Background
Herbert "Squiff" Greenwald was born and raised in Saint Louis. He used money inherited from the death of his mother in 1949 to go into the real estate business with Samuel Katzin.
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Herbert Greenwald
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Education
After serving in the military during World World War II, he studied philosophy at University of Chicago.
Career
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, Le Corbusier, Eliel Saarinen, and Walter Gropius.
He followed Gropius"s recommendation to hire Mies van der Rohe.
Greenwald utilized Mies on several projects including: The Promontory, 5530 South. South Shore Drive, Chicago, Illinois (1949) 860-880 Lake Shore Drive Apartments, Chicago, Illinois (1949-1951) Esplanade Apartments, 900-910 North. Lake Shore Drive, Chicago, Illinois (1953-1956) Commonwealth Plaza, 330-340 West. Diversey Parkway, Chicago, Illinois (1953-1956) Lafayette Park, Detroit, Michigan (1955-1963) Additionally, he worked with Mies on several unbuilt designs including: 1300 Lake Shore Drive Apartments, Chicago, Illinois (1953-1956) Chestnut and DeWitt Apartments, Chicago, Illinois (1953-1956) Commonwealth Promenade Apartments, Chicago, Illinois (1953-1956) Note: Two of the buildings were built. Herbert Greenwald House, Lake Forest, Illinois (1955) Diversey-Lake Shore Drive Apartments, Chicago, Illinois (1956-1958) Hyde Park Urban Renewal, Chicago, Illinois (1959) Lafayette Park Detroit, Michigan (1955-1963) Bay Street at Hyde San Francisco, California (1958) 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 The home is now part of the Elmhurst Art Museum in Illinois. 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. After his death, his real estate firm, Herbert Realty Company, 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 Colonnade and Pavilion Apartment Buildings, Newark, New Jersey (1960) One Charles Center, Baltimore, Doctor of Medicine (1962) Highfield House, Baltimore, Doctor of Medicine (1964) 2400 North. Lakeview, Chicago, Illinois (1964) 100 and 200 rue de Gaspé, Nuns" Island, Montreal, Canada (1962) Nuns" Island gas station, Montreal, Canada (1969) Illinois Center and 111 East Wacker Drive, Chicago, Illinois.
