Herbert Greenwald (August 16, 1915 – February 3, 1959) was a

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

real estate developer who utilized Ludwig Mies van der Rohe as the design architect for several landmark modern residential buildings.

Personal life

Herbert "Squiff" Greenwald was born and raised in St. Louis. He pursued rabbinical studies at Yeshiva University in New York. After serving in the military during World War II, he studied philosophy at University of Chicago. He used money inherited from the death of his mother in 1949 to go into the real estate business with Samuel Katzin. Herbert S. Greenwald was married to Lillian Feldman Greenwald (Dec. 31, 1915 to Sept. 7, 2007). They had two sons, Michael and Bennet. Together they supported artists including: Leon Golub,

Nancy Spero Nancy Spero (August 24, 1926 – October 18, 2009) was an American visual artist. Born in Cleveland, Ohio, Spero lived for much of her life in New York City. She married and collaborated with artist Leon Golub. As both artist and activist, Nancy ...

, Cosmo Campoli, Misch Cohen, Ruth Duckworth, Richard Hunt (sculptor), David Sharpe, Martha Schlamme and Abraham Stokman. Lillian Greenwald earned a BA degree and a M.SW degree from the University of Chicago. She served on the Visiting Committee of the University's School of Social Services Administration and may have influenced the decision to use Mies van der Rohe to design the School of Social Services building.

Real estate development

Greenwald developed three residential buildings in Evanston, Il by 1946. Mr. Greenwald sought a famous architect to design his first important building. After failing to hire

Frank Lloyd Wright Frank Lloyd Wright (June 8, 1867 – April 9, 1959) was an American architect, designer, writer, and educator. He designed more than 1,000 structures over a creative period of 70 years. Wright played a key role in the architectural movements o ...

, Le Corbusier,

Eliel Saarinen Gottlieb Eliel Saarinen (, ; August 20, 1873 – July 1, 1950) was a Finnish-American architect known for his work with art nouveau buildings in the early years of the 20th century. He was also the father of famed architect Eero Saarinen. Lif ...

, and

Walter Gropius Walter Adolph Georg Gropius (18 May 1883 – 5 July 1969) was a German-American architect and founder of the Bauhaus School, who, along with Alvar Aalto, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Le Corbusier and Frank Lloyd Wright, is widely regarded as one ...

. He followed Gropius's recommendation to hire Mies van der Rohe. Greenwald utilized Mies on several projects including: * The Promontory, 5530 S. South Shore Drive, Chicago, IL (1949) * Algonquin Apartments, 1606 E Hyde Park Blvd, Chicago, IL (1949-1951) *

860-880 Lake Shore Drive Apartments 86 may refer to: * 86 (number), a natural number * 86 (term), a slang term for getting rid of something Dates * 86 BC, a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar * AD 86, a common year of the Julian calendar * 1986, a common year of the Gregorian ...

, Chicago, IL (1949-1951) * 900-910 North Lake Shore Esplanade Apartments, Chicago, IL (1953-1956) * Commonwealth Plaza, 330-340 W. Diversey Parkway, Chicago, IL (1953-1956) * Lafayette Park, Detroit, MI (1955-1963) Additionally, he worked with Mies on several unbuilt designs including: * 1300 Lake Shore Drive Apartments, Chicago, IL (1953-1956) * Chestnut and DeWitt Apartments, Chicago, IL (1953-1956) * Commonwealth Promenade Apartments, Chicago, IL (1953-1956) Note: Two of the buildings were built. * Herbert Greenwald House, Lake Forest, IL (1955) * Diversey-Lake Shore Drive Apartments, Chicago, IL (1956-1958) * Hyde Park Urban Renewal, Chicago, IL (1959) * Lafayette Park Detroit, MI (1955-1963) * Bay Street at Hyde San Francisco, CA (1958)

Mies Designed Single Family Homes

In addition to the proposed home for Herbert Greenwald in Lake Forest, Mies designed single family homes for: *Greenwald's brother, Morris Greenwald. The home was later renovated and expanded by Peter Gluck, located at 11 Homeward Lake, Weston, Connecticut *Greenwald's business partner, Robert Hall McCormick. The home is now part of the Elmhurst Art Museum in Illinois.

Death

Greenwald died in the crash of American Airlines Flight 320 from Midway International Airport to New York City's LaGuardia Airport on February 3, 1959. The plane crashed in the East River and his body was not recovered. His estate was paid $287,000 by the insurance company.

Successor Firm - Metropolitan Structures

After his death, his real estate firm, Herbert Realty Co., was renamed Metropolitan Structures. Under the leadership of Bernard Weissbourd, the firm developed Illinois Center in Chicago and other properties throughout the United States including
Business People: Metropolitan Venture By Sandra Salmans New York Times, July 22, 1981 * Colonnade and Pavilion Apartment Buildings, Newark, NJ (1960) *

One Charles Center One Charles Center is a historic office building located in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. It is a 23-story aluminum and glass International Style skyscraper designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and constructed in 1962. It was the first mod ...

, Baltimore, MD (1962) * Highfield House, Baltimore, MD (1964) * 2400 N. Lakeview, Chicago, IL (1964) * 100 and 200 rue de Gaspé,

Nuns' Island Nuns' Island (officially Île des Sœurs; ) is an island located in the Saint Lawrence River that forms a part of the city of Montreal, Quebec. It is part of the borough of Verdun. History Originally called Île Saint-Paul in honour of the f ...

, Montreal, Canada (1962) *

Nuns' Island gas station The Nun's Island gas station was a modernist-style filling station in Montreal built in 1969 and attributed to Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. Joe Fujikawa, who worked for Mies, was the project architect. Closed for several years, it was later conver ...

, Montreal, Canada (1969) * Illinois Center and 111 East Wacker Drive, Chicago, IL

References

Bibliography

*They Built Chicago: Entrepreneurs Who Shaped a Great City's Architecture by Miles L. Berger August, 1992

Mies, IIT, and the Second Chicago School Ryerson and Burnham Archives, The Art Institute of Chicago {{DEFAULTSORT:Greenwald, Herbert 1915 births 1959 deaths Accidental deaths in New York (state) Businesspeople from Chicago Businesspeople from St. Louis Military personnel from St. Louis University of Chicago alumni Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1959 Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in the United States Yeshiva University alumni 20th-century American businesspeople