Margaret McDermott, who personified the "greatest generation" of givers in Dallas philanthropy and who bestowed millions upon institutions linked to the arts, education and science, died Thursday. She was 106.

Her daughter, Mary McDermott Cook, confirmed the death shortly after 3 a.m.

Margaret McDermott at her home in 2004. (Nan Coulter)

Born in Austin on Feb. 18, 1912, before the start of World War I, the University of Texas alumna began her post-collegiate years as a journalist, her byline showing up first in the Dallas Times Herald and later The Dallas Morning News, where she worked as society editor.

During the gloom of the Great Depression, she wrote about 1930s debutante balls and charity events in the faded elegance of such venues as the Mural Room of the Baker Hotel on Commerce Street.

But it was her philanthropy that solidified her legacy in the annals of Dallas history. She and her husband, Eugene McDermott, who died in 1973, were among the giants of local givers.

She married Mr. McDermott in 1952. He co-founded Geophysical Service Inc. and its offspring, Texas Instruments, and thereby introduced his wife to a world she had known only as a journalist. By themselves, or through their foundation, the couple allocated millions to civic, cultural and educational recipients, including the Dallas Museum of Art, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of Texas at Dallas.

Her husband co-founded the Graduate Research Center of the Southwest in 1961, which became UTD. In 2000, his widow followed up her husband's largesse by donating $32 million to UTD to establish the Eugene McDermott Scholars Program.

In 2004, she received the Santa Rita Award, the highest honor given for philanthropy by the UT system. UT-Austin had previously honored her in 1977 as one of its distinguished alumni.

As recently as last year, Mrs. McDermott was still bestowing gifts on UTD. She endowed the school with yet another major donation, the Richard Brettell Award in the Arts. The award mandates that, every other year, UTD will honor an artist "whose body of work demonstrates a lifetime of achievement in their field." Each artist so honored receives $150,000. The first recipient was acclaimed landscape architect Peter Walker, whose designs include the outdoor portion of the Nasher Sculpture Center and the 9/11 memorial in New York City.

Walker last saw Mrs. McDermott in early April, when she flew him and his entire staff to Dallas from their headquarters in Berkeley, Calif.

"We saw everything," Walker said. "We saw things we had worked with her on. We saw things she had worked with Ray Nasher on. We saw the Arboretum, which is so beautiful."

Walker met Mrs. McDermott in 2006 and has completed $30 million of work at UTD, where, he says, "we rebuilt the landscape of the entire campus. And we've done that in 12 years."

The award given to Walker parallels one at MIT, which every even-numbered year since 1974 has honored "rising, innovative talents" in the arts by awarding them $100,000. The MIT honor is named the Eugene McDermott Award in the Arts.

Despite the lavish nature of the gifts she gave, Mrs. McDermott was anything but a headline-seeker. She avoided the limelight as aggressively as she followed her passion of elevating education and bringing art and beauty to the masses. Dallas honored her by attaching her name to a major landmark, the Margaret McDermott Bridge, designed by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava.

Mrs. McDermott once told a critic for The News that she had a habit of brushing aside requests for interviews and profiles by noting that she "was in journalism for 20 years and knows that the more you stay out of the headlines, the better off you are."

Margaret and Eugene McDermott presented a copy of Erasmus' Praise of Folie to the Southern Methodist University libraries in 1971. It was one of only 10 remaining copies in the world. (File Photo / The Dallas Morning News)

Shy she may have been, but Mrs. McDermott "epitomized everything great about Dallas in the last century," said Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings. "In fact, she helped create much of it. Those of us who knew her marveled at her generosity of spirit, her philanthropy, her love of new friends, especially young people, and her intelligent, to-the-point questions. For me, she was and always will be the grande dame of Dallas. We will miss her dearly."

Brettell, who occupies the Margaret M. McDermott Distinguished Chair of Arts and Aesthetic Studies and the Edith O'Donnell Distinguished University Chair at UTD, praised her for "caring deeply about the heart and health of the city. She cared about it in every way, in terms of architecture and landscape and nature, the arts, education, health. ... I think she's the only philanthropist in the history of Dallas who checked off every box that you could possibly check off, with the exception of religion."

1 / 4Downtown Dallas and the Margaret McDermott Bridge are shown on July 27, 2017.(Smiley N. Pool / Staff Photographer) 2 / 4Architect Santiago Calatrava and Margaret McDermott share a moment together before a bridge signing on the Margaret McDermott Bridge on June 11, 2015.(Ashley Landis / The Dallas Morning News) 3 / 4The Margaret McDemott Bridge looms behind the Hyatt Regency hotel (left) and the Old Red Courthouse in downtown Dallas on Dec. 2, 2017.(Smiley N. Pool / The Dallas Morning News) 4 / 4Cables rise to the arches alongside a pedestrian and bike lane on the Margaret McDermott Bridge spanning the Trinity River in January, 2018.(David Woo / Staff Photographer)

"She was interested in the secular life, in the life we all share," said Brettell, who's also art critic of The News. "Her belief in public education was enormous, as you can see from her huge philanthropy to UTD."

Her curiosity, Brettell said, was insatiable.

"She was curious about everything," he said, noting that she gave for years and in sizable amounts to the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, the Dallas Opera, the Dallas Arboretum, UT Southwestern Medical School and many others.

"Her lasting contribution is that UT-Dallas is a profoundly different institution than what it would have been without her," said Hobson Wildenthal, the executive vice president of UTD. "And that's in the human and material dimensions. She has made a transformation in the quality of our students, our faculty and our physical environment."

Those comments were echoed at St. Mark's School of Texas, where David W. Dini, the Eugene McDermott headmaster, said her legacy "will endure forever at St. Mark's. She is one of the great titans of our school."

Mr. McDermott served as board president at St. Mark's from 1946 to 1956. Mrs. McDermott began serving on the board in 1981 and three years later was elected as a life trustee. In 1983, she was named an honorary alumnus of the school, one of only six women to hold that honor.

Dini credits her with having, "quite simply, changed the course of history for our school." More important, he said, she "shaped the lives of literally thousands of students."

On Nov. 22, 1963, Mrs. McDermott was among the hundreds at the Dallas Trade Mart waiting to hear a speech by John F. Kennedy, the U.S. president born five years after she was. He never made it. His assassination forever changed what some angrily referred to as the "city of hate." Mrs. McDermott was among those who sought to rebuild Dallas. For her, grace and beauty were the norms.

Nowhere was her mission more evident than at the Dallas Museum of Art, where, officials say, she was the largest single benefactor in donating works of art and funding endowment. They credit her with having transformed the DMA "from a regional museum into an institution of global stature."

Officials say she donated more than 3,100 works "spanning different cultures, disciplines and eras." The first work she and her husband gave, in 1960, was Flora, a sculpture by Aristide Maillol. The next year, they donated Vincent van Gogh's River Bank in Springtime (1887).

1 / 2Aristide Maillol, French, 1861 - 1944, Flora, 1911 Bronze. Dallas Museum of Art, gift of Eugene and Margaret McDermott, 1960. This was the first gift given by Mr. and Mrs. McDermott to the Dallas Museum of Art.(Dallas Museum of Art) 2 / 2Vincent van Gogh, Dutch, active in France, 1853 to 1890, River Bank in Springtime, 1887. Oil on canvas. Dallas Museum of Art, gift of Eugene and Margaret McDermott in memory of Arthur Berger. The McDermotts gave the painting to the museum in 1961.(Jerry Ward)

Mrs. McDermott served as a museum trustee for 57 years, and, officials say, created "an unprecedented model for public service and arts philanthropy for generations to come." In addition to the director, she endowed eight curatorial and staff positions.

Her association with the museum began in 1949, when she joined the public relations staff at the Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, which became the DMA.

She was "the driving force behind the DMA's move to its new downtown location" in 1984 from Fair Park, where it was known as the Dallas Museum of Fine Arts, said Harry S. Parker III, director emeritus of the DMA, who served as director from 1974 to 1987.

"She personally raised most of the [$27.6 million in] private funds required" to help relocate the $52.4 million museum to what is now the Dallas Arts District. And, Parker said, she "also inspired the 1979 public referendum" that overwhelmingly approved [$24.8 million in] funding by Dallas voters. "She contended that 'a great city deserves a great art museum.'"

Agustín Arteaga, the Eugene McDermott director of the DMA, said Mrs. McDermott "loved the museum and everyone loved her, beyond the imaginable. She was knowledgeable, smart, witty and fun. We will all miss her."

Her beneficiaries also include the AT&T Performing Arts Center, to which she gave $3 million in 1998 for what ATTPAC officials say was the catalyst for building the $360 million center that opened in 2009. Its centerpiece, the Winspear Opera House, is now home to the Margaret McDermott Performance Hall.

"Margaret knew what a world-class performing arts center would mean to Dallas, and she put her resources behind that vision," said Matrice Ellis-Kirk, chair of the ATTPAC board of directors.

Caren Prothro, a lifetime trustee of the ATTPAC board and a philanthropic ally of Mrs. McDermott's, said, "Thanks to her family's passion for the arts, which spans decades, Dallas is now recognized as a leading center of art, architecture and culture. From symphony and performance halls to graceful bridges over the Trinity, Margaret left an indelible stamp on Dallas."

Roger Horchow, her fellow philanthropist and close friend, praised Mrs. McDermott for "her interest in everyone who came across her path, especially me and my family."

1 / 4In 1961, Margaret McDermott (right) became the first woman to lead the Dallas Art Association since 1925. (DMN File Photo) 2 / 4Margaret McDermott (left), who had only recently been named president of the Dallas Art Association, is shown with Betty Blake, who at the time was board president of the Dallas Museum for Contemporary Arts. (Doris Jacoby/The Dallas Morning News) 3 / 4The Margaret McDermott Performance Hall at Dallas' Winspear Opera House is so named for the millions she gave to help fund the facility's construction. (Tom Fox/The Dallas Morning News) 4 / 4Befitting Margaret McDermott's exquisite artistic tastes, a ribbon of white gold leaf encircles four levels of seating at the Winspear Opera House's Margaret McDermott Performance Hall. (Tom Fox/The Dallas Morning News)

Hers was "a lifelong interest in mentoring," mixed, Horchow said, "with real love. We loved her, and she loved us. She taught us so much. She taught us about friendship and philanthropy. She taught us about how to be interested in other people. As everyone has said, she was truly an inspiration."

She gave so much money to so many institutions, but Horchow sees her most notable achievements as being her contributions to UTD and the DMA. It's true, he said, that she was part of a so-called greatest generation of philanthropists, who will be difficult to replace.

"On the other hand, by her example, she has led a lot of people throughout the country," Horchow said. "A lot of people are taking her example and giving away their money."

Margot Perot, her fellow philanthropist and friend, said Mrs. McDermott's commitment transcended the financial. "She didn't just give money," Margot Perot said. "She was so involved in every institution she supported. She was such an innovative philanthropist."

Margot Perot called her friend "warm, intelligent and generous, and she was such a friend. She had so many good, good friends."

When it came to Mrs. McDermott, Margot Perot said, her husband followed a ritual. "Ross would go to Lake Texoma every Saturday. And so every Saturday afternoon, when he was coming home, he'd stop to see her. But he only stayed about 10 minutes. She said his visits were just great, and one of the things she liked about them," Margot Perot added with a laugh, "is that they were only 10 minutes."

Confined to a wheelchair in later years, Mrs. McDermott continued to attend high-profile artistic events, where she was treated like royalty. On an October night in 2013, she was in Arlington when British sculptor Anish Kapoor introduced his Sky Mirror to the Dallas Cowboys Art Collection at AT&T Stadium. She attended the unveiling with her friend Ebby Halliday, who on that night was a year older at 102.

Mrs. McDermott would sit quietly, her eagle-like eyes framed by snow-white hair, taking in everything around her, though she had already passed the century mark.

"If we didn't have Margaret McDermott, this city would not be nearly as nice as it is," Lyda Hill, daughter of the late philanthropist Margaret Hunt Hill, once said. "She's the one that makes things not only function, but they've got to be nice."

1 / 8Although she worked modestly but determinedly behind the scenes, Margaret McDermott worked with Dallas' most influential leaders. Here, she's shown in 2015 with former first lady Laura Bush and daughter Jenna Bush. (United Way of Dallas) 2 / 8McDermott with Ross Perot (left) and former Dallas Museum of Art director Harry Parker in 1986. (Nan Coulter) 3 / 8McDermott presented the James K. Wilson Award to Dallas Mayor Robert Folsom in 1980. (Clint Grant / The Dallas Morning News) 4 / 8McDermott visited with Ray Nasher, the late arts benefactor and founder of NorthPark Center, in 2000. (Nan Coulter/Special Contributor) 5 / 8The late Dallas real estate queen, Ebby Halliday (left), and McDermott were guests at a University of Texas at Dallas gathering at the Federal Reserve Bank in 2014. (Randy Anderson/UTD) 6 / 8Bill J. Priest, the founding chancellor of the Dallas County Community College District, and his wife were guests with McDermott (right) at an event celebrating the completion of Brookhaven College in 1978. (DMN Staff/File photo) 7 / 8Dallas Symphony Orchestra conductor Jaap van Zweden, with Aaltje van Zweden, took a photo with Margaret McDermott at a 2015 DSO gala. (Kristina Bowman) 8 / 8Ross Perot and Margaret McDermott chatted before a 2017 reception honoring philanthropist Ruth Altshuler. (Rose Baca/The Dallas Morning News)

Her love of beauty extended to the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, which she also avidly supported. The orchestra released a statement, praising Mrs. McDermott for being "unequivocal in her love of the Dallas Symphony, its music directors and musicians." She was "a driving force who elevated the Dallas Symphony Orchestra from a point of civic pride to an ensemble applauded on the world's stages."

Dr. Kern Wildenthal, interim general director and CEO of the Dallas Opera and the former president of UT Southwestern, both of which reaped her philanthropy, described Mrs. McDermott as "a practical person and an idealist. She was as gracious and dignified and humorous a lady as you could ever imagine meeting." Her passion, he said, was "to make sure things are done in a way that will result in everybody's life being improved through things being more beautiful."

To name just one example, Mrs. McDermott gave $4.5 million in 2014 to provide landscaping at the William P. Clements Jr. University Hospital at UT Southwestern. She and the Eugene McDermott Foundation gave a total of $10 million to the hospital.

Dr. Daniel K. Podolsky, president of UT Southwestern Medical Center, called her "a rare friend and visionary." Her contributions to the medical school as a whole totaled nearly $45 million. They include more than 500 works of art from around the world, as well as giving to key campaigns in breast care, mineral metabolism, autism, digestive diseases, MRI, chemotherapy and Fragile X Syndrome.

Going back more than half a century, Mrs. McDermott was a founder and president of Friends of the Dallas Public Library. During the 1960s, she joined the campaign to build the J. Erik Jonsson Central Library on Young Street. She helped decorate the Jonsson library by donating a selection of Navajo weavings; she also donated a collection of Indonesian textiles to the Zale Lipshy University Hospital. When it came time to renovate the Jonsson library, the Eugene McDermott Foundation helped with that as well.

1 / 4The Eugene and Margaret McDermott Art Fund has provided many pieces to the Dallas Museum of Art, including this African sword ornament in the form of a lion. (Dallas Museum of Art) 2 / 4Cubi XVII by sculptor David Smith was also provided by the McDermotts' art fund. (Dallas Museum of Art) 3 / 4The Dallas Museum of Art acquired Still Life: Bouquet and Compotier by Henri Matisse through the McDermott fund. (Courtesy) 4 / 4A detail shot shows the beauty of the Wittgenstein Vitrine (1908), created by the Vienna Workshops and acquired by the Dallas Museum of Art through the McDermott fund. (Dallas Museum of Art)

Born to Grace Hill Milam and Lynn Milam, a Dallas attorney, Mrs. McDermott was a middle child who had an older sister and younger brother. She graduated from Highland Park schools, spent a short time at Sweet Briar College in Sweet Briar, Va., then transferred to the University of Texas, where she majored in journalism.

"She was one of the most significant figures in the history of the city," said Bob Mong, president of the University of North Texas at Dallas and former editor of The News. "I loved the fact that she was once a journalist at a time when few women were in the business."

After leaving (but not graduating from UT-Austin), she worked briefly at the Dallas Times Herald. She became society editor of The News, a job she held for five years, beginning in 1936.

She worked for The Associated Press in San Francisco for a year and then became a correspondent for the Red Cross, allowing her to travel to India, Europe and Asia during World War II.

After the war, she lived in Germany and Japan, where she honed her passion for art by paying frequent visits to museums.

During her days as society editor for The News, she met Mr. McDermott, who had divorced his first wife in 1950.

The couple's marriage began with an around-the-world honeymoon. His share of ownership in Texas Instruments soon became a fortune, elevating his wife to the center of a world she had known only as a society writer.

Margaret McDermott, civic leader

"We have managed to take the arts out of the tearoom circuit and bring them into the board room," she said in 1979, upon accepting a business award for her artistic efforts. "Now, the business community recognizes the arts position in the community."

She served as president of the Dallas Shakespeare Club, and in May 1972, became one of the first women named to the board of directors of a major bank, Republic National Bank of Texas, now part of Bank of America.

Despite the enormity of her public achievements, the last thing her mother would have wanted, said her daughter, Mary McDermott Cook, is to be "put on a pedestal. She was an exacting, amazing human being. She lived a long time, and that probably has added to her mystery."

Her mother never remarried "and never even thought about remarrying." Mary Cook's parents "had a wonderful late-in-life love affair. All she did," Cook added with a wry laugh, "was spend my daddy's money. And that's all I do."

Mrs. McDermott is survived by Cook and granddaughter Grace Ellen Cook. A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Tuesday, May 8, at the Meyerson Symphony Center. Cook asks that those who wish to remember her mother make a donation to the University of Texas at Dallas or to a charity of their choice.

Former staff writer Joe Simnacher contributed to this report.

Updated at 9:30 a.m. Thursday: This article was updated with additional information about Mrs. McDermott's gifts to UT Southwestern Medical Center.

Updated at 11:30 a.m. Friday: This is article was updated with information about the memorial service for Mrs. McDermott.