Albert Preston Baston (December 3, 1894 – November 16, 1979) was an
American football
American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...
player for the
University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public land-grant research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. ...
, where he was an All-American and one of the first great catchers of the
forward pass
In several forms of football, a forward pass is the throwing of the ball in the direction in which the offensive team is trying to move, towards the defensive team's goal line. The forward pass is one of the main distinguishers between gridiro ...
. He was awarded the
Navy Cross for "extraordinary heroism" in
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
. In 1954, he was elected to the
College Football Hall of Fame
The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and interactive attraction devoted to college football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) founded the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players and coaches of college football that were vo ...
.
Early life and college career
Baston was a sports phenomenon in high school, where he played for
Saint Louis Park High School
St. Louis Park High School is a four-year public high school located in St. Louis Park, Minnesota, United States. St. Louis Park High School is ranked by ''Newsweek'' as #290 in their "List of the 1500 Top High Schools in America," #3 among Minnes ...
in
St. Louis Park, Minnesota. Entering the University of Minnesota to study law, he played football on the school's 'elevens' at left end for three seasons beginning in 1914. He was captain of the team his final year.
Walter Camp named him on his All-American team both in
1915 and in
1916. His team was recognized with a
national championship in 1915, prior to the modern "consensus system."
In addition to his football honors, while at Minnesota Baston was a member of
Phi Sigma Kappa
Phi Sigma Kappa (), colloquially known as Phi Sig or PSK, is a men's social and academic Fraternities and sororities, fraternity with approximately 74 List of Phi Sigma Kappa chapters#List of Chapters, active chapters and provisional chapters in ...
fraternity. He was president of the Athletic Board of Control, a member of the University Senate, of the Junior Ball Association, elected to Iron Wedge, a senior society, and to
Phi Delta Phi international legal honor society, along with various local clubs.
World War I service
During
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
Baston served with the 17th Company of the
5th Marine Regiment
The 5th Marine Regiment (also referred to as "5th Marines") is an infantry regiment of the United States Marine Corps based at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California. It is the most highly decorated regiment in the Marine Corps and falls u ...
. He was a
captain
Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...
and fought in France. He suffered a critical leg injury while serving in the
Battle of Belleau Wood, with a hole in his leg "big enough to stick a broom handle through," according to family lore.
[City of St. Louis Park historical record](_blank)
, accessed 10 May 2014 Awarded the
Navy Cross, his official citation reads:
The Navy Cross is presented to Albert P. Baston, First Lieutenant, U.S. Marine Corps, for extraordinary heroism while serving with the 5th Regiment (Marines), 2d Division, A.E.F. in action near Château-Thierry, France. Although shot in both legs while leading his platoon through the woods at Hill 142, near Château-Thierry, France, on June 6, 1918, Lieutenant Baston refused treatment until he had personally assured himself that every man in his platoon was under cover and in good firing position.
The story of Baston's 5th Marine Regiment forms a key lesson of Marine Corps lore: It was in WWI and at
Belleau Wood where Marines of the 5th earned the nickname
Devil Dog
Devil Dog is a nickname for a United States Marine coined during World War I.
History
Multiple publications of the United States Marine Corps claim that the nickname "Teufel Hunden"—"Devil Dogs" in English—was bestowed upon the ...
.
Business and coaching careers
Baston spent almost a year in the hospital, and when he got out he started a bakery in Detroit. He married Ruby Laird in 1920. Baston played that same year for the
Cleveland Tigers, an early
NFL team. Eventually the couple returned to Minneapolis and started the Bert Baston Chevrolet Co. at 3038 Hennepin Avenue (1933), a site now redeveloped into commercial space.
[3038 Hennepin is now the location of the Magers and Quinn bookstore, in Uptown.] His sales manager during the 1930s was George Richard Baston, the only surviving son of Bert's uncle, John Judson Baston.
Baston served as the Minnesota Gophers' ends coach from 1930 to the 1941 and again from 1946 to 1950.
World War II service
In
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
Baston again was called into service, this time in the
North Africa Campaign as a colonel in the Marines, where he commanded a battalion that repaired equipment ranging from jeeps to rocket guns for armies in the European and African Theaters.
Baston and Ruby had two children: Fred, who also served in World War II and in the
Korean War
{{Infobox military conflict
, conflict = Korean War
, partof = the Cold War and the Korean conflict
, image = Korean War Montage 2.png
, image_size = 300px
, caption = Clockwise from top:{ ...
, and a daughter, Priscilla.
Later life
Baston resumed his automotive career after the war. The 1947 St. Louis Park City directory listed his Baston-Barington Chevrolet Co. at 2612 Lyndale Avenue. He remained active in the community and was appointed as General Chairman of the 1948
Minneapolis Aquatennial. Baston moved to
St. Cloud later in life and opened a dealership there.
In 1954, he was inducted into the
College Football Hall of Fame
The College Football Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and interactive attraction devoted to college football. The National Football Foundation (NFF) founded the Hall in 1951 to immortalize the players and coaches of college football that were vo ...
.
Baston died in St. Cloud on November 15, 1979, and is buried at
Lakewood Cemetery in Minneapolis.
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Baston, Bert
1894 births
1979 deaths
American football ends
Minnesota Golden Gophers football coaches
Minnesota Golden Gophers football players
All-American college football players
College Football Hall of Fame inductees
United States Marine Corps personnel of World War I
United States Marine Corps personnel of World War II
United States Marine Corps colonels
Recipients of the Navy Cross (United States)
People from St. Louis Park, Minnesota
Players of American football from Minnesota
Cleveland Tigers (NFL) players
Military personnel from Minnesota