Hotel du Pont
Overview
January 15, 1913, saw the opening of Wilmington’s Hotel du Pont, one of the most lavish hotels of America’s Gilded Age and an immediate rival to Europe’s finest hotels. In its first week, 25,000 visitors toured the elegant rooms to see their rich woodwork, mosaic and terrazzo floors, handcrafted chandeliers, and gilded hallways, which had been created by a host of French and Italian craftsmen. The DuPont Theatre, located in the corridors of the hotel lobby, was a marvel in itself; even today, it is larger than all but three other stages in the nation. An extensive $40 million restoration has returned the lobby to its original grandeur, and each guestroom has been sumptuously refurbished. The hotel showcases original paintings of nationally recognized artists, including three generations of Wyeths.
The Hotel du Pont has hosted Prince Rainier of Monaco, King Carl XVI Gustaf and Prince Bertil of Sweden, President John F. Kennedy, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Henry Kissinger.
Original Property Opened: 1913
Contact Information:
Street Address:
11th and Market Streets
Wilmington, DE 19801
Phone: (302) 594-3100
Fax: (302) 594-3108
Historic Hotels of America toll-free reservations number (800) 678-8946
Turn of the Century, 1896 ~ 1913
January 15, 1913, saw the opening of Wilmington’s Hotel du Pont, one of the most lavish hotels of America’s Gilded Age and an immediate rival to Europe’s finest hotels.
Learn more about the History of Hotel du Pont.
