Winterthur

Winterthur is the great house and garden of Henry Francis du Pont, on the wooded hills north of Wilmington — 175 rooms of American decorative arts, set in 60 acres of naturalistic garden, with another thousand acres of meadow and forest beyond. The collection is the most important of its kind in the country, covering the full sweep of American craft from the colonial period through the Civil War.

Visitors tour selected rooms with a guide; specialty tours cover specific collections (textiles, ceramics, period rooms). The garden, designed by H.F. du Pont himself, peaks in late April and early May with the famous azaleas in the March Bank, but is rewarding through the season. The Enchanted Woods is a small children's garden that has won an award and is worth a detour with kids.

Allow most of a day. Combine with Hagley or Nemours for the full Brandywine experience.

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A story
Henry Francis du Pont inherited 2,500 acres of Brandywine Valley land and spent 50 years filling the house with 90,000 objects of American decorative art — furniture, ceramics, silver, paintings, textiles — all made or used in America between 1640 and 1860. The collection is so deep that even after the museum opens 175 rooms to visitors, the bulk of it remains in storage.

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