HOK Founder George Kassabaum (1921-1982)

George E. Kassabaum, FAIA, a native of Fort Scott, Kansas, knew at age 10 that he wanted to be an architect.

Kassabaum was a 1947 graduate of the Washington University School of Architecture who stayed on there to teach design for five years before leaving to begin the practice of architecture. In 1955, he became one of the founders of Hellmuth, Obata and Kassabaum (HOK).

Affectionately described by one of his partners as "an architect's architect," Kassabaum became HOK's chief proponent for quality project management, helping the firm became one of the nation's leading full-service architectural firms.

Kassabaum was a board member of both the St. Louis Symphony and of Washington University, where he also served as Eliot Society President. George served as National President of the American Institute of Architects in 1968-1969 and later became Chancellor of the AIA's College of Fellows.

In 1982 he died unexpectedly of a massive cerebral hemorrhage. Shortly before his death, Kassabaum said this about HOK and his career: "There is a tremendous personal satisfaction that comes from looking back at a building you were part of 25 years ago. It has influenced people....and there it stands. It's a thing architects have that not too many other people do."

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