Robert Livingston Pell

Robert Livingston Pell (May 8, 1818 – February 11, 1880) was an American landowner and descendant of several prominent colonial families of New York. Early life Pell was born at the old Pell mansion in Pelham on May 8, 1818. He was a son of Alfred Sands Pell (1786–1831) and Adelia (née Duane) Pell (1765–1860). Among his siblings were four brothers John Augustus Pell, James Duane Pell, George Washington Pell, and Richard Montgomery Pell. His family was among the largest landowners along the Hudson River. His maternal grandparents were Mary (née Livingston) Duane and James Duane, a signer of the Articles of Confederation, first post-colonial Mayor of New York City, and first Judge of the United States District Court for the District of New York. His grandmother was the eldest living daughter of Robert Livingston, 3rd Lord of Livingston Manor. His aunt, Mary Duane, was the wife of Gen. William North, and another aunt, Sarah Duane, was the wife of geologist and geographer George William Featherstonhaugh. Through his father, he was a nephew of William Ferris Pell and a descendant of Thomas Pell, 1st Lord of the Pelham Manor. His first cousin, Alfred Shipley Pell, was a co-founder of the Mutual Life Insurance Company of New York (known today as AXA) in 1843. Pell attended school in New York City before entering American Literary, Scientific and Military Academy in 1825. He graduated from the Academy in 1829 and then attended Yale University, where he graduated in 1832. After his time at Yale, he went on a Grand Tour of Europe between 1832 and 1833.