Thomas Myers Hunt (May 27, 1923 – November 11, 2008) was an American petroleum industry executive who was chairman of Hunt Petroleum and an advisor to his uncle H. L. Hunt, the founder of the family dynasty.

Biography

Hunt was born in

Pana, Illinois Pana is a small town in Christian County, Illinois, United States. A small portion is in Shelby County. The population was 5,199 at the 2020 census. History The area around Pana was first organized as Stone Coal Precinct in 1845. The county's ...

. He served during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

in the Pacific with the 380th Bomb Group of the

United States Army Air Corps The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1926 and 1941. After World War I, as early aviation became an increasingly important part of modern warfare, a philosophical r ...

in the Pacific Theater. Hunt flew on the first bomber from the 380th to land in Japan, and flew on a B-24 Liberator representing the 380th during a flyover of

Tokyo Bay is a bay located in the southern Kantō region of Japan, and spans the coasts of Tokyo, Kanagawa Prefecture, and Chiba Prefecture. Tokyo Bay is connected to the Pacific Ocean by the Uraga Channel. The Tokyo Bay region is both the most populous ...

to mark the Japanese surrender on the USS ''Missouri''. Hunt attended the

University of Arkansas The University of Arkansas (U of A, UArk, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Fayetteville, Arkansas. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and the largest university in the state. Founded as Arkansas ...

, where he studied

chemical engineering Chemical engineering is an engineering field which deals with the study of operation and design of chemical plants as well as methods of improving production. Chemical engineers develop economical commercial processes to convert raw materials int ...

, but at his uncle Herbert's suggestion, he worked for the family oil interests in

Wyoming Wyoming () is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the southwest, and Colorado to the s ...

North Dakota North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minnesota to the east, So ...

, and in

Montana Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columb ...

Williston Basin The Williston Basin is a large intracratonic sedimentary basin in eastern Montana, western North Dakota, South Dakota, southern Saskatchewan, and south-western Manitoba that is known for its rich deposits of petroleum and potash. The basin is a ...

. He was ultimately assigned to manage the Hunt family operations in

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

.Krauss, Clifford
"Tom Hunt, Executive in His Family’s Oil Business, Dies at 85"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'', November 11, 2008. Accessed November 11, 2008. Hunt played a major role in the negotiations of the June 2008 acquisition of Hunt Petroleum by

Fort Worth, Texas Fort Worth is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Texas and the 13th-largest city in the United States. It is the county seat of Tarrant County, covering nearly into four other counties: Denton, Johnson, Parker, and Wise. Accord ...

-based

XTO Energy XTO Energy Inc. is an American energy company and subsidiary of ExxonMobil principally operating in North America. Acquired by ExxonMobil in 2010 and based out of Spring, Texas, it is involved with the production, processing, transportation, an ...

for $4.186 billion. Tom Hunt served as the trustee for the family trusts of Margaret Hunt Hill and Hassie Hunt which each owned half of Hunt Petroleum. Al Hill III, grandson of Margaret Hunt Hill, sued his father and other family members to block the sale, including demands that Tom Hunt be removed as trustee. Hunt spoke at the October 2008 unveiling of plans the Tom Hunt Energy Hall to be located at the Museum of Nature & Science's new location in the Victory Park development. The name recognizes a contribution of $10 million made to the museum by Hunt Petroleum in 2005.Granberry, Michael
"Museum of Nature & Science unveil plans for energy hall"
''

The Dallas Morning News ''The Dallas Morning News'' is a daily newspaper serving the Dallas–Fort Worth area of Texas, with an average print circulation of 65,369. It was founded on October 1, 1885 by Alfred Horatio Belo as a satellite publication of the '' Galvest ...

'', October 23, 2008. Accessed November 12, 2008. Part of a clan that ''

'' described as "a family of great egos", Tom Hunt was a plain-living bachelor, who worked out of a sparse office and answered his own phone. He lived in a modest townhouse in

University Park, Texas University Park is a city in Dallas County, Texas, United States of America, in suburban Dallas. The population was 23,068 at the 2010 census. The city is home to Southern Methodist University. University Park is bordered on the north, east and we ...

and enjoyed gardening and making nut candy. He never amassed the huge personal fortune of many of his relatives. Hunt died at age 85 on November 11, 2008 in

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

at the

Baylor University Medical Center Baylor University Medical Center (Baylor Dallas or BUMC), part of Baylor Scott & White Health, is a not-for-profit hospital in Dallas, Texas. It has 1,025 licensed beds and is one of the major centers for patient care, medical training and rese ...

. The cause of death was

leukemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ...

.Peppard, Alan
"Tom Hunt, former chairman of Hunt Petroleum, dies of cancer"
''

'', November 11, 2008. Accessed November 12, 2008.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hunt, Tom 1923 births 2008 deaths Hunt family Deaths from cancer in Texas Deaths from leukemia People from Pana, Illinois People from University Park, Texas University of Arkansas alumni United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II Military personnel from Illinois United States Army Air Forces soldiers