Henry Francis du Pont

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Henry Francis du Pont (1880-1969), Harvard 1902, married 1916 Ruth Wales (1891 - 1967) was an American horticulturist, an expert on early American furniture & decorative arts – particularly of the Federal style, & a member of the prominent du Pont family.

Born at Winterthur, Delaware, he was the only son of Henry Algernon du Pont and Mary Pauline Foster. He studied horticulture at the Bussey Institution at Harvard University. In 1916, he married Ruth Wales (1889-1967) and they had 2 children, Pauline Louise du Pont (1918-2007) and Ruth Ellen du Pont (b. 1922).

A collector of Americana, Henry Francis du Pont developed the family estate into the well known Winterthur Museum & Country Estate, establishing it as a museum in 1951. Before he developed his antique collection however, he was one of the premier breeders of Holstein-Freisien cattle in America. The Winterthur herd of dairy cattle was well known in farming and agricultural circles from the 1920s up until du Pont's death in 1969. After Henry Francis du Pont's death, the herd was sold & much more emphasis was placed on promoting du Pont's antique collection.

He was asked by Jacqueline Kennedy to help oversee the renovation of the White House in 1961-1963, using his contacts and expertise to acquire donations of fine art and furniture, at times clashing with Kennedy's interior designer Stéphane Boudin. Henry was part of the wealthy du Pont family.