 He was the son of Scottish immigrant and silversmith James Wallace and his wife Irene (Williams), who had immigrated in the late 18th century.The boy had only a limited education, such as sons of the farmers of that period received.At the age of 16, Robert Wallace became an apprentice to Captain William Mix, a renowned spoon maker for the Meriden Britannia Company A Meriden Britannia apprenticeship was highly sought after because the firm was the most successful cutlery and hollowware-producing firm in the Northeast.