eedwards

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 * E. I. du Pont de Nemours**

**Eleuthère Irénée Du Pont de Nemours was born in Paris, France on June 24, 1771. He was the youngest of three kids. He had two older brothers, Victor and Paul. He and his family moved to the United States in 1799. They established their home and company by, 1802, in Delaware. He married Sophie m. Dalmas and together they had eight children Lucille du Pont, Evelina Gabrielle du Pont, Alfred V. du Pont, Eleuthera Gabrielle du Pont, Sophie Madeleine du Pont, Henry du Pont, and Alexis Irénée du Pont.

His company began as a manufacturer of gunpowder, as it grew it begun producing TNT and other explosives. By the mid nineteenth century the company had become the largest supplier of gunpowder to the United States military. He supplied about half of the powder used in the American Civil War to the Union. Du Pont’s company continued to grow, and eventually declared Monopoly. After E. I. du Pont passed away, his company became one of the most successful American corporations’ run by his descending family. They became one of the richest families in the 19th and 20th centuries. His sons, Alfred and Henry, took over the company when he died in, 1834 at Eleutherian Mills.

Robber Baron or Captain of industry?

Du pont was a mixture of both robber baron and Captain of industry. He was partly robber baron, because he made his money selling his product during time of war. On the other hand, his product was used to help the country when it was facing war. Not stating that he was a bad man, but a man taking advantage of an opportunity he was handed the title rober baron. Bibliography  “Eleuthère Irénée Du Pont de Nemours” Wikipedia, http://en.wipedia.org/wiki/Eleuthere_Irenee_Du_Pont (02|18|08)  “DuPont” Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DuPont (02\25\08) **=