Faneuil (Peter) is born in New Rochelle, New York.

The son of French Huguenot immigrants Benjamin and Ann (Bureau) Faneuil, Peter Faneuil and his younger brother Benjamin arrive in Boston in 1719 to live with their uncle Andrew Faneuil, a wealthy merchant. After his brother marries against his uncle’s wishes, Peter inherits his fortune, which includes a mansion and estate near today’s 51 Tremont Street and a fleet of ships (one of which he names The Jolly Bachelor). Faneuil becomes Boston’s richest merchant, trading in cod, lumber, molasses, and slaves, and donates money to build a hall that is named for him in 1742.* He dies in Boston on March 3, 1743,* and is buried in the Granary Burying Ground. The Boston Weekly Newsletter calls Faneuil “The most publick spirited man, in all regards, that ever yet appeared on the Northern continent of America.”