Finding Aids

Alfred Victor du Pont (1798-1856) was the eldest son of E.I. du Pont (1771-1834) and a senior partner of E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company. The collection contains three letters he wrote to William Kemble (1795-1881), operator of the West Point Foundry and DuPont powder sales agent in New York City, about sales and shipments of gunpowder and credits.

Alfred Victor du Pont (1798-1856) was a senior partner in E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company, a gunpowder manufacturer. This collection of papers documents Alfred V. du Pont’s business affiliations, relations with other family members, and relationship with du Pont workers. The bulk is comprised of correspondence, and the collection also includes a small number of advertising circulars.

Alvin M. Taylor (1876-1973) was a chemist at the General Chemical Company, which specialized in industrial acids. This small collection consists primarily of reprints of articles on sulfuric acid, sulfur, and phenol-recovery. There are also some handwritten notes and correspondence.

Incorporated in 1912, Atlas Powder Company functioned as an independent explosives and chemicals company until 1971, when it was purchased by Imperial Chemical Industries Limited (U.K.) and became its American affiliate under the name ICI Americas, Inc. The collection consists of minutes, reports, and correspondence from Atlas in addition to both predecessor and subsidiary companies.

The Technical Department at DuPont's Carney's Point Works was established to collaborate with scientists at the DuPont Experimental Station and Eastern Laboratory of the Repauno Works to develop new products, maintain quality control, and improve products and processes. The collection focuses on the department's start-up period (1906-1910) and the two World Wars.

Clinton H. Blackburn (1916-1993) was a mechanical engineer with E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company. Blackburn's papers are a sample of work-related materials he retained upon retirement.

The Du Pont descendants and allied families are the children of brothers Victor Marie du Pont (1767-1827) and Éleuthère Irénée "E.I." du Pont (1771–1834), as well as their grandchildren and relatives through marriage. Victor Marie du Pont and E.I. du Pont were the sons of Pierre Samuel du Pont de Nemours (1739-1817), a French political economist, writer, publisher, and public administrator. This collection consists of the papers of the descendants of Victor Marie and Eleuthère Irénée du Pont and members of allied families. The principal holdings are for Amelia Elizabeth du Pont (1796-1869) and Charles Irénée du Pont (1797-1869), children of Victor du Pont, and Charles's wife, Dorcas Van Dyke (1806-1838), as well as for Victorine du Pont Bauduy (1792-1861), Alfred Victor du Pont (1798-1856), and Eleuthera du Pont Smith (1806-1876), children of E.I. du Pont.

E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company is a chemical company more commonly referred to as the DuPont Company. The Executive Committee became the principal body for coordinating the work of the various departments of the rapidly growing company, establishing company organizational structure and policy; approving capital expenditures and contracts; and fixing salary levels, bonuses, and other compensation. The files are arranged in six series. The "E" files are primarily service record information on members of the Executive Committee, giving some prior history of the person's career with DuPont. The "D" files are limited to organization charts, dating from 1914 to 1917. The "O" files (Operative Committee), "F" files (Finance Committee), and "X" files (Executive Committee) are primarily related to patents and licensing. Finally, materials copied by David A. Hounshell and John K. Smith for their book, Science and Corporate Strategy, are included.

E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company is a chemical company more commonly referred to as the DuPont Company. Established in 1802, the company began with the production of gunpowder. The collection contains a typescript of newspaper notice entitled "Powder explosion of three wagon loads of powder at Wilmington, Del." from the Philadelphia Evening Bulletin on June 1, 1854. Also, a photocopy of a later transcript on the same subject.

E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company is a chemical company more commonly referred to as the DuPont company. Originally established as a black powder manufactory in 1802, the company eventually ventured into explosives, creating the Explosives Department in 1903. This small collection contains six reports on black powder and other accidental explosions at DuPont facilities. Additional materials are related to the DuPont Company's activities in the explosives industry. These include a history of explosions at the Brandywine Works from 1815 to 1898 and the Carney's Point Works from 1893 to 1903.

Hercules Inc. was a manufacturer of chemicals and munitions based in Wilmington, Delaware. Earl R. Fenstermacher (1894-1984) was the superintendent of the Columbus plant in Kansas. This item is a bound volume containing two typescripts written by Fenstermacher describing the manufacture and operating procedures at the company.

E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company is a chemical company more commonly referred to as the DuPont Company. Established in 1802, the company began with the production of gunpowder. This collection consists of two copies of items, a letter and a receipt, from the DuPont Company to John Mason (1766-1849), superintendent of the Office of Indian Trade.

E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company was organized in Paris in 1801 by Pierre Samuel "P.S." du Pont de Nemours (1739-1817) and his son Eleuthère Irénée "E.I." du Pont (1771-1834) for the manufacture of gunpowder. Included here are records of the firm collected by P.S. du Pont and separated from the main body of company records.

E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company is a chemical company more commonly referred to as the DuPont company. The company was established in 1802 by Pierre Samuel du Pont de Nemours(1739-1817) and his son Eleuthère Irénée du Pont (1771-1834) the company began with the production of gunpowder. This item is a small chromolithograph label for Du Pont smokeless sporting powder.

E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company was organized in Paris in 1801 by Pierre Samuel du Pont de Nemours and his son Eleuthère Irénée du Pont. The collection contains insurance policies with the Union Insurance Company of Philadelphia, Delaware Fire Insurance Company, Wilmington Fire Insurance Company, and the Columbia Insurance Company of Philadelphia. The policies generally cover shipments of saltpeter, gunpowder, goods and merchandise, and the cotton factory Henry Clay Mill.

The E. I du Pont de Nemours & Company minute books document an important era in the history of the company from just before the turn of the twentieth century through the 1930s. The DuPont Company in this time went through many changes in structure under the leadership of cousins T. Coleman du Pont, Alfred I. du Pont, and Pierre S. du Pont.

In 1801, French immigrants Eleuthère Irénée "E.I." du Pont (1771-1834) and his father Pierre Samuel "P.S." du Pont de Nemours (1739-1817) organized the E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company (alternatively referred to as the DuPont Company) in Paris for the purpose of manufacturing gunpowder in the United States. The next year E.I. du Pont purchased a mill site on the banks of the Brandywine Creek just north of Wilmington, Delaware, and the company would grow to be the preeminent gunpowder company in the United States for the next century. This collection comprises the nineteenth-century records of the E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. extending to the date of the second incorporation of E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. in 1902. The company's twentieth-century records, with the 1902 reincorporation as the dividing point, are described in a separate finding aid as E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. twentieth-century records (Accession 0500.II).

E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company is a chemical company more commonly referred to as the DuPont Company, established in 1802. The Secretary’s Offices was raised to departmental rank on June 1, 1947. The Secretary’s Department was merged into the Legal Department on January 1, 1974. The records of the Secretary's Department are arranged in six series: Transcripts of annual stockholders’ meetings; Leases and agreements; Files on deceased board members; Records division; Stock records; Special committee on 150th anniversary.

E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. (alternatively referred to as the DuPont Company, or simply DuPont) was reincorporated on February 26, 1902, as successor to the partnership Eleuthère Irénée "E.I." du Pont (1771-1834) and his father Pierre Samuel "P.S." du Pont de Nemours (1739-1817) had organized in 1801 for the purpose of manufacturing gunpowder in the United States. During the twentieth century, the company diversified beyond gunpowder and explosives into the broader chemicals industry. The twentieth-century records (dating up to 1972) of E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. document the transformation of the company into a modern, centrally administered industrial giant. The collection, however, is not comprehensive for the period, and any company collections received after 1972 were accessioned and processed separately by Hagley Museum and Library.

Eleuthère Irénée du Pont (1771-1834), founder of E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Co., and Sophie Madeleine Dalmas du Pont (1775-1828) had three sons: Alfred Victor du Pont (1798-1856), Henry du Pont (1812-1889), and Alexis I. du Pont (1816-1857). All three were partners in their father's company. This collection contains the papers of Alfred Victor du Pont, Henry du Pont, and Alexis I. du Pont, as well as those of their wives: Margaretta Elizabeth Lammot du Pont, Louisa Gerhard du Pont, and Joanna Maria Smith du Pont. The papers of Henry du Pont are the largest component, and reflect his business and military activities. Certain papers of each son relate to the affairs of E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Co.

E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company is a chemical company more commonly referred to as the DuPont Company. The company was established in 1802 by Pierre Samuel du Pont de Nemours (1739-1817) and his son Éleuthère Irénée du Pont (1771-1834) for the production of gunpowder. The papers in this collection date from the lifetime of E.I. du Pont and document important aspects of the early history of the DuPont Company.

Éleuthère Irénée du Pont de Nemours (1771–1834) was a French American chemist and industrialist who founded the gunpowder manufacturer E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company. E.I. du Pont married Sophie Dalmas du Pont (1775-1828) in 1791; the couple had eight children, one of whom died in infancy. This collection of papers includes outbound and inbound correspondence covering personal and business matters. These include personal accounts, writings and memoirs, legal documents, and miscellany, of which the majority are accounts. There are papers of the E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. that date from 1802 to 1850 and include correspondence (drafts, retained copies, and letters received), contracts and other legal documents, accounts, bills and receipts, checks, promissory notes, bills of exchange, drafts, and certain miscellaneous notes and memoranda.

Éleuthère Irénée du Pont de Nemours (1771–1834) was a French American chemist and industrialist who founded the gunpowder manufacturer, E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company. E.I. du Pont married Sophie Dalmas du Pont (1775-1828) in 1791, and the couple had eight children, one of whom died in infancy. This collection primarily consists of E.I. du Pont's personal and business correspondence; writings and notes; school materials; memoranda on manufactures and tariffs; legal agreements; patents; and land surveys. Also included are Sophie Dalmas du Pont's correspondence and household account records.

This collection contains research reports for the purpose of developing and elaborating exhibits and interpretations of the Hagley Museum. The reports were prepared by a permanent research staff and by participants in the Hagley Fellowship Program. The research reports also include scholarly articles that use Hagley's collections or are about subjects that pertain to Hagley's mission.

Eugene du Pont Jr. (1873-1954) was a director of the E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company from 1917 until 1954, and a great grandson of company founder, Éleuthère Irénée du Pont (1771-1834). The collection contains the personal papers of Eugene du Pont, Jr., and the records of the Kinloch Gun Club, a private shooting club which he founded. It also contains a separate collection of correspondence between his brother Alfred I. du Pont, vice president and general manager of the DuPont Company, with his assistant Frank L. Connable, which is an important source for the history of the company in the early 1900s.

Francis Gurney du Pont (1850-1904) was the youngest son of Alexis I. du Pont (1816-1857) and Joanna Smith du Pont (1815-1876), and grandson of Éleuthère Irénée "E.I." du Pont (1771-1834), founder of E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company, a chemical company more commonly referred to as the DuPont Company. Walter G. Tatnall Jr. (1882-1949) was an engineer at the DuPont Pulp Keg Mill and president of the Department of Elections for New Castle County. The memorandum books from du Pont and Tatnall document their work for the DuPont Company, including data on the manufacture of pulp kegs.

Francis Gurney du Pont (1850-1904) was the youngest son of Alexis I. du Pont (1816-1857) and Joanna Smith du Pont (1815-1876), and grandson of Éleuthère Irénée "E.I." du Pont (1771-1834), founder of E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company, a chemical company more commonly referred to as the DuPont Company. The collection contains two letter books of du Pont to F.G. Thomas (-1901) of the Iowa Powder Mills, photocopies of selected documents by Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) on gunpowder, and on awards to John Paul Jones (1747-1792) for his victory over HMS Serapis, and letter from Samuel Courtauld (1752-1821) to Captain Joseph H. Rees (1789-1821).

Francis Gurney du Pont (1850-1904) was the youngest son of Alexis I. du Pont (1816-1857) and Joanna Smith du Pont (1815-1876), and grandson of Éleuthère Irénée "E.I." du Pont (1771-1834), founder of E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company, a chemical company more commonly referred to as the DuPont Company. The papers consist of du Pont's student lecture and laboratory notes; letters; technical notes and papers; records of gunpowder production; patent specifications and drawings; patent correspondence; and printed patents related to gunpowder.

Francis Gurney du Pont (1850-1904) was the youngest son of Alexis I. du Pont (1816-1857) and Joanna Smith du Pont (1815-1876), and grandson of Éleuthère Irénée "E.I." du Pont (1771-1834), founder of E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company, a chemical company more commonly referred to as the DuPont Company. The papers of du Pont describe both his business activities at E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company, his family life, and his activities in the Episcopal Church.

Francis “Frank” Pierre Gentieu (1876-1950) was a ballistic engineer at E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company, a chemical company more commonly referred to as the DuPont company. Gentieu worked at DuPont's Carney's Point Plant in New Jersey from 1901 to 1941. This small collection contains an account by Gentieu entitled "The First Fifty Years at Carney's Point" (1891-1941); correspondence with du Pont family members; a list of his father Pierre Gentieu's photographs of the DuPont Company and Brandywine area; and a recollection written by Samuel Brown of a conversation with Sophie M. du Pont (1810-1888) related to the Brandywine Manufacturers Sunday School.

George Washington Rains (1817-1898) was a United States Army and Confederate Army officer and proprietor in the Washington Iron Works. This war-date memorandum by Rains gives a full look at the successful Confederate crash program to develop reliable sources of munitions under wartime conditions and gives clues to the skills of the person who managed it.

Henry Miller (1845-1926) was first employed at the Brandywine Works of E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company. In 1922, he was one of the oldest surviving employees when he was interviewed by Alfred I. du Pont (1864-1935). In the interview, Miller describes the layout of the Brandywine Works as it changed over time, as well as the various apparatus and processes used in the manufacture of gunpowder and its constituent ingredients.

Francis Gurney du Pont (1850-1904) was the youngest son of Alexis I. du Pont (1816-1857) and Joanna Smith du Pont (1815-1876), and grandson of Éleuthère Irénée "E.I." du Pont (1771-1834), founder of E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company, a chemical company more commonly referred to as the DuPont Company. The collection contains a carbon typescript of "History of Explosions at Brandywine Mills" compiled from records by du Pont and also reported from his own experiences.

James L. Lovell (1896-1984) worked for the DuPont Company as an exhibition marksman in the Sporting Powders Division. His papers include items from his career with the DuPont Company, primarily during his years in the Sporting Powders Division, but also items related to trapshooting.

The Laflin and Rand Powder Company, one of the largest gunpowder manufacturers in the nineteenth century, was formed from several predecessor companies. This small collection consists of two receipted invoices for kegs of cannon powder in 1871.

Lammot du Pont (1831-1884) was an accomplished chemist who managed gunpowder manufacturing at the E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. (commonly called the DuPont Company). He later organized the Repauno Chemical Company to manufacture dynamite. The papers describe his innovative work in the explosives industry, outside investments in coal mines and railroads, and correspondence with family members. There is also a small subset of materials compiled by his son, also named Lammot du Pont (1880-1952), on various du Pont family and company historical topics.

Leroy Greenwood "L.G." Jackson (1889-1981) was a chemist for E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Company between 1911 and 1954. Jackson's small set of papers are primarily from his work related to gunpowder. This collection would be of interest to those interested in powder production. There are also two items from Jackson's time in rayon research.

Mordecai Lewis & Company (Philadelphia) was a merchant firm that owned several ships and specialized in imports of European goods, including white lead and, eventually, paint. The account sheet documents the sales of powder to William Bingham (1752-1804).

Pierre A. Gentieu (1842-1930) was a photographer and a long-term employee of E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company, a chemical company more commonly referred to as the DuPont company. Gentieu's papers include correspondence with du Pont family members and coworkers, an account book of powder packed at the Hagley Yard (1858-1902), a record book with lists of explosions (1882-1909), time work sheets of powdermen during the 1890s, and a list of the principal events in the powder yards from 1882 to 1911.

Pierre Samuel du Pont de Nemours (1739-1817) was a French political economist, writer, publisher, and public administrator. In 1800, accompanied by his sons, Victor Marie du Pont (1767-1827) and Eleuthère Irénée "E.I." du Pont (1771-1834), he arrived in America. In 1802, E.I. du Pont established E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company, which began manufacturing gunpowder. This item is a letter written to President Thomas Jefferson about du Pont de Nemours' son, E.I. du Pont, as a gunpowder manufacturer and requesting Jefferson's opinon on the matter of refining saltpetre.

Pierre Samuel du Pont de Nemours (1739-1817) was a French political economist, writer, publisher, and public administrator. He was an advocate for a national educational system and promoted Franco-American trade relations. The collection consists of Pierre Samuel du Pont de Nemours correspondence and writings in addition to correspondence of his second wife, Françoise (Robin) Poivre.

Pierre Samuel "P.S." du Pont (1870-1954) was an industrialist, entrepreneur, and philanthropist. He was president of E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company from 1915 to 1919 and chairman of the board of directors from 1919 to 1940. P.S. du Pont was the great-grandson of Eleuthère Irénée du Pont (1771-1834), founder of E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company, and the great-great-grandson and namesake of the French economist Pierre Samuel du Pont de Nemours (1739-1817). During the early 1920s, P.S. du Pont became an active collector of Du Pont materials, and bought several important bodies of manuscripts from French dealers. This collection consists of manuscripts he collected that are primarily concerned with Du Pont de Nemours, the Physiocrats, the French Revolution, and the antecedents of the Du Ponts and allied families in France. The collection also contains the Wilmington & Kennett Turnpike Co. records dating from 1811 to 1921 that were acquired by P.S. du Pont from 1919 to 1920 when he purchased the company's stock, widened the road, and turned over its administration to the Delaware State Highway Department.

Pierre Samuel "P.S." du Pont (1870-1954) was president of E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. (more commonly known as the DuPont Company or simply DuPont) from 1915 to 1919 and chairman of the board from 1919 to 1940. P.S. du Pont was the great grandson of Eleuthere Irenee du Pont (1771-1834), founder of E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company. He was also an avid collector of documents on the early history of the du Pont family and the DuPont Company. This collection contains elements which were selected from both company and family papers. The material was lodged in du Pont's Wilmington office for a number of years prior to his death in 1954.

The collection consists of a handwritten volume, in Italian, on the construction, testing, and use of ordnance during war in Naples, Italy.

Victor Marie du Pont (1767-1827) was a French diplomat who later immigrated to the United States and established various trading companies before moving to Delaware. He was the eldest son of Pierre Samuel du Pont de Nemours (1739-1817). The collection consists of correspondence, business and personal papers, and writings of Victor Marie du Pont and his wife, Gabrielle Joséphine (de la Fite de Pelleport) du Pont.

William du Pont (1855-1928) was an industrialist and member of the promienent du Pont family of Delaware, whose family business was the E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company, also known as the DuPont Company which was a large manufacturer of gunpowder. He worked for the first DuPont dynamite manufacturer, Repauno Chemical Company, as secretary and treasurer (1880-1884) and after the tragic death of Lammot du Pont (1831-1884), as president (1884-1892). This small group of papers encompass both correspondence and various financial and investment accounts, largely covering his ten years spent in England after leaving the United States in 1893.

Engineer's notebook kept by future DuPont Company vice president Willis F. Harrington (1882-1960) while an entry-level engineer at the Barksdale Works in Wisconsin.