Kenton Allyn Peters

1931 - 2025

Kenton Allyn Peters

September 22, 1931 - June 29, 2025

Kenton Allyn Peters, Sr. departed this wonderful world on Sunday, June 29, 2025. He was born September 22, 1931 in Kenton County Kentucky. He was the second child of Floyd Preston Peters and Frieda Eliza Peters (nee Meier). He was given the name Kenton in reference to Simon Kenton who was a Kentucky pioneer with Daniel Boone. Kenton was raised in Louisville, Kentucky where his father worked in the printing business. In 1944 the family moved to Glen Ellyn, Illinois. In Glen Ellyn Kenton attended Glenbard High School where he was an outstanding athlete with All State recognition in football and track. He followed his older brother Farnsley to the University of Wisconsin-Madison where Kenton was one of the first recruits of Ivy Williamson, the new UW football coach. In 1953 Kenton was a tight end on the first Wisconsin team to play in the Rose Bowl. During Kenton's time at the University of Wisconsin he was part of the ROTC program and was chosen to be the Brigade Commander for all the students who were part of the combined Army, Navy and Air Force ROTC at UW Madison. Leading the 5300 ROTC cadets on the Armed Forces Day march around the Capitol Square and on to Camp Randall Stadium while his parents looked on was one of the proudest moments of his life. Upon graduation he reported for military training at Fort Belvoir, VA. After four years in the US Army Corps of Engineers Kenton moved west to Berkeley, CA to attend the College of Architecture at the University of California. He earned his Masters of Architecture degree from Berkeley in 1960 and returned to Madison to work for the Flad Associates architecture firm. At Flad his first assignment was to design Van Vleck Hall - the Mathematics building. This building was the first high-rise on the UW campus and has won numerous architectural awards. In 1962 Kenton left Flad and started his own architectural practice. Over the course of his long career Kenton worked on schools, offices, public safety buildings, urban designs and other building types in Wisconsin, Illinois, Iowa and Arizona, winning 22 architectural design awards along the way. A few of his signature buildings include the UW Foundation building and the University Catholic Center (St. Paul's) on the UW campus; the Kastenmeier Federal Courts building in downtown Madison; the IBM office on the south Beltline; and the Rural Insurance building near West Towne. Prominent among Kenton's professional activities were his efforts to revitalize the downtown of Madison. As part of this effort in the 1970's Kenton joined other community leaders to found Downtown Madison Inc. whose mission was to increase the vitality of downtown Madison. He was unapologetically frank and outspoken in his efforts on Madison's behalf and his focus on improving Madison's downtown was a hallmark of his long career. Kenton's vision included projects that would encourage people to live, work and recreate downtown. In the mid-1970's Kenton proposed the first design concept for an elevated urban park bridging over John Nolen Drive and connecting Madison's downtown with the shoreline of beautiful Lake Monona. A similar design concept is currently being implemented by the city of Madison under the guidance of another architectural firm. Kenton was also the designer/ developer/builder of apartment buildings on South Hamilton Street and the Union Transfer and Marina Tower high-rise condominiums on East Wilson Street. Kenton met Mary Lee Caraher while stationed at Fort Belvoir, VA and they married in 1956. Between 1957 and 1966 they had five children, Kenton Peters Jr., Sarah Davies, Adam Peters and Anna Trupp - all currently in Salt Lake City; and Leslie Peters in Canberra, Australia. Kenton and Mary Lee later divorced and Kenton married Susan Lubar in 1982. Kenton has spent the last 25 years living in a building he designed overlooking Lake Monona. The expansive view of the beautiful lake - with his beloved downtown Madison surrounding him - has provided him with inspiration and solace and was a fitting home for one of Madison's iconic visionaries.

Celebration of Life to be determined at a later date.