Necrology

Edward “Pete” Morris Bakwin '50

May. 13, 1928-Nov. 22, 2018

Edward “Pete” Morris Bakwin ’50, a banker/financial manager and collector of fine art of La Porte, Ind., was born on May 13, 1928, in New York City, a son of two prominent pediatricians and art collectors, the former Ruth Mary Morris and Harry Bakwin. He prepared for college at Phillips Exeter Academy.

At Hamilton, Bakwin was a member of the rowing team and Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity. He majored in art history and French. Bakwin served in the U.S. Army in the Far East from 1951 to 1952 before embarking on his career in finance.

In 1955, Bakwin joined Mid-City National Bank of Chicago and, beginning in 1962, served for many years as president and CEO of the group, which became MidCity Financial Corp., until 2011. Along the way he earned an M.B.A. from the University of Chicago in 1961. Bakwin also served as CEO of his family’s business, Darling-Delaware Corp., and three other companies. From 1987 to 1998, he teamed with several other “contrarians” to grow what would become one of the 10 largest onshore oil- and gas-drilling companies in Texas, according to an article published in the Fall 2010 Hamilton Alumni Review.

For his 50^th class reunion yearbook, Bakwin reminisced that his friends, including professor and artist Paul Parker, were among his fondest Hamilton memories. Art, indeed, continued to play a role in his life. The Bakwin family had long amassed an impressive collection that included paintings by Cézanne, Gauguin, Van Gogh, Matisse, Modigliani, and Picasso, among others. In addition to collecting works on canvas, Bakwin held an assortment of rare and first-edition books.

In 1999, a Cézanne still life that had been stolen from Bakwin’s parents 21 years earlier and subsequently returned sold at Sotheby’s in London for $29.3 million. Another Bakwin-owned treasure, a van Gogh titled “L’Arlésienne, Madame Ginoux,” brought $40.3 million at a sale at Christie’s in New York in 2006.

Throughout his lifetime, Bakwin remained a loyal supporter of Hamilton. He hosted alumni dinners and receptions in Chicago and gifted several works to the College’s permanent art collection. In 2014, he attended the dedication of the Wellin Museum of Art. His generosity extended to the Alexander Hamilton Institute in Clinton.

Outside of his business interests and the art world, Bakwin served as a trustee of Northwestern Memorial Hospital and the American Museum of Fly Fishing. He also was a member of the Chicago Crime Commission and the visiting committee of the University of Chicago Library.

Bawkin enjoyed fishing and worldwide travel on land and by yacht. Some 10 years ago he bought a closed hunting lodge about an hour from Chicago where he lived and maintained exhibition space for his art collection.

Edward M. Bakwin died on Nov. 22, 2018. He was 90 years old and is survived by a daughter and two granddaughters. His Hamilton legacy includes two brothers-in-law, Frederick Selch ’52 and Grant Selch ’54, and two nephews, Nicholas Selch ’79 and Gregory Selch ’88. His sister, Patricia Bakwin Selch, is a former Hamilton trustee.

Necrology Home