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related to the family, including slaves and indentured servants. Those in the household performed mainly domestic duties, and those employed after the end of slavery and indentured servitude were often family members of those working in the powder mills. The education of children at this time was commonly the responsibility of an educated father. However, E.I. du Pont's travels made this impossible. Thus the education of the du Pont children was conducted through older siblings, specifically
Victorine. Instead of sending their children to a public school or to a housewife, they sent Victorine to finishing school when she was 13. At 15, Victorine was considered qualified to teach her younger siblings.
373:
employees. The Upper Banks referred to the original powder yards, the main du Pont residence, and workers' communities upstream along the
Brandywine. Many of the workers' homes were damaged by an explosion in 1890 and subsequently leveled by the 1915 explosion. Charles Banks, which comprised ten to fifteen residences, was located downstream from the Upper Banks and located in front of smaller communities of four to six row home units, specifically Duck Street and Chicken Alley. Other workers' communities included Walker's Bank and Henry Clay Village. The communities and villages developed within and near Eleutherian Mills also provided taverns, general stores, schools, post offices, and more.
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E. I. du Pont's wife and three children joined him in July 1802, and by 1803, the residence was complete. Their home served as a center of business and social life at
Eleutherian Mills for years to come. As he travelled frequently for business affairs, his eldest son Albert Victor became responsible
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Eleutherian Mills served as a home to the du Pont family for generations, as well as to those who were employed by them. The early du Pont family consisted of E.I. du Pont, his wife Sophie, and their eight children, with extended family in New Jersey. The du Pont household also included those not
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The mill buildings used in the manufacture of gunpowder were built with strong stone-walled structures on three sides but were only covered by light wood structures on the fourth side, which faced out onto the
Brandywine Creek. When an accident occurred, the explosion was directed away from the
381:
Between 1802 and 1921 there were 288 explosions leading to the deaths of 228 people. The three most deadly and remembered explosions occurred in 1818, 1890 and 1915. The 1890 explosion occurred in the Upper Yard, and the 1915 explosion occurred in the
Packing House. The 1818 explosion killed 34
372:
Powder mill workers and their families also lived in towns near the powder yard or even along the
Brandywine on DuPont property at Eleutherian Mills. Some of these workers' communities included private family homes, small villages of dwellings, and larger facilities that rented living spaces to
299:. He set up the Eleutherian gunpowder mill, based on gunpowder machinery bought from France and site plans for a gunpowder mill supplied by the French government. He also built housing for 30 workers. Starting initially by reworking damaged gunpowder and refining
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458:, making metal powder kegs, and in cotton and woolen manufacturing. Stables, offices, a machine shop, and a steam powerhouse from the late 19th century also were located in the complex, as was a narrow gauge railway.
454:. Most of the industrial remains are located in the Hagley Yard. The mills were used in the purification, crushing, and mixing of charcoal, sulfur, and saltpeter. Other mills in the complex were used for glazing and
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The first domestic supplies of high-quality gunpowder in the U.S. were made here. By the end of 1804, DuPont had sold 39,000 pounds of powder; the following year, sales tripled. The federal government and
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Water power was provided from a mill race behind the mills, thus further isolating the mills in case of accident. One water wheel was often used to provide power to two mills. Water
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became regular customers. In 1813, the Hagley property, just downstream from the original mills, was purchased, doubling the size and capacity of the mills. Sales grew during the
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for the U.S. government, he quickly moved into gunpowder manufacture. Saltpetre was refined in an area between the house and the mills that now is occupied by a formal garden.
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people, the 1890 explosion killed 12 people, and the 1915 explosion killed 30 people. Another explosion in 1857 fatally injured five employees, including company partner
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https://digital.hagley.org/MS1645_167?solr_nav%5Bid%5D=d1cc5b57e4d56623b13c&solr_nav%5Bpage%5D=0&solr_nav%5Boffset%5D=2&search=worker%2520communities
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acquired additional property downstream from the
Eleutherian Mills to add to the manufacturing site. One of these properties was called
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for managing the running of the mills in his absence. Members of the du Pont family ran the powder mills until its closing in 1921.
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356:(1870–1954), who was president of DuPont from 1915 to 1919, and chairman of the board when the mill closed, founded what is today
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398:, the mills were to be closed in the 1910s but were kept open at the request of the federal government until after the end of
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402:. It closed permanently as a business in 1921. In 1952, family members donated 185 acres (0.75 km) of land and the
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company established a $ 6,000,000 endowment for the
Eleutherian Mill-Hagley Foundation for a museum of
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922:(digital exhibit produced by the Hagley Library that covers the early history of Eleutherian Mills)
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DuPont Powder Mill, Hagley Museum, on
Brandywine River, Greenville vicinity, New Castle County, DE
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Black Powder, White Lace: The Du Pont Irish and
Cultural Identity in Nineteenth-Century America
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company. The name also refers to the house on the hill above the mills, which was the first
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Industrial buildings and structures on the National Register of Historic Places in Delaware
878:
Lamont Hulse, “Workers’ Communities along the Brandywine | Hagley Digital Archives,” 1984,
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283:, in 1795, which burned down in 1797. In 1802, he sold the site, complete with a working
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Exterior view of powder mills on Hagley Yard section of property as of November 2018.
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916:", 3 photos, 4 measured drawings, 3 data pages, supplemental material
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Interior view of powder mill on Hagley Yard section of property as of November 2018.
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Mill race which supplied water power to the mills. A railway car is on the right.
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Collection of DuPont Company powder yards on the Brandywine Creek photographs
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National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination: Eleutherian Mills
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70:, about 1905. Note the handwritten "These blow up occasionally, and then?"
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contain approximately 400 images of this area between 1883 and 1936.
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home in America. In 1957 the site became an outdoor museum when the
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National Register of Historic Places in New Castle County, Delaware
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Dorsey Wetlaufer, “Family Life at Eleutherian Mills, 1803–1834 |
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DuPont: From the Banks of the Brandywine to Miracles of Science
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E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company: A History 1802 to 1902
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E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company: A History 1802 to 1902
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E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company: A History 1802 to 1902
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E. I. Du Pont de Nemours and Company, A History, 1802–1902
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Category:National Register of Historic Places in Delaware
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Buildings and structures in New Castle County, Delaware
803:(Boston and New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1920),
240:
site used for the manufacture of explosives founded by
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Gentieu collection of Brandywine River Valley images
1005:
History of the National Register of Historic Places
687:. Wilmington: E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company.
435:other mills and storage areas and over the creek.
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139:on Delaware Route 141 at Brandywine Creek Bridge
1155:Historic American Buildings Survey in Delaware
662:. The American Society of Mechanical engineers
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852:, 1st edition (Hanover: New Hampshire, 2002).
390:Transformation to a museum and historic site
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1129:Portal:National Register of Historic Places
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602:National Historic Landmark summary listing
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1170:Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmarks
972:U.S. National Register of Historic Places
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40:U.S. National Register of Historic Places
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414:formed in 1957. The site was declared a
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1175:National Historic Landmarks in Delaware
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604:. National Park Service. Archived from
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893:Brandywind Valley Oral History Project
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638:Accompanying 12 photos, from 1966–1975
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569:"National Register Information System"
16:Former gunpowder mill in Delaware, USA
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782:. Thrupp: Sutton Publishing Limited.
780:The Big Bang: A History of Explosives
697:
585:
256:was founded. The site was declared a
920:The DuPont Company on the Brandywine
867:https://digital.hagley.org/MS1645_75
824:"#221 Brandywine River Powder Mills"
656:"#221 Brandywine River Powder Mills"
574:National Register of Historic Places
561:
549:Waltham Abbey Royal Gunpowder Mills
489:Edge-runner mill in a restored mill
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1185:1921 disestablishments in Delaware
910:Historic American Buildings Survey
539:Ballincollig Royal Gunpowder Mills
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465:Unrestored mill on the Brandywine
311:trees that lined the Brandywine.
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49:U.S. National Historic Landmark
1080:Wilmington (New Castle County)
442:were introduced in the 1840s.
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1:
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544:Faversham explosives industry
450:, and it became known as the
122:Show map of the United States
758:. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.
733:. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.
708:. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.
635:, National Park Service and
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318:Original DuPont powder wagon
21:United States historic place
7:
1101:National Historic Landmarks
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421:
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416:National Historic Landmark
394:After the introduction of
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258:National Historic Landmark
184:191.2 acres (77.4 ha)
1165:Du Pont family residences
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935:Hagley Museum and Library
631:Richard Greenwood (1979)
527:Hagley Museum and Library
412:Hagley Museum and Library
364:Life at Eleutherian Mills
254:Hagley Museum and Library
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197:NRHP reference
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683:Kinnane, Adrian (2002).
242:Eleuthère Irénée du Pont
66:Working powder mills on
912:(HABS) No. DE-2, "
863:Hagley Digital Archives
848:Margaret M. Mulrooney,
799:Bessie Garner Du Pont,
995:Keeper of the Register
754:du Pont, B.G. (1920).
729:du Pont, B.G. (1920).
704:du Pont, B.G. (1920).
522:Brandywine Battlefield
490:
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307:was produced from the
244:, which grew into the
1059:New Castle (Southern)
1054:New Castle (Northern)
1010:National Park Service
990:Contributing property
579:National Park Service
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444:Alfred Victor du Pont
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384:Alexis Irénée du Pont
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165:39.78056°N 75.57500°W
778:Brown, G.I. (1998).
505:History of gunpowder
347:Role of the du Ponts
333:Mexican–American War
329:American Fur Company
281:Wilmington, Delaware
97:Show map of Delaware
608:on December 6, 2007
598:"Eleutherian Mills"
232:From 1802 to 1921,
223:Designated NHL
170:39.78056; -75.57500
161: /
491:
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408:industrial history
341:American Civil War
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1000:Historic district
354:Pierre S. du Pont
297:French Revolution
234:Eleutherian Mills
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226:November 13, 1966
218:November 13, 1966
210:Significant dates
32:Eleutherian Mills
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581:. July 9, 2010.
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1089:Other lists
452:Hagley Yard
400:World War I
337:Crimean War
273:cotton mill
269:Jacob Broom
168: /
144:Coordinates
1144:Categories
555:References
156:75°34′30″W
153:39°46′50″N
1042:by county
865:,” 1964,
533:Elsewhere
510:Gunpowder
499:Gunpowder
418:in 1966.
301:saltpetre
289:mill race
260:in 1966.
135:North of
976:Delaware
929:and the
494:See also
440:turbines
422:The site
335:and the
305:Charcoal
271:built a
204:66000259
132:Location
1096:Bridges
456:corning
275:on the
264:History
1064:Sussex
983:Topics
895:, 1954
830:. ASME
786:
762:
737:
712:
691:
448:Hagley
410:. The
404:DuPont
309:willow
293:France
246:DuPont
236:was a
1040:Lists
189:Built
1049:Kent
925:The
836:2021
828:ASME
784:ISBN
760:ISBN
735:ISBN
710:ISBN
689:ISBN
668:2021
660:ASME
614:2007
287:and
192:1803
181:Area
974:in
933:at
805:hdl
327:'s
285:dam
199:No.
1146::
826:.
676:^
658:.
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622:^
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964:e
957:t
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