Pierre Samuel du Pont de Nemours

Pierre Samuel du Pont de Nemours (1739 - 1817), born in Paris, France, was the founder of a dynamic and innovative family of entrepreneurs. His name was originally Dupont but he changed the form and then added the name of a district south of Paris called "de Nemours". He was initially a supporter of the French Revolution and served as president of the National Constituent Assembly. However, he and his son Eleuthère Irénée du Pont were among those who physically defended Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette from a mob besieging the Tuileries Palace in Paris during the insurrection of August 10, 1792. He was condemned to the guillotine during the Reign of Terror, but his execution was still pending when Robespierre fell on 9 Thermidor and he was spared. After his house was sacked by a mob in 1797 during the events of 18 Fructidor, he and his entire family left for the United States in 1799. They hoped (but failed) to found a model community of French exiles. In the United States, he developed strong ties with industry and government, in particular with Thomas Jefferson. Eventually, he would settle in the U.S. permanently where he died in 1817. His son, Eleuthère Irénée, founded what would become one of the largest and most successful American corporations: E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company. du Pont de Nemours, Pierre Samuel