the design for a tower bearing the former hospital’s OVGH letters was unveiled to the public. The letters used to adorn the tower at the hospital, but as it was being torn down to make way for the future WVU Cancer Institute St. Joseph Regional Cancer Complex, crews carefully removed the letters and the City of Wheeling stored them for safe keeping.

Now, they’re at Wheeling Park High School, where machine tool technology students have been restoring them.

Soon, they will be placed on a tower, designed by architect and historic preservationist Christina Schessler of McKinley Architecture and Engineering, at the future Robrecht Park along Wheeling Creek in downtown Wheeling.

“From the beginning, our mission was always to preserve and honor the history of OV,” former OVGH nurse Betty Jo Sproull said. “That hospital made a difference, not only to the people in this area, but the employees, patients that were born there and that died there, and the physicians and the staff.”

And Wheeling residents and visitors will continue to learn about the difference the hospital made, as a fitting display will stand in its honor.