George E. Kassabaum (December 5, 1920 – August 14, 1982) was an American architect, and one of the co-founders of the HOK architectural firm.

Early life

George Edward Kassabaum was born in

Atchison, Kansas Atchison is a city and county seat of Atchison County, Kansas, United States, along the Missouri River. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 10,885. The city is named in honor of US Senator David Rice Atchison from Missouri ...

. He was the only child of George Kassabaum and Dorothy Kassabaum. From a very young age he expressed an interest in becoming an architect. He graduated from Classen Senior High School in

Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, a ...

in 1938. He attended

Washington University in St. Louis Washington University in St. Louis (WashU or WUSTL) is a private research university with its main campus in St. Louis County, and Clayton, Missouri. Founded in 1853, the university is named after George Washington. Washington University is r ...

where he met his future partners, George Hellmuth and

Gyo Obata Gyo Obata (小圃暁, February 28, 1923 – March 8, 2022) was an American architect, the son of painter Chiura Obata and his wife, Haruko Obata, a floral designer. In 1955, he co-founded the global architectural firm HOK (formerly Hellmuth, O ...

. He earned both a bachelor's and master's degrees in architecture before graduating in 1947. Kassabaum graduated in 1947 and began working for a local architecture firm in St. Louis founded by two faculty members of Washington University.

Career

In 1955, he co-founded Hellmuth, Obata + Kassabaum, now known as HOK. He was national president of the

American Institute of Architects The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to su ...

from 1968 to 1969.

Honors

* AIA Fellowship, 1967 *Honorary Fellow, Royal Architectural Institute of Canada, 1969 *Honorary Fellow, La Sociedad de Arquitectos Mexicanos, 1969 *Honorary Fellow, La Sociedad Columbiana de Arquitectos, 1969 *Washington University Alumni Citation, 1972 *Missouri Architect of the Year Award, 1978

Philanthropic service

Kassabaum was a board member of Washington University and an Eliot Society president.

Personal life

Kassabaum married Marjory Verser in 1949. The couple had three children: Douglas, Anne, and Karen. Kassabaum died at Barnes Hospital, St. Louis, on August 14, 1982, at the age of 61, having suffered a stroke three days earlier at his home in Ladue, a suburb of St. Louis.

External links

* HOK Co-founder George Kassabaum (1921-1982) o
YouTube
*60 Years of Design and Innovation at HOK o
Youtube
* HO
website

References

1921 births 1982 deaths 20th-century American architects American company founders Washington University in St. Louis alumni Architects from St. Louis Presidents of the American Institute of Architects Fellows of the American Institute of Architects {{architect-stub