Smyrna times., 1889-07-03
Picturesque History: Old Gun
powder Works on the
Brandywine.

BrandyW1ne.
The Dupont Works are almost pre-
cisely of the same age as the nineteenth
century. Their protector, grandfather
to the younger and father to the elder
of their present owners, landed at
Newport, Rhode Island, on the first
day of January, 1900, and began to
locate the works here in the summer
of 1902 The history of their growth,
interesting in the scientific and indus
trial features, is rendered more strik-
ing by many picturesque circumstances
by which it is accompanied 1t was an
incident quite odd and apparently al
together fortuitous, that set M. Eleu- |
there Irene du Pont to making gun
powder on the banks of the Brandy |
wine. Born in France, at the old |
family residence, Bois des Fosses, at |
Chevannes, near NemOurs, he was
little more than a lad when on that
terrible 10th of August, 1892, he accom-
panied his father to the Tuileries with
the chivalrous purpose of helping to
defend the already defenceless Louis
XVI. Escaping thence with the
greatest difficulty and danger, in the
midst of that slaughter of the Swiss
! Guards which ThOrwaldsen's colossal
lion at Lucerne commentaries, the
father, who was that distinguished
SdUaat and author, economist and
statesman, Pierre Samuel du POnt de
NemOurs, a prominent figure in French
affairs for thirty years preceding, the
friend and associate Of Turgot, the
man who taught CalOnne, the author
on the part of France of the treaty by
which Great Britain yielded independ-
ence to America, secretary of the
Assembly of Notables, member of the
States General from NemOurs, and
twice the president Of the Constituent
Assembly, evaded the clutch of the
extreme revolutionists for time, by
being concealed in the French Observ-
atory by his friend the astronomer
Lalande, while his son was hastily
conveyed into the country, and during
the Reign of Terror remained in re-
tirement at Essone. There, as it
CHANGED, was located the great govern
ment poudriere-the powder works
from which came the supplies for
public use. NJ. +. I du Pont had been
or then became pupil Of LavOisier,
the chemist, who was the chief of the
Bureau de Poudres ct Salpetres," and
he made a thorough study of the pro-
eesses by which the powder was pro-
duced. Later, his father, who after
the concealment bv Lalande, had been
captured and imprisoned, but had been
saved from the guillotine, like
Josephine, by the fall of Robespierre,
decided to quit France with his sons,
: and late in 1899 they set sail for the
United States. Victor, the elder son,
had been here previously: in 1889 he
5 was attache of the French ambassador,
the Count de Moustier, later he acted
? as the consul for France at Charleston,
and after that held the place of consul
general at New York. He, and also
|. his brother, were accompanied by theil
= families, and with them came M
Bureau de Pusey, the son-in-law ot
their stepmOther, who had been a com.
panion with Lafayette during his hid
eous Imprisonment at Olmutz.
J Small manufactures of gunpowder
under the compulsion of the demand
for their product, had sprung up il
the United States during the Revolu
; tion, but they had made little progress
The processes were primitive, anC
lacked the precise knowledge of scien
tifc method and skilful manipulation
% which M. du Points studies at Essont
enobled him to supply. He at oncr
resolved to equal in quality the bes
n imported powder; he double-refneC
his saltpetre, and exercised extrem
care in the selection of his charcoal
From the first he made his works sue
2 cessful in the commercial sense, and G
the best repute for the uniform excel
lence of their productions. He ha
\. begun with his buildings at what ar
now called the Upper Works." fou
miles above Wilmington, but ten year
later he purchased another importan
Y tract along the creek, the "Hagley
property, which has become the "MiG
die Works" Here there had been a
ancient saw-mill, and the handsom
residence of Rumford Dawes,
wealthy Philadelphia merchant.
- The water-power thus acquired hs
fall of twenty-five feet, and th
works have been developed by tw
complete sets of machinery to capa,
ity Of producing twenty-five thousan
nd pounds Of powder per day. In 1S4
uh the "Lower Works" were establishe,
with laboratories, refneries for sal
petre, etc. Altogether the yards g,
tend about three miles along the Bral
dywine, and include all the varioI
mills, shops, and appliances, who
at products are anywhere required fro
the first handling of the crude materi
zee to its delivery into the hands of Il
,u- ordnance officer, engineer, or sport
gn man.
nd The venerable Pierre Samuel di'
here on the Brandywine in 1917,
the residence now occupied by
grandson General Henry du Pont, a
Is buried iu the family cemetery, up
the hill.slope, west Of the upper var
He had gone back to France in 1902
n rejoin his wife, who, at the emigrati
III. in 1893, had been inhrm in heal
He remained IN France until 1916, q
when Napoleon was sent 10 Elba
9rs was once more called to public du