He was born in New York City in 1921 and died in Mendham, New Jersey in 2005. After the death of his father when he was six years old, his mother moved with her two sons to Aiken, South Carolina.

The family spent their summers in Mendham, site of the Pitney family farm. His early schooling was at Aiken Preparatory School for boys, followed by five years at Milton Academy in Massachusetts. His days at Princeton University, from which he graduated in 1943, were compressed into three and a half years due to the onset of World War II. Following his wartime service in India flying aviation gasoline into China, he attended classes at the Art Students League in New York City, New York. For the next following thirty years, he painted in oils, solely for pleasure.

11th generation of Pitneys to live in the nine-bedroom house since it was bought in the 1720s by James Pitney.

Through the generations, the Pitney family was among the most prominent in the area. The family tree includes a U.S. Supreme Court Justice, Revolutionary War heroes, the founder of Ballantine Beer and the founder of Atlantic City.

The estate was originally more than 500 acres, largely a feed corn and dairy farm.

The last major subdivision was in the 1980s when they sold 58 acres that was developed into the Ballantine, Shelton, Cooper and Mahlon neighborhoods.

An old bottle of wine in a basement closet that was marked as a gift from US President James Buchanan. Another president known to enjoy visiting was William Howard Taft, who especially came for the tasty white NJ Alberta peaches.

There was a large piano in the family room where friends like Broadway composer Cy Coleman would play at family parties.

The walls are covered with many paintings by J. Duncan Pitney, an accomplished artist whose works were bought by the likes of Malcolm Forbes, Jonathan De Mallie, and actor Jim Dale.

The history of the Pitney family is rich. Duncan Pitney was the grandson of J.O.H. Pitney who formed the venerable, Morristown law firm of Pitney, Hardin and Kipp, now Day Pitney.

J.O.H. Pitney's father was Henry Cooper Pitney, who served as a state Supreme Court justice. Mahlon Pitney III was a state and U.S. Supreme Court justice and Dr. Jonathan Pitney founded Atlantic City, New Jersey.

After his retirement in the late 1970's, Pitney dramatically increased his output, and for the first time painted to show. His work had been extremely diverse in style, but now concentrated on natural subjects, viewed from close-up, placed on larger canvasses. Realism--in the form of people, landscapes and still lifes--gave way to his long preoccupation with the effect of light in the sky, on the water, and at the water's edge. Of this he wrote: "This large group of paintings began with skies and clouds, moved on to sea and waves, and wound up with sand and water. A study of these elements, with a particular focus on light in and about them, was a natural visual sequence." Pitney's first two shows were at Findlay Galleries in New York City during 1981 and 1982. Sea-Clouds and then Selected Works featured large-canvas studies of clouds, breaking waves and the foam patterns on shallow water that they projected onto the sand.

Soon afterward, at the urging of Richard Stone Reeves, the idea of painting horses next inspired Pitney's imagination. The famous horse painter suggested that some Pitney paintings would be a welcome addition to the collection for his gallery in New York—The Racing Scene. Consequently, Pitney developed a new technique of painting solely figures (humans as well as horses) on untouched natural canvasses. His talent for drawing and modeling came to the fore, and this series of paintings found its way into collections such as those of Malcolm Forbes.

Near the end of the 1980's, Pitney shifted his focus back to close-up views of nature, this time of roses and leaves. These subjects were highlighted in his subsequent shows, including Leaves and Petals at the Frelinghuysen Arboretum in 1990 in Morristown. Later in the decade, in his final large scale productive phase, Pitney's paintings of sea "calligraphy"—the foam designs floating just above the sand at the ocean's edge—shifted from natural light to stylized abstract colors.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

New York Times::

His Son and DIL::

Elizabeth A. Dillworth, John Pitney Engaged

Published: November 21, 1982

Mr. and Mrs. John T. Dillworth of St. Davids, Pa., have announced the engagement of their daughter, Elizabeth Anne Dillworth, to John Duncan Pitney, son of Mrs. Anderson Fowler of Gladstone, N.J., and J. Duncan Pitney of Mendham, N.J.

The wedding is planned for Feb. 26. Miss Dillworth, an associate with Goldman, Sachs & Company, investment bankers in Philadelphia, was graduated from Mount Vernon College.

She is a member of the Junior League of Philadelphia. Her father, who is retired, was a group vice president of Wyeth International Ltd., a pharmaceutical company in Philadelphia.

Mr. Pitney was graduated from the Hun School in Princeton, N.J., and attended the University of Pennsylvania. He is an account executive with Drexel Burnham Lambert Inc. in Washington. His father is an artist.

Bio; By Jonathan Robert De Mallie, Historian

He was born in New York City in 1921 and died in Mendham, New Jersey in 2005. After the death of his father when he was six years old, his mother moved with her two sons to Aiken, South Carolina.

The family spent their summers in Mendham, site of the Pitney family farm. His early schooling was at Aiken Preparatory School for boys, followed by five years at Milton Academy in Massachusetts. His days at Princeton University, from which he graduated in 1943, were compressed into three and a half years due to the onset of World War II. Following his wartime service in India flying aviation gasoline into China, he attended classes at the Art Students League in New York City, New York. For the next following thirty years, he painted in oils, solely for pleasure.

11th generation of Pitneys to live in the nine-bedroom house since it was bought in the 1720s by James Pitney.

Through the generations, the Pitney family was among the most prominent in the area. The family tree includes a U.S. Supreme Court Justice, Revolutionary War heroes, the founder of Ballantine Beer and the founder of Atlantic City.

The estate was originally more than 500 acres, largely a feed corn and dairy farm.

The last major subdivision was in the 1980s when they sold 58 acres that was developed into the Ballantine, Shelton, Cooper and Mahlon neighborhoods.

An old bottle of wine in a basement closet that was marked as a gift from US President James Buchanan. Another president known to enjoy visiting was William Howard Taft, who especially came for the tasty white NJ Alberta peaches.

There was a large piano in the family room where friends like Broadway composer Cy Coleman would play at family parties.

The walls are covered with many paintings by J. Duncan Pitney, an accomplished artist whose works were bought by the likes of Malcolm Forbes, Jonathan De Mallie, and actor Jim Dale.

The history of the Pitney family is rich. Duncan Pitney was the grandson of J.O.H. Pitney who formed the venerable, Morristown law firm of Pitney, Hardin and Kipp, now Day Pitney.

J.O.H. Pitney's father was Henry Cooper Pitney, who served as a state Supreme Court justice. Mahlon Pitney III was a state and U.S. Supreme Court justice and Dr. Jonathan Pitney founded Atlantic City, New Jersey.

After his retirement in the late 1970's, Pitney dramatically increased his output, and for the first time painted to show. His work had been extremely diverse in style, but now concentrated on natural subjects, viewed from close-up, placed on larger canvasses. Realism--in the form of people, landscapes and still lifes--gave way to his long preoccupation with the effect of light in the sky, on the water, and at the water's edge. Of this he wrote: "This large group of paintings began with skies and clouds, moved on to sea and waves, and wound up with sand and water. A study of these elements, with a particular focus on light in and about them, was a natural visual sequence." Pitney's first two shows were at Findlay Galleries in New York City during 1981 and 1982. Sea-Clouds and then Selected Works featured large-canvas studies of clouds, breaking waves and the foam patterns on shallow water that they projected onto the sand.

Soon afterward, at the urging of Richard Stone Reeves, the idea of painting horses next inspired Pitney's imagination. The famous horse painter suggested that some Pitney paintings would be a welcome addition to the collection for his gallery in New York—The Racing Scene. Consequently, Pitney developed a new technique of painting solely figures (humans as well as horses) on untouched natural canvasses. His talent for drawing and modeling came to the fore, and this series of paintings found its way into collections such as those of Malcolm Forbes.

Near the end of the 1980's, Pitney shifted his focus back to close-up views of nature, this time of roses and leaves. These subjects were highlighted in his subsequent shows, including Leaves and Petals at the Frelinghuysen Arboretum in 1990 in Morristown. Later in the decade, in his final large scale productive phase, Pitney's paintings of sea "calligraphy"—the foam designs floating just above the sand at the ocean's edge—shifted from natural light to stylized abstract colors.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

New York Times::

His Son and DIL::

Elizabeth A. Dillworth, John Pitney Engaged

Published: November 21, 1982

Mr. and Mrs. John T. Dillworth of St. Davids, Pa., have announced the engagement of their daughter, Elizabeth Anne Dillworth, to John Duncan Pitney, son of Mrs. Anderson Fowler of Gladstone, N.J., and J. Duncan Pitney of Mendham, N.J.

The wedding is planned for Feb. 26. Miss Dillworth, an associate with Goldman, Sachs & Company, investment bankers in Philadelphia, was graduated from Mount Vernon College.

She is a member of the Junior League of Philadelphia. Her father, who is retired, was a group vice president of Wyeth International Ltd., a pharmaceutical company in Philadelphia.

Mr. Pitney was graduated from the Hun School in Princeton, N.J., and attended the University of Pennsylvania. He is an account executive with Drexel Burnham Lambert Inc. in Washington. His father is an artist.

Bio; By Jonathan Robert De Mallie, Historian