LSHC was established by the UP Board of Regents on 24 October 1995 to promote and pursue scholarship on the history, art, languages, culture, natural environment, and biodiversity of the Leyte-Samar region. Its founding director was Prof. Joycie Dorado Alegre and the succeeding directors were Prof. Margarita de la Cruz, Dr. Marieta Sumagaysay, Dr. Stephen Lagarde, and current Director Prof. Antonino Salvador de Veyra.