DALLAS, Oct. 22 (UPI) -- Nelson Bunker Hunt, a member of one of Texas's best-known oil dynasties, has died at 88.
At the time of his death, Hunt was living in Caruth Haven Court in Dallas, an assisted living facility.
Hunt, the son of H.L. Hunt, was known as a successful oilman and a patron of right-wing causes, including the John Birch Society. But his greatest notoriety came from an attempt he and his brother, William Herbert Hunt, made to corner the silver market in the late 1970s.
The brothers were billionaires when they began speculating in silver, eventually acquiring more than half the U.S. supply. But a crash in the price of silver in 1980 cost them much of their wealth, and both eventually filed for bankruptcy.
By the time of his death, Hunt had rebuilt his fortune, although it was hundreds of millions rather than billions. He owned a company involved in oil drilling in North Africa, Titan Resources Corp, and served as chairman of Hunt Exploration and Mining Co.
Hunt gave large sums to conservative groups in the 1970s and to Campus Crusade for Christ.
He also was involved in thoroughbred breeding and racing for more than 30 years, with horses winning major races, but the bankruptcy in 1988 forced him to sell his stable.
In later years, he began buying horses again.
Hunt was born in El Dorado, Ark. He attended the University of Texas before serving in the Navy in World War II and Southern Methodist University after his discharge,
He was known for being unpretentious, dressing in off-the-rack suits and driving aging cars. But Hunt, a an evangelical Christian, was also known for anti-Semitic statements.
