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Henry F. du Pont and Winterthur: A Daughter`s Portrait |  | Author: Ms. Ruth Lord M.A.
Publisher: Yale University Press
Category: Book
List Price: $29.95
Buy Used: $1.97
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Seller: trinity-city-books
Rating:  4 reviews
Sales Rank: 111622
Media: Hardcover
Pages: 318
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.5
Dimensions (in): 9.5 x 6.4 x 1
ISBN: 0300070748
Dewey Decimal Number: 745.0974075
EAN: 9780300070743
ASIN: 0300070748
Publication Date: March 11, 1999
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com Review
Henry F. du Pont, or Harry, as he was commonly known, was something of a pack rat. Luckily, he had exacting taste and meticulously documented his vast collection of antiques, furniture, and beautiful things. The son of the wealthy senator and Civil War hero Henry Algernon du Pont, Harry spent his early years floundering around in school, struggling both with academics and athletics, and found few, if any, pursuits at which he excelled. After graduating from Harvard with a less-than-stellar academic record, Harry moved back home to Delaware. There, for lack of anything better to do, he began to manage the family's vast estate, which included sprawling gardens and even bigger cattle farms. Soon du Pont found his métier. He and his wife established four majestic homes--one each in Manhattan; Southampton; Boca Grande, Florida; and, most famously, Winterthur, Delaware--which they filled with their ever-expanding collection of antiques, art, carpets, and sundry knickknacks. Du Pont took immense pleasure in every detail of domestic life--carrying on a decades-long correspondence with a linens purveyor, for example, in which the two discussed every possible minutia of stitching and quilting, and carefully overseeing the choice of flowers, china, and even doilies for household luncheons. In 1931, du Pont decided to share his passion with the public and dedicated his beloved Winterthur as a museum. After doubling its size to house all of its holdings, the museum opened in 1951. Du Pont did not stop there. He chaired the committee to save the Cooper Union Museum (now the Cooper-Hewitt Museum of Design) and helped Jacqueline Kennedy redecorate the White House. This affectionate biography, written by the du Ponts' daughter, Ruth, offers an intimate view of one of the century's great cultural philanthropists. --Anna Baldwin
Product Description
In this delightful memoir, Ruth Lord recalls her father, Henry F. du Pont, and her childhood years at Winterthur, the family home in Delaware, which du Pont transformed into a world-renowned museum. Based on her own experiences and on extraordinary family archives, the book tells the vivid story of Lord`s father`s diverse accomplishments and her family`s fabulous lifestyle.
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| Customer Reviews:
Insight and Intelligence March 29, 2006
Enna Nichrus
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
This is a truly unusual biography. Written with insight and perception, Ruth Lord's protrayal of her father lead her to an understanding of him that she never had when he was alive. That any adult child could write of a parent with such objectivity is really remarkable.
The world of wealth and privilege comes with responsibilites and obligations. H.F. du Pont met his but not without personal hardship. As as a child who was never supposed to amount to anything, H.F. left lasting accomplishments in the world of the decorative arts, dairy breeding and horticulture. A fascinating story of a remarkable man, this is a book well worth reading.
Winterthur delights... June 21, 2009
Debra Shedrick (Wilmington, DE USA)
Mrs Lord's memoir is more than mere biography of her father, Henry Francis du Pont, who developed the world's premier collection of American decorative arts. She explores in depth the man who was collector, designer, AND father & family man - & this gives those who love Winterthur so much to consider beyond the collection.
Much has been written about Henry Francis du Pont in the context of his collection & magnificent garden. Mrs Lord's book throws open for examination an important & otherwise hidden element of this man, because it explores his inner life from childhood to old age. In writing this book, she has enabled the Museum to change the focus of its tours from COMPLETE furniture focus - which used to be confined to charts of ball & claw feet - to examination of how furniture was used in period & how Mr du Pont arranged & used the furniture to entertain his many guests as he developed his museum. In this context, her book is ground-breaking.
The book is a milestone, & as I read it I could picture Mrs Lord as a 9-year old in 1931, in her new 7th floor bedroom, watching the headlights of her parents' friends' autos play across the ceiling. She vividly portrays an experience that, privileged but personal, can relate to all of us at some level as we try to relate to parents.
A wonderful book about a remarkable man.
Henry DuPont and Winterthur: A Daughters Portrait September 23, 2009
BLRombold-Gillies (Bellingham,WA.)
the moment i picked up this book i could not put it down. Ruth writes a great insight into Winterthur and her father and mother. A must for those who have been to Winterthur but also like me those who have not. Great Pictures to give you a taste of what life was like back then. An amazing man who knew many, many years before that his family's home would be a great museum. You'll read about his strange and almost cold ways of dealing with life but his insight into decorating his home in the American style of that time period. Also his relationship with The Kennedys and the White House redesign during Kenndys years. Worth the read.
 A touching portrait of a complex, difficult man. April 15, 1999
14 out of 14 found this review helpful
Not a story to which I would naturally gravitate, but I feel fortunate that I found this book. A wonderfully detailed account of a peculiar and interesting man and family. Free of the sordid tell-all, life-was-hell details of so much of what passes for memoir these days, but full of both love and unflinching insight.
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