An Extraordinary Life: Peter McBride graduated from JTHS and became a prominent architect

Editor's note: This Extraordinary Life is a profile of Peter McBride provided by the Joliet Township High School District as a "JTHS Alumni Spotlight" focused on the extraordinary graduate and his career as an architect. McBride died in 2011.

JOLIET – Architect Frank Lloyd Wright once said, “A great architect is not made by way of a brain nearly so much as he is made by way of a cultivated, enriched heart.”

These words resonate with the life of the late Joliet Township High School alumnus Peter McBride whose architectural designs that stand today throughout the country and the world.

As a high school student McBride was a leader in many activities. He was a member of the JTHS basketball team and as president of the class of 1954. He also participated in college preparatory, the senior play, student council, Hi-Y, football, baseball and served as junior class president.

McBride served the country as part of the United States Marine Corps and the United States Marine Corps Reserve. He studied civil engineering at Joliet Junior College and the University of Illinois-Chicago and studied architecture at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

At the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, McBride was taught by Wright. McBride’s career flourished after receiving the NCARB Registration and architectural licenses from 16 different states throughout the U.S.

McBride had a diversified portfolio of successful projects spanning more than thirty years. Projects included office buildings, research facilities, medical facilities, commercial projects, educational facilities, industrial buildings, government buildings and parking structures.

During his career, McBride was vice president and senior project director of Ellerbe Becket in Minneapolis, the second largest architectural firm in the United States with 800 employees.

McBride was also the president and owner of McBride Architecture, located in California. He also owned and managed Schmidt, Garden & Erikson in Chicago with 300 employees and formed SGE West when he moved to California.

He served as a guest instructor for three years with the Ohio State University College of Hospital Administration graduate program.

McBride worked on a joint ventured major project with Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, widely regarded as one of the pioneers of modernist architecture. McBride managed many projects costing over $100 million, secured additional commissions from most clients, and managed projects in such countries as Iran, Saudi Arabia and Singapore.

He won the International Competition for the design of the Tan Tock Seng Hospital in Singapore. He won the American Institute of Architects’ National Design Award for his design of the Allstate Insurance Company’s Headquarters in Northbrook.

McBride was also awarded three Medical Facility Awards by the American Institute of Architects. The Chicago Housing Authority awarded McBride for designing a small economical home on a 25-foot-wide lot.

"He developed MS around 1985 or so and ultimately passed away in 2011," said lifelong friend Lee Heilman. "During his final years he used a wheelchair 24-7. Even so, he was still able to drive. In my opinion, he was truly a remarkable person."

• To feature someone in "An Extraordinary Life," contact Denise M. Baran-Unland at 815-280-4122 or dunland@shawmedia.com.