Pell, Herbert Claiborne, 1884-1961

Congressman, diplomat.

Diplomat and U.S. Representative from New York.

Pell was a Dutchess County man who served in the 66th United States Congress, 1919-1921; was Chairman of the Democratic Party in New York, 1921-1926; appointed to diplomatic posts in Portugal and Hungary, 1937-1941; and served on the United Nations War Crimes Commission.

Herbert Claiborne Pell (1884-1961) was born in New York City. He studied at Harvard and Columbia Universities, but left school to tour in Europe. He was a member of the Progressive County Committee of Orange County, New York, from 1912 to 1914, when he joined the Democratic Party. He was elected to the 66th Congress in 1919 and served as chairman of the New York Democratic Committee from 1921 to 1926. In the 1936 campaign, Pell was vice-chairman of the Democratic Nation Campaign Committee. President Roosevelt appointed him Minister to Portugal on May 27,1937, a post he served until February 1941, when he was reassigned as Minister to Hungary, a position he held until Hungary severed diplomatic relations with the United States on December 11, 1941. In 1943, Pell was appointed to the United Nations War Crimes Commission. After World War II, Pell retired to his home at Pellbridge in Hopewell Junction, New York. He later resumed his travels in Europe where he died on a trip with his grandson July 1961.