After his death, it was discovered that William, in his will, had bequeathed $2,500,000 to the University of Texas at Austin. He stated that it was his desire that it be used, along with money already donated by Miss Ima, for "far reaching benefit to the people of Texas."
There were legal challenges to the will that held up his gift until 1939 when the University received $1.9 million. In 1940, after discussion with her brother Michael, the executor of the estate, Miss Ima set up The Hogg Foundation for Mental Health at the University.
This foundation funds mental hygiene clinics, teacher training, research, along with mental health care for the poor and aged. The foundation also awards five $5,000 annual scholarships for those pursuing a Master's degree in social work.
Miss Ima and her brother were also avid art collectors. They collected Native American art as well as European works by such artists as Chagall and Matisse.
Additionally, Miss Ima was one of a very small number of people who believed, at that time, that American antiques were undervalued. As her collection grew, she was often asked to loan pieces for exhibit in New England, but she always refused, saying, "They have got plenty of things up there."
She was prescient. A museum in the northeast had made an offer to a New York antiques dealer on a beautiful tall chest. Miss Ima came in and offered to pay what the dealer was asking. He sold the piece to her on the spot. The museum curator came back and was stunned and asked why he had sold the piece to a Texas oil millionairess. The dealer said he had sold it to her because she realized the true worth of the piece and did not mess around on the price.
The beautiful River Oaks residential area of Houston was purchased and developed by the Hoff brothers in the 1920s. The Hogg children chose the largest lot - fourteen and one-half acres - for their home which would display the family art and antiques collection.
William and Ima moved into the home in 1928 and Miss Ima christened it Bayou Bend. In 1939, she donated over 100 items to the Houston Museum of Fine Arts and in 1941, when her brother Michael died, she donated his collection of works by Frederic Remington to the museum.
This collection is known as the Hogg Brothers Collection and consists of 53 oil paintings and 10 watercolors. It is considered one of the most important groupings of Western paintings on display in an American museum.
In 1944 Miss Ima donated her Native American art to the Houston museum. Her collection included 168 pieces of pottery, 95 pieces of jewelry and 81 paintings.
In 1958, President Dwight Eisenhower signed legislation to create a national cultural center in Washington D.C. In 1960, Eisenhower appointed Miss Ima to serve on the committee to plan the new center, and in 1961, Jacqueline Kennedy named her to an 18-member advisory committee to work with the fine arts committee in seeking historical furniture for the White House.
In 1950, Miss Ima restored the Varner Plantation and gave each room a different theme. She then donated it to the State if Texas and in 1958, it was dedicated as a state historical site. Today the plantation has been again restored and it is now maintained by the Texas Historical Commission.
Next Miss Ima turned her attention to her Houston home, Bayou Bend, which housed some of her personal collection of art and antiques. It has been said that she had one of the finest collections of American art.
In the late 1950s, she said, "I have been collecting American furniture until I have so much I don't know what to do, so I have decided to give it to a museum." She had the original Bayou Bend architect, John Staub, to prepare her home to become a museum.
Several residents of River oaks sued to prevent Bayou Bend becoming a museum but Miss Ima prevailed in court. In 1965 she moved out of her home and the new museum opened in 1966 as The Museum of Fine Arts in Houston - Bayou Bend Collection and Gardens. At the dedication, it was called the largest, finest collection of American furniture and antiquities outside of the famed Winterthur collection.
In 1963, Miss Ima bought property in Round Top and intended to move an historic building on the land to Bayou bend. However, this proved to be impractical and she moved to Round Top and personally supervised the restoration of an old coaching inn, the Winedale Inn. She then donated the property to The University of Texas at Austin. It is now an outdoor museum and annually hosts the event "Shakespeare at Winedale."
Miss Ima was a generous benefactor who believed that inherited money was a public trust. She was described by the University of Houston as someone who was "concerned with the welfare of all Texans," a zealous proponent of mental health care, and committed to public education."
Miss Ima Hogg died on August 19th, 1965 at the age of 93.
When former Governor of Texas Allan Shivers presented her as the first woman to receive the Distinguished Alumnus Award of the University of Texas Ex-Students Association, he closed his remarks with this statement: "Some persons create history. Some record it. Others restore and conserve it. She has done all three."
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