Nancy Lee Bass

Nancy Lee Bass (1917–2013) was an American philanthropist. She was known as the 'First Lady of Fort Worth, Texas.'

Early life

Nancy Lee Muse was born on March 7, 1917 in Fort Worth, Texas. Her father was Ewell H. Muse and her mother, Roberta Maddox Muse. She grew up in Fort Worth, where she learned to play the piano from a young age. She was educated at Central High School, later known as Paschal High School, in Fort Worth. She graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English in 1937.

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. 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. She also served as Vice President of the Sid W. Richardson Foundation, named for her husband's uncle. 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. Additionally, she was a member of the Junior League, the Jewel Charity Ball, and the Fort Worth Garden Club. She was also a past President of The Assembly. She became a member of the First United Methodist Church of Fort Worth in 1925. In 1993, she donated new church bells, which were placed in the east tower.

With her husband, she donated US$1 million to fifty different organizations in 1991, for their fiftieth anniversary. They also donated US$8 million to the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra. They also donated art to the Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth. 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. 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.

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.

Personal life

She married Perry Richardson Bass at the First Methodist Church of Fort Worth in 1941. They had met in a dance hall in Fort Worth. They had four sons:

• Lee Bass.
• Ed Bass.
• Robert Bass.
• Sid Bass.

She became a widow upon his death in 2006.

Death

She died on February 28, 2013 in Fort Worth, Texas. She was ninety-five years old. Her wake took place at the Nancy Lee and Perry R. Bass Performance Hall in Fort Worth.