Robinson was born on March 24, 1824 in Scotland and was descended from Scottish landed gentry. He was the youngest of four sons born to William Rose Robinson of Clermiston and Mary Robinson. He was the younger brother of Sir William Rose Robinson, KCSI, who served as acting Governor of Madras. His sister, Saida Douglas Robinson, was married to Alexander Davidson. His paternal grandparents were George Robinson and Elizabeth Robinson. His maternal grandparents were James Douglas of Orchardton, a Glasgow merchant, and Elizabeth Douglas. His maternal uncle was William Douglas, a Member of Parliament in the House of Commons, and his great-uncle was Sir William Douglas, 1st Baronet, of Gelston Castle, Scotland, both of whom died unmarried with no children. Robinson's maternal grandfather, James Douglas, was the brother of George Douglas, the maternal grandfather of his eventual wife Fanny. According to Marian Campbell Gouverneur, "George Douglas was a Scotch merchant who hoarded closely. His wine cellar was more extensive than his library."
Career
After studying at Edinburgh University, eighteen year old Robinson emigrated from Scotland to the United States in 1842. He started in business in Philadelphia and later came to New York as a partner in the banking house of James K. Soutter's Sons. He later served as secretary of the Great Western Insurance Company, which was then known as the United States Lloyds.
Society life
In 1892, Robinson, as well as his son Douglas and daughter-in-law Corinne, was included in Ward McAllister's "Four Hundred", purported to be an index of New York's best families, published in The New York Times. Conveniently, 400 was the number of people that could fit into Mrs. Astor's ballroom. The Robinson's had a country home in the Catskills, in the style of a Scottish Castle, in Jordanville, New York that was known as Henderson House and modeled after Sir William Douglas' Gelston Castle in Scotland. Henderson House was a 5,000 acre plot of a 15,000 acre grant from Queen Anne to Fanny's 2x great-grandfather, James Henderson. Fanny had inherited the home from her aunt Harriet Cruger, the sister of her mother, Elizabeth Douglas Monroe. Cruger was an eccentric lady known for her many friendships with prominent people of her time, including Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet, William Wordsworth, Juliette Récamier, and Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette. Around 1872, the Robinson's came to West Orange, New Jersey and built a large home next door to General George McClellan. Their 72 acre estate was known as Overlook. As with his other properties, his son inherited Overlook upon his death in 1893.
Personal life
On November 14, 1850, Robinson was married to his second cousin Frances "Fanny" Monroe, the daughter of Elizabeth Mary "Eliza" Monroe and Col. James Monroe, a Virginian born member of the U.S. House of Representatives from New York who was the nephew of James Monroe, the 5thPresident of the United States. They were married at Fanwood in Fort Washington, which was then a suburb of New York. Together, they were the parents of two children:
Douglas Robinson Jr., who married Corinne Roosevelt, the youngest child of Theodore Roosevelt Sr. and Martha Roosevelt. She was also the younger sister of Bamie Roosevelt, President Theodore Roosevelt, and Elliott Bulloch Roosevelt.
Harriet Douglas "Missy" Robinson, who married the Rev. Henry Bazeley Wolryche-Whitmore, an Englishman who was the nephew and heir of William Wolryche-Whitmore, a Member of Parliament who represented Bridgnorth and Wolverhampton.
Robinson died on November 30, 1893 aboard the, a Lloyd passenger steamer, while sailing from New York. He was buried at the Robinson Cemetery in Herkimer County, New York. His widow died in Warren, New York in August 1906. In 1908, the Robinson children erected the Jordanville Public Library, designed by New York architects Trowbridge & Livingston, as a memorial to their parents in Jordanville, New York.
