Born in 1870, Thomas Hinman graduated from Southern Dental College in Atlanta with his Doctor of Dental Surgery degree in 1891. The following year, he joined the faculty of his alma mater and became Professor of Oral Surgery. Dr. Hinman held high offices in many professional organizations including the appointment by President Woodrow Wilson as the U.S. Delegate and Honorary Chairman of the Section VIII of the Fourth International Congress of Dentists in London. This nomination was considered one of the highest tributes in the dental world. Dr. Hinman from his earliest days in practice, became closely identified with the educational phase of dentistry. When the National Dental Association was reorganized in 1922, he became a member of the Board of Trustees. He also served as the Association as President in 1926(now known as the ADA). In recognition of his contributions to education in dentistry, the University of Georgia conferred upon him in 1924 the degree of Doctor of Science. He also held the position of dean of the faculty at his alma mater. He served as the president of the Georgia Dental Association in 1917. During his life, he received numerous honors and citations of his profession. He was a member of the Organization Committee of the Seventh International Dental Congress, delegate to the conference in London in 1914, and a member of the Delta Sigma Delta Fraternity. Dr. Hinman was very active in civic affairs of Atlanta. He served as a Director of the Atlanta Arts Association, Director of the First National Bank, and the Atlantic Steel Corporation of Atlanta. He was also a member and Elder of the Presbyterian Church of Atlanta, a member of the Capitol City Club, the Atlanta Athletic club, and the Druid Hills Golf Club. Dr. Hinman had a son, Dr. Thomas P. Hinman, jr., who practiced dentistry in Atlanta. One of his greatest accomplishments was the organization in Atlanta, in 1913, of the Atlanta Mid-Winter Clinic. Dr. Hinman took great pride in this organization which he fostered, and be brought to Atlanta for its programs some of the most outstanding dental and medical authorities in the United States. Dr. Hinman was as prominent in the civic and business affairs of the city and state as he was in his profession. He was a connoisseur of paintings, and possessed many valuable masters. As many of you know, his Souther Mid-Winter Clinic was the precursor of what we now know as the Thomas P. Hinman Dental Meeting, which has become one of the great continuing dental education meetings in the world. Dr. Hinman was described by men who knew him as energetic, orderly man, firm but gentle. It was only after his death that the Mid-Winter Clinic bore his name. The plan drawn up by Dr. Hinman and his committee for the first Mid-Winter Clinic in 1913 set a distinctive businesslike pattern that governed the Clinics throughout his lifetime and thereafter. The thoroughness of this planning provided living evidence of Dr. Hinman's motto: "Devotion to detail is the secret of success."

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