William H., William K. and George W. Vanderbilt on Staten Island
Portrait of George W. Vanderbilt by James McNeill Whistler Parentage The fourth son and youngest child of William Henry Vanderbilt (1821–1885) and his wife Maria Louisa Kissam, George II was named after his father's younger brother, George Washington Vanderbilt, third son of the family founders, Cornelius Vanderbilt (1794–1877) and Sophia Johnson. (Uncle George had died young at age 25 of tuberculosis contracted during his service in the Civil War.) Character As the youngest in William's family, George II was said to be his father's favorite and his constant companion. Relatives described him as slender, dark-haired, and pale-complexioned. Shy and introverted, his interests ran to philosophy, books, and the histories of the paintings in William's large art gallery. In addition to frequent visits to Paris , France , where several Vanderbilts kept a home, George traveled extensively, becoming f...
