Arthur Bastin

Arthur Lee Bastin was born on May 14, 1898, in East Bernstadt, Kentucky, to Samuel L. Bastin and Mattie Pearl Bastin. He later attended high school in Lexington before enrolling at the University of Kentucky, where he was a member of the Alpha Tau Omega fraternity. A gifted athlete, Bastin earned varsity letters in both football and basketball and was affectionately known by teammates as “Sissy.” Yearbook accounts remembered him as one of the football team’s most spirited and enthusiastic players, while his athletic ability quickly established him as one of Kentucky’s standout competitors.

During the 1917-18 basketball season, Bastin emerged as one of the Wildcats’ premier players, helping Kentucky earn a share of the state championship. Contemporary accounts praised his all-around game, highlighting his scoring, passing, rebounding, and defensive play. The Kentuckian yearbook described him as “the best guard that appeared on the Kentucky hardwood” that season and credited him as an important part of Kentucky’s scoring attack. Following the season, The Kentucky Kernel selected Bastin to its Mythical All-State Five, recognizing him as one of the finest players in Kentucky. His performances against rivals such as Centre College helped establish Kentucky as one of the state’s leading basketball programs during the years before Adolph Rupp’s arrival.

After leaving Kentucky, Bastin served his country during World War I before building a successful career in the coal industry. He became owner and operator of the Elkhorn Coal Company in Kona, Kentucky, and remained active in civic life as a member of Oleika Temple Shrine and the Lexington Country Club. Bastin died of a heart attack on March 9, 1957, at his home on Paris Pike in Lexington at the age of 58. Though more than a century has passed since he wore the Blue and White, Arthur Bastin remains one of the outstanding athletes of Kentucky basketball’s earliest era—a two-sport letterman, All-State performer, and pioneer whose contributions helped lay the foundation for the tradition that followed.