Life at Winterthur: A Du Pont Family Album

by Maggie Lidz

Long before it became a museum, Winterthur was a family home. Babies were born there, children grew up there, young people married there, and old people died there. Through photographs, letters, sketches, and even recipes, this scrapbook chronicles the public and private aspects of life at the busy estate. Published in conjunction with the museum's 50th anniversary celebration, Life at Winterthur begins in 1874, the year the estate was given to Henry Algernon du Pont as a wedding gift, and ends with the 1947 nuptials of his youngest granddaughter, Ruth Ellen -- the last great private celebration before the home opened as a museum. Never-before-published photographs and personal reminiscences enliven this pictorial history of life at one of America's grand old country estates.

56 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2001

Reviews

[Donna · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great short book that gave me so much of what I wanted to know about this family. I love this time period (in general)and I have read so much about it, but the most important aspect to me is what the lives of the people in that time frame did, and this book answered that for me. I loved seeing the images of the family in portraits that depicted each one's demeanor and I love seeing the clothes that they wore. Another point that I liked about this book was reading some of the letters that were in the archives at Winterthur. I love seeing the language used and also the individual's personality come out through their writing. Great book to read if you are truly interested in the estate and the time period.