Don Cash Seaton

Don Seaton lived in Washington as a child from roughly 1908 to 1912, when his parents were proprietors of the Danforth Hotel on the Square.  The Seatons made a good go of it with the hotel, but it was a tough sell in the aging building.  After the Seatons left and moved to El Paso in 1912, the hotel went through eight different proprietors in its final eight years.

Don attended El Paso High School and was a standout athlete, graduating in 1920.  He then attended the University of Illinois and, from there, began teaching and coaching at Pontiac High School.  His effect was so significant at Pontiac that in a 1926 Washington newspaper, it was predicted that Seaton "is bound to climb in the sports world."

And he did.  Seaton first moved north to Senn High School in Chicago.  At Senn, Seaton's track teams were dominant.

Seaton was then wooed to return to the University of Illinois in 1933 as their track and field coach.  Seaton remained at the U of I for four years and, in 1937, was promoted to the position of Director of Health and Physical Education for the State of Illinois.  As director, Seaton was instrumental in implementing physical education as a required course and required physical examinations for all athletes.  He remained in this position until 1943, when he became the head of physical activities for the fourth Naval District, which included all of Pennsylvania and parts of New Jersey and Delaware.

In 1947,  Seaton moved on to the University of Kentucky, where he was the varsity track and cross country coach and the head of the physical education department.  He remained at Kentucky until his retirement in 1972.  Due to his tremendous contributions during his tenure at Kentucky,  the Seaton Building was dedicated in his honor upon retirement.  The Seaton Building, renovated and expanded in 2003,  is now called the Bernard R. Johnson Recreation Center. 

Don Cash Seaton left footprints that are hard to duplicate.