Winterthur Museum - Winterthur, DE
Posted by: 
hykesj
N 39° 48.356 W 075° 36.094
18S E 448504 N 4406391
Estate and gardens of Henry Francis du Pont which houses his incredible collection of American decorative art and furniture.
Waymark Code: WM16QPN
Location: Delaware, United States
Date Posted: 09/18/2022
Views: 9
In the early part of the nineteenth century, E. I. du Pont (who came to America from France to avoid the ravages of the French Revolution and who settled in Delaware) made a fortune manufacturing gunpowder. E. I. du Pont’s business partner (and son-in-law) Jacques Antoine Bidermann, acquired land in northern New Castle County in order to establish an estate. Bidermann named the estate Winterthur after his ancestral home in Switzerland and built a modest 12 room manor house on the property.
The estate remained in the du Pont family when Bidermann’s son sold it to his uncle Henry du Pont who gave it to his son Henry Algernon du Pont. As is often the case, a fortune made by one generation is spent by subsequent generations. By the time Winterthur passed to Henry du Pont’s grandson, Henry Francis du Pont, he was using it mainly in the pursuit of his hobbies: horticulture, collecting antiques, decorative and fine art and raising Holstein cattle.
Henry Francis du Pont expanded the house to many times its original size to hold his ever growing collection of furniture and Americana and also expanded the gardens. In 1951, du Pont established the main house at Winterthur as a museum. By the time of his death in 1969, H. F. du Pont had amassed nearly 70,000 objects of historical or artistic importance. Today, the Winterthur Museum along with the gardens and grounds are open to the public. The museum consists of about 175 ‘period’ rooms housing items from the du Pont collection.
Oddly enough, H. F. du Pont originally got the idea for collecting Americana after a visit to Shelburne Farms in northern Vermont. He visited to learn about cattle breeding from William S. Webb, but after meeting with Webb’s daughter-in-law, Electra Havemeyer Webb, whose collection of Americana forms the basis of the Shelburne Museum, he caught the collecting bug. Shelburne Farms is also on the list of 1000 places to see before you die.
Several items from this museum’s collection (as well as their gardens) have appeared on U.S. postage stamps. These include a toleware coffeepot, a porcelain piece attributed to Charles Gabriel Suavage named “Louis XVI and Benjamin Franklin,” and an unfinished painting by Benjamin West entitled “Signing of the Treaty of Paris.”
And should they get bored touring the myriad period rooms, Winterthur has plenty of hands-on activities for children, both in the house and especially in the garden areas.
Name of Source Book: 1000 Places To See Before You Die - In the USA and Canada (2007)
Page Location in Source Book: 116
Type of Waymark: Site
Location of Coordinates: Entrance to the main house/museum
Cost of Admission (Parks, Museums, etc.): 22.00 (listed in local currency)
List Available Hours, Dates, Season:
Open year round, 10:00 am to 5:00 pm; Closed Mondays.
Official Tourism Website: [Web Link]
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Visit Instructions:
Because of the vastness of many of the "non-localized" sites (Gobi Desert, Great Wall of China), waymark owners are encouraged to allow visits that reflect different perspectives and experiences.
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