DuPont in the Northeast
- Tina Aragan
- Jul 25
- 2 min read
The French influence in the United States extended not only to the New England area but also to the Middle Atlantic as well. One name that most in the Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware region have heard of is DuPont. They also have had a big influence on my home state of Pennsylvania, as well as the Delaware area.It all starts during the time of the Revolutionary War.
Éleuthére Irénenée du Pont de Nemours was born in 1771. His older brother, Victor-Marie, served as an aide to the Marquis de Lafayette. Due to the chaos of the French Revolution, the family immigrated to the newly formed United States in 1801. The family settled in New Jersey, at first. Later, when E.I. (as he was nicknamed) was on a hunting trip, he had noticed how weak his gunpowder was. Fate brought him to the Brandywine Valley in Delaware. At first, DuPont sold gunpowder. In the beginning years of the 20th century, DuPont went into chemicals. Today, DuPont remains a prominent employer in the Delaware and Pennsylvania area. The DuPont Company’s science team invented modern necessities such as Freon, Nylon, Mylar, and Kevlar. However, chemicals aren’t the only thing that the DuPont family is known for.
E.I.’s descendants kept the chemical and gunpowder going, but they are also known for other things. The family helped establish the National Trust for Historic Preservation and was very involved in not only preserving the old DuPont homes (later to become well-loved landmarks in both Delaware and my home state of Pennsylvania), but was also involved in horticulture. Among the museums that they have established, the two best known are the Hagley Museum, which tells the history of the DuPont family, and Longwood Gardens, which was established in 1906 by Pierre S. DuPont. I personally recommend Longwood Gardens for their beauty, not to mention the events that they hold. They also have a fountain show during the summer and a holiday light show during Christmas.
Not all of the DuPonts have been successful, however.
John DuPont might be the most infamous of all of them. He ran a wrestling training center out of his home outside Philadelphia, though he was also a philanthropist who founded Delaware’s Natural History Museum. In 1986, he shot and killed David Schulz, who, along with his brother Mark, won medals in wrestling at the 1984 Summer Olympics. The 2014 movie Foxcatcher, starring Steve Carell as John DuPont, is a docudrama of the events that led to the murder.
Today, there are over 3,500 descendants of Pierre DuPont all over the Northeast in Pennsylvania and Delaware. DuPont, the chemical company, remains one of the top chemical companies in the United States and worldwide. The French influence that they bring to the Northeast remains strong.
Written By: Tina Aragon, University Intern
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