Dr. Barton was born in Oakland, Illinois, received his M.D. (1931) from the University of Illinois Medical School (1931), served his residency at Worcester State Hospital, Mass., and later served as Assistant Superintendent and Acting Superintendent (1938–42) at Worcester.
Dr. Barton was appointed Superintendent of the Boston State Hospital, a post he retained (1942–63). During World War II, he was stationed in the Office of the Surgeon General in Washington, D.C., and later served on the faculties of Tufts and Boston University Medical Schools.
In 1963, Dr. Barton was named Medical Director of the American Psychiatric Association, where he remained until 1974. He also served as a consultant to the Veterans Administration and the National Institute on Mental Health and was on the faculties of Georgetown and George Washington Medical Schools. Upon leaving Washington, Dr. Barton moved to Vermont and became a professor at Dartmouth Medical School, later being named Professor Emeritus.
Dr. Barton was active in psychiatric organizations and was a founding member of the Group for the Advancement of Psychiatry, President (1953–55), Director and later President of the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology (1969–70), President of the Massachusetts Psychiatric Society and New England Society of Psychiatry, and Honorary Fellow for the Royal College of Psychiatry in England and the Australian/New Zealand College of Psychiatrists. He was a member of the Commission on Mental Health and Illness (1952–1961), which led to the first federal legislation on mental health.
Dr. Barton was a foremost psychiatric administrator. His books, Psychiatric Administration and Ethics in Administration (both co-authored with his daughter, psychiatrist Gail Barton), are classics. He published other books, including The History and Influence of the American Psychiatric Association (1982), and over 150 articles.
Dr. Barton served as President of the American Psychiatric Association (1961-62).