Willam Pell was born in 1943, in Washington, DC. Growing up in a poor family, William was grateful for the opportunity to attend the Boy's Club summer camp at Camp Winslow in St. Mary's County, Maryland. William attended the camp every summer, as a camper, and later a counselor. It was there, on the shores of the Chesapeake Bay, that he learned the art of catching and preparing Maryland blue crabs.