Early life Mount was born November 26, 1807, in the village of
Setauket, New York, on the north shore of eastern
Long Island to parents Julia Ann Hawkins (1782–1841) and Thomas Shephard Mount (1778–1814). Mount's parents operated a farm, as well as a store and tavern that bordered the village green in Setauket. Thomas and Julia had eight children. Five survived childbirth: Henry Smith Mount (1802–1841),
Shepard Alonzo Mount (1804–1868), Robert Nelson Mount (1806–1883), William Sidney Mount (1807–1868), and Ruth Hawkins Mount (1808–1888). At around seven months old, Mount was believed to be close to death when a home nurse noticed his health was failing. His aunt, who came to make funeral arrangements, saw signs of life still in Mount and restored him back to health. After his father's death in 1814, Mount was sent to live with his uncle and aunt, Micah (1777–1825) and Letty (c. 1777 – 1835) Hawkins in
New York City while his mother moved back to her father's home in
Stony Brook. His Uncle Micah was an established composer, playwright, mimic, and poet who played the piano, flute, and violin, who helped inspire Mount's passion for music. Mount returned to his grandfather's farm in 1815, where he stayed until moving back to New York City to work as an apprentice in his older brother Henry's sign and ornamental painting business where he cultivated his artistic skills.
Education and training Under his brother Henry's encouragement, Mount attended the
American Academy of the Fine Arts exhibition in City Hall Park in 1825, an event that had a profound impact on him. This first exhibition introduced Mount to prominent seventeenth- and eighteenth-century European artists, like well-known artist
Benjamin West who excelled at depicting subject from biblical history and would inspire Mount to focus his attention on becoming a
history painter. Instead of seeking formal education and/or an apprenticeship under a successful painter, Mount decided to educate himself while still working for his older brother who had entered a partnership with another sign painter, William Inslee. Inslee owned a large set of engravings by the British artist
William Hogarth. Mount avidly set about copying the Hogarth prints, as a way to further his artistic skill. When another family friend, Martin E. Thompson, saw Mount's renditions/drawings, he recommended that he enroll as a student at the newly formed
National Academy of Design, of which Thompson was a founding member. Mount enrolled in drawing classes and continued to excel in his artistic skills until he returned to Stony Brook several years later; works Mount exhibited at the Academy were met with great appreciation and high regard helping inspire him to keep painting and creating. ==Career==