Robert H. Pelletreau

By Michele Ingrassia | Staff Writer

'We had a lot of Elias Pelletreau's silver, but we gave it to the State Department,'' says Robert H. Pelletreau of Bellport, the 88-year-old great-great-great grandson of Long Island's most notable silversmith. Pelletreau donated the pieces -- two porringers, a tankard, mug and bowl -- in 1987, when his son, Robert Jr., became U.S. ambassador to Tunis. But what the family lacks in silver, it makes up for in luster: a line of descendants as distinguished as the most celebrated Pelletreau.

The family's Long Island roots date back to Elias' father, merchant Francis Pelletreau, who moved from New York to Southampton in 1717. This Pelletreau branch descends from Elias' older son, Elias, who, like his grandfather, was a merchant.

The modern Pelletreaus begin with Robert S., a Suffolk County surrogate early this century and a lawyer who opened his Patchogue firm when he retired from the bench in 1935, at age 70. His son, law partner and now the oldest living Pelletreau -- Robert H. -- has been a prominent estates lawyer for more than a half-century.

However, only Robert H. Pelletreau Jr. -- the oldest of Robert's four children -- has made his mark on a world stage. In 35 years in the foreign service -- he retired this year -- he served as ambassador to Bahrain, Tunis and Egypt and as undersecretary of state for Near East affairs, a post in which he figured prominently in the Israeli-PLO peace talks.

As for Pelletreau's silver, it's displayed in the John Quincy Adams drawing room, where the secretary of state greets guests. It sits on a shelf just above Paul Revere's silver.