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Paul Schweikher Papers

An inventory of his papers at Syracuse University


Finding aid created by: MPK
Date: Aug 1978

Biographical History

Robert Paul Schweikher (1903-1997) was born in Denver in 1903 and began his architectural training at the University of Colorado in 1921. After moving to Chicago in 1922, he enrolled in architecture and design classes at the The Art Institute of Chicago and then at the Armour Institute of Technology. While studying in Chicago, he also worked at the architectural firm of Lowe and Bollenbacher and, later, with David Adler. He completed his bachelor's degree at the Yale School of Architecture in 1929. After graduation, Schweikher spent a year in European study and travel, funded by a fellowship from Yale. Schweikher returned to Chicago in 1930 and worked for several local architects, including George Fred Keck and Philip Maher. His early reputation as an avant-garde architect was bolstered by his inclusion in the 1933 landmark exhibition on modern architecture at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. In 1934, he became principal and senior partner in the firm of Lamb and Elting, renamed Schweikher and Elting in 1946. He left that partnership in 1953 to become chairman of the School of Architecture at Yale University, and also established a private practice of residential architecture. In 1958, Schweikher resigned his position at Yale to serve as head of the Deparment of Architecture at Carnegie Institute of Technology (now Carnegie-Mellon), retiring from that position in 1970. He subsquently moved to Arizona and opened a small private practice there. Schweikher died in Phoenix in 1997. (portions taken from Art Institute of Chicago interview with Schweikher)

Scope and Contents of the Collection

The Paul Schweikher Collection contains material relating to Schweikher's professional life during this period. General files, in alphabetical order, comprises correspondence and subject files for institutions and organizations (American Humanist Association, Carnegie Institute of Technology, Pennsylvania Democratic State Committee, Pennsylvania Society of Architecture, Southwestern Pennsylvania Regional Planning Commission, University of Buffalo), fellow architects (Donald Hisaka, Earl P. Carlin, Clovis Heimsath), and specific jobs (Court Place office building, Evanston Unitarian Church, Knoxville Branch Library, New Haven Teachers College, Watertown Library).

The Carnegie Institute of Technology subseries includes detailed material relating to Schweikher's tenure as head of CIT's Department of Architecture, such as course descriptions, curriculum, scholarships, salary and faculty meeting material. The Yale, CT subseries has similar material relating to Schweikher's tenure as chairman of Yale University's School of Architecture.

Restrictions

Access Restrictions:

The majority of our archival and manuscript collections are housed offsite and require advanced notice for retrieval. Researchers are encouraged to contact us in advance concerning the collection material they wish to access for their research.

Use Restrictions:

Written permission must be obtained from SCRC and all relevant rights holders before publishing quotations, excerpts or images from any materials in this collection.

Related Material

Special Collections Research Center holds the papers of a number of American architects. Please refer to the SCRC Subject Index for a full listing.

Subject Headings

Persons

Schweikher, Paul, 1903-1997.

Subjects

Architects -- United States.
Architectural design.
Architectural practice.
Architecture -- United States -- History -- 20th century.
Architecture, American.

Genres and Forms

Architectural drawings (visual works)
Architectural records.
Correspondence.
Specifications.

Occupations

Architects.

Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Preferred citation for this material is as follows:

Paul Schweikher Papers,
Special Collections Research Center,
Syracuse University Libraries

Table of Contents

General files

Inventory