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Harry W. Bass Jr.

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Harry W. Bass, Jr.
Born
Harry Wesley Bass, Jr.

January 6, 1927
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S.
DiedApril 4, 1998 (aged 71)
Dallas, Texas, U.S.
Resting placeSparkman-Hillcrest Memorial Park Cemetery
EducationSt. Mark's School of Texas
Alma materSouthern Methodist University
OccupationBusinessman
Political partyRepublican Party
Spouse(s)Mary Mathewson
Doris Wampler Calhoun
Parent(s)Harry W. Bass, Sr.
Wilma Schuessler
RelativesRichard Bass (brother)

Harry W. Bass, Jr. (January 6, 1927 – April 4, 1998) was an American businessman, coin collector and philanthropist. He was a leader of the Texas Republican Party in the 1950s. He inherited the Goliad Oil and Gas Corporation with his brother in 1970. He was an early investor in the ski resorts of Aspen and Vail in Colorado. He was the main developer of the Beaver Creek Resort in Beaver Creek, Colorado. He amassed one of the world's great coin collections [1] and served as the president of the American Numismatic Society.

Early life

Harry W. Bass, Jr. was born on January 6, 1927 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. His father, Harry W. Bass, Sr., was a co-founder of the Goliad Corporation and the Goliad Oil and Gas Corporation.[2][3] He had a brother, Richard Bass.[4]

Bass was educated at the St. Mark's School of Texas, then known as the Texas Country Day School.[5] He attended Southern Methodist University.[5] During World War II, he served in the South Pacific with the United States Navy.[5]

Career

Bass started his career in Calgary, Canada for his father's oil and gas companies.[5]

Bass started a voter data-collection company and served as the finance chairman of the Republican Party of Dallas County in the late 1950s.[2] The company proved to be a financial failure.[2] Meanwhile, he resigned from the Dallas County GOP in 1957.[6] By 1960, alongside Republican Congressman Bruce Alger, he staged a demonstration against Democratic Congressman (later President) Lyndon Johnson when the latter visited Dallas.[7][8]

Bass inherited his father's oil and gas investments in the Goliad Corporation and the Goliad Oil and Gas Corporation in 1970.[2] He was the co-owner of H. W. Bass and Sons, a private company headquartered in Dallas.[2]

Bass invested in the development of Aspen, Colorado was a ski resort in 1955.[2] Later, he owned 7 percent of the Aspen Ski Corporation with his brother.[2] Meanwhile, he invested in the development of Vail, Colorado. He became majority shareholder of Vail Associates, Inc., owning 57 percent in 1978.[2] Meanwhile, he served as its chairman by 1979.[2] Meanwhile, he invested in the development of the Beaver Creek Resort in Beaver Creek, Colorado.[2]

Numismatics and philanthropy

Bass began collecting coins in the mid-1960s.[9] He regularly attended coin auctions.[10] By 1976, he had invested "millions of dollars" in coins.[9] He added that he had 25 per cent of my portfolio in coins," mostly of which were gold coins from the 19th century to 1933.[9] They were held in a trust.[9]

Bass became a member of the American Numismatic Society in 1966.[11] By 1979, he was its president.[2]

Bass founded the Harry W. Bass, Jr. Research Foundation in 1991.[12] One of its goals was to support numismatics.[12]

Personal life

Bass married Mary Mathewson in 1947.[5] He later married Doris Wampler Calhoun.

Death and legacy

Bass died on April 4, 1998 in Dallas, Texas. He was buried in the Sparkman-Hillcrest Memorial Park Cemetery.

Shortly after his death, the Harry W. Bass Jr. Research Foundation was merged with his late father's philanthropic foundation, the Harry Bass Foundation, to form the Harry W. Bass, Jr. Foundation.[12] The endowment comes from oil investments as well as the proceeds from auctions of his coin collection.[12] For example, thirty coins from his collection were auctioned in 2014 in Dallas.[13]

See also

References

  1. ^ [1]
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Heinsen, Lindsay (February 1979). "Owning a Piece Of the Rockies: How Harry Bass got to be king of the mountain". D Magazine. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
  3. ^ "Oil Executive Dies In Dallas". The Odessa American. Odessa, Texas. February 19, 1970. p. 51. Retrieved January 17, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |registration= ignored (|url-access= suggested) (help)
  4. ^ Peppard, Alan; Granberry, Michael. "Dallas exec and mountain climber Dick Bass dies at 85". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
  5. ^ a b c d e Elam, Leslie A. "Harry W. Bass, Jr. Biography". Harry W. Bass, Jr. Foundation. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
  6. ^ "Bass Quits GOP Post". The Brownwood Bulletin. Brownwood, Texas. December 13, 1957. p. 8. Retrieved January 17, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |registration= ignored (|url-access= suggested) (help)
  7. ^ "Lyndon Bitter At GOP Dallas Rudeness". The Eagle. Bryan, Texas. November 6, 1960. p. 1. Retrieved January 17, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |registration= ignored (|url-access= suggested) (help)
  8. ^ "Rude Reception Is Given L.B.J. Friday In Dallas". The Mexia Daily News. Mexia, Texas. November 6, 1960. p. 1. Retrieved January 17, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |registration= ignored (|url-access= suggested) (help)
  9. ^ a b c d Reif, Rita (April 7, 1976). "Coin collectors an optimistic bunch". The Corpus Christi Caller Times. Corpus Christi, Texas. p. 25. Retrieved January 17, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. Harry W. Bass Jr., an oil producer who flew to New York to bid on dozens of gold coins at the recent sale, observed the other day that he is not certain what return he has made on the millions of dollars he has invested in coins since he started buying 10 years ago. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |registration= ignored (|url-access= suggested) (help)
  10. ^ "Coin Game Stakes And Players Vary". The Lincoln Star. Lincoln, Nebraska. April 18, 1976. p. 72. Retrieved January 17, 2016 – via Newspapers.com. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |registration= ignored (|url-access= suggested) (help)
  11. ^ a b c d "History of the Foundation". Harry W. Bass Jr. Foundation. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
  12. ^ "30 coins from 19th century to sell at Rosemont auction". Daily Herald. August 7, 2014. Retrieved January 17, 2016.
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