Gamecocks Mourn the Passing of Don Barton
Served as Carolina's SID in the 1950s
Former Gamecock administrator and tennis coach Don Barton, 96, died Wednesday in Columbia, S.C.
Barton graduated from the University of South Carolina in 1949 with a degree in Journalism. While attending USC, he was in the Kappa Sigma Kappa service fraternity, Blue Key Honor Society and Lambda Chi Alpha social fraternity as well as sports editor of the Gamecock.
Barton served as the Sports Information Director at Carolina from 1950-59 and was the school’s tennis coach in 1954-55. He also authored several books on the history of Carolina athletics including “Big Thursdays and Super Saturdays”, “Hi Everybody! This is Bob Fulton” and Frank McGuire: The Life and Times of a Basketball Legend” (co-authored with Bob Fulton).
He served in the U.S. Air Force during World War II as a B-29 Flight Engineer. Barton also worked as a sports editor at the Columbia Record and founded an advertising agency, where he worked for 33 years.
Born on August 19, 1924 in Anderson, S.C., he is survived by his wife, Betty Kneece Barton; daughter, Mary Elizabeth Barton Thorne and her husband, John Calvin Thorne III of Columbia; grandchildren, Elizabeth Henderson (Drayton), John Thorne IV (Eliza), Mary Katharine Hill (Haynes); and two great-grandchildren. He was predeceased by two brothers, Hasell Barton and David Barton and sisters, Caroline Caughman, Dorothy Hawkins and Harriett Littlejohn.
Memorials may be made to Eastminster Presbyterian Church, 3200 Trenholm Rd, Columbia, SC 29204; or Riverbanks Zoo and Gardens, 500 Wildlife Pkwy, Columbia, SC 29210. A private memorial service for will be held at 3:00 p.m. Sunday, November 15, 2020 at Eastminster Presbyterian Church, with burial in the church memorial gardens. A livestreaming of the service will be available to view at https://eastminsterpres.org/live-services. Dunbar Funeral Home, Devine Street Chapel, is assisting the family.
