Biography: Walter Hinkley

Walter Hinkley was born in Abbeville on January 9, 1928, youngest of four sons to Etta and Guthrie Hinkley, owners of Abbeville General Mercantile. His oldest brother Thomas Joe, was employed by the U. S. Postal Service until his retirement, his brother Arlan was killed in combat in World War II, and his brother Aaron sold insurance in the Oxford area until his retirement.

Hinkley attended North Yoknapatawpha County High School where he excelled as third baseman on the Wildcats baseball team. He graduated in 1946 and married his life long love, Marlis Alford of Abbeville on March 25, 1947. Marlis and Walter have three children, Kate born May 2, 1948, Joseph born September 16, 1949 and Alice born February 3, 1950.

Walter Hinkley went to work for the Bowlan Glove Factory in June 1946 starting in the warehouse as a packer working double shifts. By 1958 Hinkley was working as assistant floor supervisor of machine maintenance. When Bowlan closed in 1958, Hinkley went to work as general foreman for Dawes Construction out of Jackson.

Hinkley had a reputation as a hard working and hard playing man. He had a fondness for poker games and spent most weekends playing poker, drinking and playing pool at Pappy Harris', a road house with a rough reputation, or fishing and hunting. He had his share of arrests for public disturbance, drunk and disorderly conduct and two assault and battery charges. Hinkley died in 1995 at the age of 67 from a massive heart attack. His wife Marlis is in a nursing home in Sacramento, California where daughter Kate lives with her family. Joseph lives in Jackson with his family and daughter Alice is a successful magazine editor in New York City.