Finding Aids

Charles H. DeMirjian (1925-) was a packaging design manager with E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company. The record consists of a thirteen-page transcript of a taped interview of DeMirjian conducted by then-director of the Hagley Museum and Library Glenn Porter. In his reminiscences, DeMirjian recounts his training and career history, plus some observations on his mode of work.

Kevlar is a synthetic fiber developed by chemists Stephanie Kwolek (1923-2014), Paul Morgan (1911-1992), and Herbert Blades in 1965 while working at the DuPont Company. The oral histories presented here document the research and development processes that transformed Kevlar from a novel polymer in the laboratory to a life-changing product in the marketplace.

Science and Corporate Strategy is a scholarly history of research and development at the DuPont Company authored by David A. Hounshell (1950-) and John Kenly Smith (1951-). As part of their research, Hounshell and Smith conducted sixty-one oral history interviews with forty-seven current and former chemical engineers involved in DuPont's R & D programs. The interviews constitute an exhaustive first-person account of DuPont's research programs with special emphasis on personalities and the organizational culture of the various DuPont research facilities.

The Textile Fibers Department of the DuPont Company was established in 1936 as the Rayon Department, which specialized in researching and developing synthetic fibers for fabrics such as Nylon, Orlon, Dacron, and Lycra. The collection consists of oral history interviews conducted by Joseph Plasky, with former employees of DuPont's Textile Fibers department.