Events of Monday, November 29, 2010

          What a strange day! I awoke at 5:00 and left for a time of walking and prayer. It was still dark outside, but the crescent moon lit my path. I explored much of Brandywine Creek State Park, until I saw the sun rising orange through the barren trees at 7:00.

          After waking my family, Ben and I got our haircuts from Lindsey and Pam. Then we tromped over to the Sunrise Café for our complimentary breakfast which included waffles, scrambled eggs, sausage patties, bacon, oatmeal, yogurt, bagels, pastries, cereal, milk and juice. We ate late, so we called it our brunch.

          Pam spent her childhood here in Wilmington, and I like it quite a bit. The beautiful undeveloped spaces, the historic buildings, and the courteous drivers combine to make this a lovely place. Pam’s dad worked for DuPont, but I knew little about the company’s origin. Today I added much to my knowledge by visiting the area surrounding original powder mill site, which is now called Hagley Museum. This is unlike any museum I have ever visited. Our visit there included free shuttle rides that helped us to commute between the eight different educational and historic sites. At each stop, tour guides (some in period dress) served as guides to lead and instruct us.

          We began in the three-story visitor center, with its intricate dioramas and interactive displays. From the displays, we learned about the types of mills, about mill mechanisms, about gunpowder and its manufacture, and about DuPont Company’s transformation from a powder mill to a chemical products manufacturer and pioneer of industrial research and development. Neoprene, Nylon, Lycra, Teflon, and Kevlar are some of their most famous innovations. We also learned about the Du Pont family and that the patriarch Pierre Samuel du Pont was a well-connected, politically active French merchant. He emigrated from France to the U.S. because his connections were politically unpopular following the French Revolution. His son Eleuthère Irénée (E.I.) du Pont did some clever market analysis and founded a powder mill that produced high quality black gunpowder.

          The shuttle took us to E.I. du Pont’s mansion, all dressed up for Christmas. Ben especially enjoyed the “Italianate classical ruins” garden­­ and says he wants to have one himself someday. Our next stop was the steam engine house, useful when the river was frozen or low from drought. Then we moved on to the powder mill and millwright shop, where docent John Conner gave us a very informed introduction to the manufacture of black powder. Of course, the best part was the demonstration of exploding gunpowder that made the girls scream.

          Right next door was a machine shop. Here they manufactured the gears, axles, tools, and parts needed in the plant. The machines, including some original to the mid-1800s, are all run by water power. The lathes, planers, and drill presses were surprisingly similar to the modern ones I used in my Manufacturing Technologies class at Stanford.  

          Up the hill we visited a foreman’s home and the Brandywine Manufacturers’ Sunday School. The latter was quite a social innovation, supported entirely by the Du Ponts. It was called Sunday School, not because of any religious content, but because the children who attended had to work the other six days of the week. I counted desk space for 78 “scholars”, ages 5 to 14.

          After the museum, we returned to the famous Charcoal Pit diner. Having eaten such a large brunch, we skipped lunch and ordered the Kitchen Sink:

“Serves two to four. 20 Scoops (that´s right, 20) of Vanilla, Chocolate and Strawberry Ice Cream, Just Jammed with Banana Spears, Chocolate Syrup, Crushed Pineapple, Cherries and Wet Walnuts and Loaded with Whipped Cream, Topped with Cherries.”

It was phenomenal. We almost finished it.

          We drove about half an hour to the Newark Costco, where we restocked our food supply. I talked with the supervisor, who said we could stay the night in their parking lot. So we did. We had a light dinner of turkey sandwiches and then finished watching our DVD of “West Side Story.” A classic.