Joseph Regenstein Jr. (4 November 1923 – 4 March 1999) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

business leader and

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...

who donated more than $105 million to various

Chicago area The Chicago metropolitan area, also colloquially referred to as Chicagoland, is a metropolitan area in the Midwestern United States. Encompassing 10,286 sq mi (28,120 km2), the metropolitan area includes the city of Chicago, its suburbs and hint ...

institutions as President of the Joseph and Helen Regenstein Foundation. The son of

Joseph Regenstein Joseph Regenstein (1889 – 1957) was probably the son of Martin R. (* 1874 in Pasing near Munich – 1909 in Chicago) and Theodore Regensteiners nephew.Gudrun Azar et al. 'Ins Licht gerückt. Jüdische Lebenswege im Münchner Westen'. M� ...

, Regenstein served in the

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. He graduated from the

McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science Established in 1909, the Robert R. McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science is one of twelve constituent schools at Northwestern University. Most engineering classes are held in the Northwestern Technological Institute, Technological I ...

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

in 1946.Staff report (Spring 1999)
Joseph Regenstein Jr. (McC46)
''Northwestern Magazine'' He served as chairman and president of Velsicol Chemical Corp. until 1965 and was chairman of the board for the Arvey Corp., a paper-products firm created by his grandfather, until his family sold the company in 1988. Regenstein provided funds for numerous community-centered projects. Beneficiaries included the

Chicago Botanic Garden The Chicago Botanic Garden is a living plant museum situated on nine islands in the Cook County Forest Preserves. It features 27 display gardens in four natural habitats: McDonald Woods, Dixon Prairie, Skokie River Corridor, and Lakes and Shore ...

, the

Lincoln Park Zoo Lincoln Park Zoo, also known as Lincoln Park Zoological Gardens, is a zoo in Lincoln Park, Chicago, Illinois. The zoo was founded in 1868, making it the fourth oldest zoo in North America. It is also one of a few free admission zoos in the Unit ...

, the Regenstein Hall of Music for Northwestern University, and the

Joseph Regenstein Library The Joseph Regenstein Library, commonly known as "The Reg" is the main library of the University of Chicago, named after industrialist and philanthropist Joseph Regenstein. It is one of the largest repositories of books in the world and is noted f ...

at the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...

. Other funding recipients included the

Brookfield Zoo Brookfield Zoo, also known as the Chicago Zoological Park, is a zoo located in the Chicago suburb of Brookfield, Illinois. It houses around 450 species of animals in an area of . It opened on July 1, 1934, and quickly gained international recogni ...

, the

John G. Shedd Aquarium Shedd Aquarium (formally the John G. Shedd Aquarium) is an indoor public aquarium in Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. Opened on May 30, 1930, the aquarium was for some time the largest indoor facility in the world. Today it holds about ...

, Michael Reese Hospital and Medical Center, and the

Field Museum of Natural History The Field Museum of Natural History (FMNH), also known as The Field Museum, is a natural history museum in Chicago, Illinois, and is one of the largest such museums in the world. The museum is popular for the size and quality of its educational ...

. He died of cancer at

Northwestern Memorial Hospital Northwestern Memorial Hospital (NMH) is a nationally ranked academic medical center located on Northwestern University’s Chicago campus in Streeterville, Chicago, Illinois. It is the flagship campus for Northwestern Medicine and the primary ...

.Fornek, Scott (March 7, 1999 ). Joseph Regenstein Jr., arts patron. ''

Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has the second largest circulation among Chicago newspapers, after the ''Chicago T ...

'' The Joseph Regenstein Jr. School of the Chicago Botanic Garden was named in his honor.

References

External links

Joseph Regenstein Library
1923 births 1999 deaths Robert R. McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science alumni University of Chicago people 20th-century American businesspeople People associated with the Field Museum of Natural History 20th-century philanthropists United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II {{Philanthropist-stub