Milford chronicle., 1957-08-16
Ground Broken For
New Museum Wing

Ground has been broken for the
addition of a major wing to the
Henry Francis dupont Winterthur
Museum, near Wilmington, Del
aware, it was announced today by
Lammot du P. Copeland, president
of the Winterthur Corporation.
The new wing, which will in
crease the size of the Museum
building by about one third, will
rise six stories high in the area OF
the present visitors entrance and
Will contain an auditorium, seat
ing 200 persons; 10 period rooms;
special exhibit areas; a modern
library; and office space. 1t is ex-
pected that the building will be
completed in the fall of 1853
The Winterthur Museum, which
was opened to the public in 1851,
was formerl. the home of Mr. and
Mrs. Henry Francis dupont and
contains, in over 100 period rooms
of the years 1640-1S40, the cOllec-
lion of American domestic archi-
lecture, furniture, metalwork, tex
tiles, ceramics, paintings, and
prints assembled by Mr.. DUPONT
over a period of thirty years.
The addition to the new build
ing, Charles F. Montgomery, direc-
tor of the Museum said, has been
made necessary by the greatly in
creased use of the Winterthur col
lections by both public and private
educational institutions in the
.eaching of American history, art,
art history, and social studies. In
1luded will be group of period
looms which may be seen by the
public without the advance reser-
yation required for seeing the
whole Museum. The new building,
he added, will make possible the
iurther development of the educa-
tional program for schools and
colleges which the Museum has of
,ered since it was first opened and
viii provide expanded facilities
'or research and investigation be-
.ng carried on by the Museums
staff.
The period rooms to be installed
N the new wing have been acquired
rom houses in New England, New
York, Pennsylvania, and Delaware.
rhey will be arranged chronology
ally to show the development &C
Interior architecture, furniture
forms, and decorative accessories
rom the seventeenth century
through tie William and Mary,
queen Anne, Chippendale, and Fed
sral periods, 10 the Empire period.
An innovation will be a ''touch-it"
room, especially designed for
school children, where furniture
and other objects may be examined
tt close range.
Two other ighteenth-century
interiors will be installed in the
Winterthur addition to serve as
dining room and sitting room for
the visitors touring the whole
Museum.
The Library, to be housed on the
third and fourth floors of the new
building, will be of the most mod
9rn type. Consolidated here will be
he Winterthur Museum Reference
Library, the Joseph Downs Manu-
III III AAAOA > tAAC hue
Xix Belknap, Jr., Research Library
If American Painting, and the Rare
Beck Collection of Design Source
Material. Facilities will be such
that any student or scholar making
I serious study OF early American
art and history may make use of
he Winterthur Museums resour-
,es.
During the initial stages of con-
struction during August. the Mu-
scum is closed to visitors. In prep
lration for the new building a SER
vice area for utilities has been built
underground outside the main
building, and many trees and
shrubs which surrounded the Mu-
scum building have been moved
to new locations.
Architects for the Winterthur
wing are V;otCrine and Samuel
Homsey of Wilmington. Rupert
Construction Company is the con-
tractor.