Friends of Basketball

Gaylord Peterson

Year Inducted: 1986

Category: Friends of Basketball

Schools / Organizations: Varna High School
(Varna) Mid-County High School

Biography: Gaylord “Doug” Peterson attended Varna High School where he was a four-year letterman in baseball and track. Peterson was a two-year basketball letterman and, as a senior in 1927, played in the first Tri-County Conference Basketball Tournament. Varna and Peterson made the IHSA Peoria Sectional Tournament in that senior year and were eliminated by (Peoria) Manual High School 24-18. An avid horseshoe player, Peterson was the Illinois State Champion in 1928 and 1932. He is a member of the Horseshoe Hall of Fame. Peterson entered the bowling business in 1963 and is a member of the Greater Peoria Bowling Association Hall of Fame. Peterson has been an avid booster of (Varna) Mid-County High School basketball since it opened in 1952, as well as all other Bulldog athletic teams.  Doug Peterson died on March 3, 1998 at the age of 89.