Pierre Samuel du Pont

Pierre Samuel du Pont (1870-1954), American industrialist, the great-grandson of Eleuthère Irénée du Pont, born in Wilmington, Delaware, and educated at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He was acting president of E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company, Inc., from 1909 to 1915, when he was elected president of the company. In 1920 he became president of the General Motors Corp., returning to his family company in 1923 as chairman of the board. Under his direction the company developed greatly.

The corporation expanded into the chemical products field, acquiring, in the period from 1915 to 1931, 16 large chemical products companies in the U.S., the Remington Arms Company, and a large part of the stock of the General Motors Corp. From the time of its beginning in 1802, the company supplied nearly all the military explosives used by the U.S. in its wars; during World War I, it supplied 40 percent of the smokeless gunpowder used by all the Allies. Explosives became a minor interest of the du Pont enterprises after 1918; its products included acids, dyes, lacquers, industrial alcohol, cellulose, synthetic fibers such as rayon and nylon, and photographic film. The company expanded further after World War II ended in 1945, and as of 1995, operated 175 manufacturing and processing facilities in about 70 countries. In 1994 total annual sales of E. I. du Pont de Nemours exceeded $39 billion.