Nancy Lee Bass
| Nancy Lee Bass | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Nancy Lee Muse March 7, 1917 Fort Worth, Texas |
| Died |
February 28, 2013 (aged 95) Fort Worth, Texas |
| Occupation | Philanthropist |
| Religion | United Methodist Church |
| Spouse(s) | Perry Richardson Bass |
| Children |
Sid Bass Lee Bass Edward Bass Robert Bass |
| Parent(s) |
Ewell H. Muse Roberta Maddox Muse |
| Relatives |
Sid W. Richardson (great-uncle-in-law) Hyatt Bass (granddaughter) |
Nancy Lee Bass (1917–2013) was an American philanthropist. She was known as the 'First Lady of Fort Worth, Texas.'[1]
Early life
Nancy Lee Muse was born on March 7, 1917 in Fort Worth, Texas.[2][3] Her father was Ewell H. Muse and her mother, Roberta Maddox Muse.[2] She grew up in Fort Worth, where she learned to play the piano from a young age.[3][4] She was educated at Central High School, later known as Paschal High School, in Fort Worth.[3][4] She graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English in 1937.[2][4][5]
Philanthropy
She donated to the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History, and the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame, all of which are based in Fort Worth.[5] She served on the Boards of Trustees of the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, the University of Texas at Austin and the Smithsonian Institution.[3] She also served as Vice President of the Sid W. Richardson Foundation, named for her husband's uncle.[1] Moreover, the Nancy Lee and Perry R. Bass Performance Hall was named after her husband and her, after her friend, pianist Van Cliburn, suggested it.[5][1][6] Additionally, she was a member of the Junior League, the Jewel Charity Ball, and the Fort Worth Garden Club.[1] She was also a past President of The Assembly. [1] She became a member of the First United Methodist Church of Fort Worth in 1925.[7] In 1993, she donated new church bells, which were placed in the east tower.[7]
With her husband, she donated US$1 million to fifty different organizations in 1991, for their fiftieth anniversary.[3][8] They also donated US$8 million to the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra.[5] They also donated art to the Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth.[9] The collection includes Street in Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer and Enclosed Field with Plowman by Vincent Van Gogh as well as Fruit Dish, Bottle, and Guitar by Pablo Picasso.[9] It also includes paintings by Claude Monet, Camille Pissarro, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Édouard Vuillard, Pierre Bonnard, Henri Matisse, Joan Miró, Fernand Léger, Marc Chagall and Mark Rothko as well as sculptures by Auguste Rodin, Aristide Maillol and Simon Segal.[9]
She was the recipient of the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame Gloria Lupton Tennison Pioneer Award and the Distinguished Alumnus Award from the University of Texas Ex-Students Association as well as the Golden Deeds Award from the Exchange Club of Fort Worth.[1][8]
Personal life
She married Perry Richardson Bass at the First Methodist Church of Fort Worth in 1941.[3][5][10] They had met in a dance hall in Fort Worth.[3] They had four sons:
She became a widow upon his death in 2006.[5]
Death
She died on February 28, 2013 in Fort Worth, Texas.[5] She was ninety-five years old.[5] Her wake took place at the Nancy Lee and Perry R. Bass Performance Hall in Fort Worth.[2]
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 Steve Campbell, Nancy Lee Bass was the "first lady of Fort Worth", Fort Worth Star-Telegram, March 1, 2013
- 1 2 3 4 Nancy Lee Bass, 95, eulogized as philanthropic 'queen' of Fort Worth, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, March 16, 2013
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Alan Peppard, Obituary: Nancy Lee Bass, Fort Worth matriarch, dies at 95, The Dallas Morning News, March 1, 2013
- 1 2 3 Texas Trail of Fame: Perry and Nancy Lee Bass
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Nancy Lee Bass dies at 95, WFAA, March 1, 2013
- ↑ Dionne Anglin, Fort Worth's Nancy Lee Bass dies, Fox 4, March 2, 2013
- 1 2 First United Methodist Church of Fort Worth Honors Nancy Lee Bass in March 7 Bell Tribute, Business Wire, March 5, 2013
- 1 2 Chris Van Horne, Fort Worth Philanthropist Nancy Lee Bass Dies at 95, NBCFW, March 1, 2013
- 1 2 3 Kimbell Art Museum: The Collection of Nancy Lee and Perry R. Bass
- ↑ Nancy Lee Bass, 95, matriarch of Fort Worth’s leading philanthropists , Chicago Sun Times, March 2, 2013