Dr. Daniel P. Schwartz

Daniel P. Schwartz, M.D., of Stockbridge, MA, was an educator of psychiatry and psychoanalysis. He died on October 31, 2023, the day he turned 98.

Born and raised in Minneapolis, MN, the middle child of Louis Benjamin Schwartz and Anna Kleinman Schwartz.  Schwartz served in both the European and Pacific theaters in WWII. He received his Doctor of Medicine from the University of Minnesota School of Medicine in 1952. His psychiatric training was at the Yale School of Medicine where he went on to serve as Medical Director of the Yale Psychiatric Institute. His psychoanalytic training was completed at the Western New England Psychoanalytic Institute, where he also later became a faculty member. After establishing a private practice in Amherst, MA, Schwartz served as Medical Director of the Austen Riggs Center in Stockbridge, MA. During his tenure, he initiated numerous improvements and programs, and his scholarly work focused on schizophrenia, human development, and psychoanalysis and psychotherapeutic treatment of severe mental disorders. Much of his written work delineates the process by which people form internal psychological self-structures. His contributions to the field also include the many family members that have followed his footsteps into the profession.

Schwartz is survived by his loving wife of over 68 years, Patricia Webber Schwartz, of Stockbridge, MA, as well as their sons Gregory (Nancy) of Amherst, MA and Stephen(Annie O’Connor) of Wappingers Falls, NY; their daughter Nora Schwartz-Martin, M.D. (Frank Martin) of Amherst, MA; and nephew Robert Schwartz of Los Angeles, CA. He was predeceased by his son Peter, as well as by siblings Ruth Wolozin and Robert “Ted” Schwartz. He leaves behind six beloved grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

Dan leaves behind a golf bag; a lead foot; a love of classical guitar, literature, and chocolate cake; V8 juice with a huge carrot; a bevy of gadgets that were beyond his ability to use; a memory of his father laughing at the line "Barkis is willing" from the movie David Copperfield; a pair of scissors for mailing you clippings of The New Yorker; and a sincere interest in, and support of, the ambitions and passions of his loved ones. He leaves behind an innertube and a large umbrella catching the breeze, waves glinting off his sunglasses as he navigates Long Island Sound.