Donald C. Eliason
Donald C. Eliason
Personal details
Born24 July 1918
Owatonna, Minnesota
Died18 August 2003
NativityUnited States
ReligionProtestant
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch United States Army
ASN37326390
RankPrivate
Camp RitchieClass 5 (8 February – 9 April 1943)
Section2
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Donald Carlton Eliason (July 24, 1918 – August 18, 2003) was an American basketball and football player. He played one season in the Basketball Association of America (BAA) and two seasons in the National Football League (NFL).

Biography edit

Donald Carlton Eliason (July 24, 1918 – August 18, 2003) was an American basketball and football player. He played one season in the Basketball Association of America (BAA) and two seasons in the National Football League (NFL).

Eliason attended Hamline University where he played baseball, basketball and football. In 1939, he earned all-state honors, playing at the tackle position for the Hamline football team. In 1940, he was selected as the captain and played at fullback. As well as the school's Row of Honor in Hutton Arena in 2010.

In 1942, he played four games for the Brooklyn Dodgers of the National Football League (NFL). While in the service, he played on the Fort Warren travelling football team.

After the war, Eliason joined the NFL Boston Yanks. He appeared in four games for the Yanks during the 1946 season.

In the BAA, Eliason was a member of the Boston Celtics during their inaugural 1946–47 season. He played in one game, missing his only field goal attempt. He is one of the few to have played in both the NFL and the BAA or its successor, the National Basketball Association. Another Yanks football player, Harold Crisler, also played for the Celtics that season.

After his sporting career, Eliason was a science teacher and coach at Excelsior and Minnetonka high schools. He worked as a bonded representative for a brokerage firm before his retirement. Eliason was recognised for his volunteer work with the intellectually disabled.

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Technical record edit

Field Imported value
Approx Age at Death 85
Class_ASN 37326390
Class_Name ELIASON, Donald C.
match_method asn_exact_name_exact
row_source both

Sources edit

  • Wikipedia: Don Eliason
  • Camp Ritchie Museum, Inc. (The Ritchie History Museum), Classes 1–31 roster data
  • Dan Gross research spreadsheets, including original Excel timeline/roster work, combined with other research and records
  • NARA World War II Army enlistment records (where a NARA ASN is present)
  • 1940 U.S. Census (where a census match is present)