Biography
Gertrude Vanderbilt was born in New York City on January 9, 1875. She was the eldest surviving daughter of Cornelius Vanderbilt II (1843–1899) and Alice Claypoole Gwynne (1852–1934) and a great-granddaughter of "Commodore" Cornelius Vanderbilt.
Gertrude Vanderbilt spent her summers in Newport, Rhode Island, at the family's mansion, The Breakers, where she kept up with the boys in all their rigorous sporting activities. Educated by private tutors and at the exclusive Brearley School in New York City, at age 21 she married the extremely wealthy sportsman Harry Payne Whitney (1872–1930).
A banker and investor, Whitney was the son of William C. Whitney, and his mother was the daughter of a Senator, and sister of a Standard Oil Company magnate. Harry Whitney inherited a fortune in oil and tobacco as well as interests in banking. Gertrude and Harry Whitney had three children, Flora (1897), Cornelius (1899), and Barbara (1903).
Read more about this topic: Gertrude Vanderbilt Whitney
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