Born in New York City, Claiborne deBorda Pell (November 22, 1918 - January 1, 2009) was the son of Matilda Bigelow Pell and Herbert Claiborne Pell, Jr. His father had an extensive list of political service including a congressional position for New York (1919-1921), Minister to Portugal (1937-1941), Minister to Hungary (1941-1942), and a representative at the United States War Crimes Commission (1943-1945).
Claiborne Pell graduated from St. Georges High School in Middletown, Rhode Island before receiving a Bachelor of Arts in History at Princeton University in 1940. From 1941 to 1945 Claiborne Pell served in the United States Coast Guard and then continued on the United States Coast Guard Reserve until 1978. He received a Master's degree in International Relations from Columbia University in 1946.
In December of 1944, Claiborne Pell married Nuala O'Donnell Pell and they had four children: Herbert Claiborne Pell III, Christopher Thomas Hartford Pell, Nuala Dallas Pell, and Julia Lorillard Wampage Pell.
Some of his early political achievements include his participation in the United Nations Conference on International Organization in 1945 that created the United Nations Charter and his service as a State Department Foreign Service Officer from 1945 to 1952.
From 1961 to 1997, Claiborne Pell served as a United States Senator from Rhode Island. He participated in the Committee on Rules and Administration, the Committee on Foreign Relations, the Labor and Welfare Committee, the Subcommittee of Education, the Joint Congressional Committee on Libraries and Museums, and the Special Committee on Aging. Senator Pell was a member of the Executive Committee on the Environment and Energy Study while also contributing to the World Conference on the Environment in 1972 and the U.N. Conference on Environment and Development in 1992. Along with many other achievements, Senator Pell enacted environmental and educational legislation, including the Pell Grants.
After retiring from the Senate, Claiborne Pell spent the majority of his final years in Newport, Rhode Island before passing away on January 1, 2009. He was interred in St. Columba's Episcopal Church cemetery in Middletown, Rhode Island.
The materials in the collection are organized alphabetically by publication or event title.
This collection is unrestricted.
Various copying restriction apply, according to the Archives' use policy. Guidelines are available from the Salve Regina University Archives. Salve Regina University owns the copyright to material produced by employees and trustees of the University and work for hire. Requests for permission to publish material from the University Archives should be directed to the Archivist. See also the Archives' copyright and publication statement.
[Identification of item], in SP.15: Senator Claiborne Pell papers and ephemera, Box 1, [Folder #], Salve Regina University Special Collections, McKillop Library, Salve Regina University, Newport, RI
Includes Congressional bills, reports, article offprints, and other materials related to Senator Pell's life and his work in the Senate. The Congressional documents mainly pertain to environmental concerns about the ocean and interational politics. Also included in the collection are programs and event materials. The collection does not represent the full scope of Senator Pell's work, only a portion of his activities.
Additional accruals are not expected.
The collection was processed by Archivist and Special Collections Librarian Genna Duplisea.
The materials in the collection were donated to Salve Regina University Archives and Special Collections sometime prior to 2014, possibly with the Pell Collection of memorabilia, and were found in the archives department.
Related materials concerning Senator Claiborne Pell memorabilia can be found in SP 13: Robert Foust Papers on Senator Claiborne Pell, as well as the Pell Collection in this repository. The Special Collections and Archives at the University of Rhode Island Library holds the Senatorial Papers of Claiborne Pell, which includes records of his service as a United States Senator from 1961 to 1997.