Search Results

Title: Interview with Bruce Koepcke, 2018 May 31 and June 6
Date(s): [2018-05-31, 2018-06-06], 2018-05-31, 2018-06-06
Contributor(s): Koepcke, Bruce (interviewee), Plasky, Joseph G. (interviewer)
Description: At the beginning of his interview, Bruce Koepcke notes his talent for singing and mentions his involvement with many singing groups over the course of his career. He then describes his early life and military service, mentioning the leadership skills he gained during his time in the military. The interview then transitions to his career with DuPont.

When describing his move to marketing in the 1970s, Koepcke notes that marketing strategy at the time prioritized sales volume over profits. He...
Show moreAt the beginning of his interview, Bruce Koepcke notes his talent for singing and mentions his involvement with many singing groups over the course of his career. He then describes his early life and military service, mentioning the leadership skills he gained during his time in the military. The interview then transitions to his career with DuPont.

When describing his move to marketing in the 1970s, Koepcke notes that marketing strategy at the time prioritized sales volume over profits. He describes in detail his involvement with the development of STAINMASTER and its marketing program in the 1980s. He identifies Jim Culley as a key player in this process.

Koepcke describes how in 1986, a massive marketing campaign was developed and executed around STAINMASTER. He notes that, Tom McAndrews, flooring systems director, fully supported the marketing program. This program was larger than Textile Fibers had ever attempted in terms of money invested, national scope, and swiftness of execution. Koepcke argues that concerns over how the program was being communicated to company directors lead to a partial collapse of the program. He notes that McAndrews left DuPont in 1989 and Koepcke himself left in 1990.
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Collection ID: Oral history interviews with former employees of DuPont Company's Textile Fibers Department (Accession 2010.215)
Hagley ID: 2010215_20180531_Koepcke
Collection: Oral history interviews with former employees of DuPont Company's Textile Fibers Department

Title: Interview with Fred Marenco, 1984 March 5 [audio]
Date(s): 1984-03-05
Contributor(s): Marenco, Fred (interviewee), Bond, Jim (interviewer)
Description: Marenco describes childhood pranks and pastimes, keeping boarders at his family's home, holiday parades and celebrations, and life in the Wilmington area in the early twentieth century. He also discusses community life, including relations between Irish and Italian families, the lack of crime, social status, relationships with the neighbors, and working odd jobs for DuPont.
Collection ID: Eleutherian Mills-Hagley Foundation interviews on the history of the DuPont Company Powder Yard (Accession 1970.370)
Hagley ID: 1970370_12313_marenco_part2
Collection: Oral histories on work and daily life in the Brandywine Valley

Title: Interview with John E. Krauss, 1958 May 14, 28 [transcript]
Date(s): 1958-05-14, 1958-05-28
Contributor(s): Krauss, John E. (interviewee), Monigle, Joseph P. (interviewer), Wilkinson, Norman B. (interviewer)
Description: Transcript of interview with John E. Krauss who worked for the DuPont Personnel Department and who also lived in Squirrel Run while his father worked in the powder yards The interview took place in Wilmington, Delaware.
Collection ID: Eleutherian Mills-Hagley Foundation interview transcripts on the history of the DuPont Company Powder Yard (Accession 2026)
Hagley ID: 2026_052913_13
Collection: Oral histories on work and daily life in the Brandywine Valley

Title: Interview with Barney J. Carter, 2010 January 18
Date(s): 2010-01-18
Contributor(s): Carter, Barney J., 1943- (interviewee), Plasky, Joseph G. (interviewer)
Description: Interview details Carter's career at DuPont, including his move to a Louisiana plant in 1970 in response to economic difficulties, and subsequently back to Martinsville in 1973 in the spinning area, working with textiles, and finally to Chattanooga. He also discusses his theories as to why the Martinsville plant was shut down.
Collection ID: Oral history interviews with former employees of DuPont Company's Textile Fibers Department (Accession 2010.215)
Hagley ID: 2010215_20100118_Carter
Collection: Oral history interviews with former employees of DuPont Company's Textile Fibers Department

Title: Interview with Wesley Memeger, Jr., 2014 August 19
Date(s): 2014-08-19
Contributor(s): Memeger, Wesley, Jr. (interviewee), Smith, John K. (John Kenly), 1951- (interviewer), Oates, Mike (videographer), 302 Stories, Inc. (production company), Eleutherian Mills-Hagley Foundation (originator)
Description: Wesley Memeger, Jr. details his contribution to streamlining the synthesis of Kevlar, which allowed the timely start-up of the first commercial scale Kevlar plant. In the laboratory, the polymer for Kevlar had previously been prepared by polymerizing para-phenylene diamine and terephthaloyl chloride in a mixture of two solvents, HMPA (hexamethylphosphoramide) and NMP (N-methylpyrrolidinone). Memeger found that a polymer with satisfactory molecular weight could be made using only HMPA, a...
Show moreWesley Memeger, Jr. details his contribution to streamlining the synthesis of Kevlar, which allowed the timely start-up of the first commercial scale Kevlar plant. In the laboratory, the polymer for Kevlar had previously been prepared by polymerizing para-phenylene diamine and terephthaloyl chloride in a mixture of two solvents, HMPA (hexamethylphosphoramide) and NMP (N-methylpyrrolidinone). Memeger found that a polymer with satisfactory molecular weight could be made using only HMPA, a discovery which made the preparation of Kevlar more commercially viable, as it allowed for a continuous polymerizer in a single solvent system.

Memeger recounts that DuPont used HMPA as the solvent for Kevlar production in the early 1970s, but after toxicology tests conducted at the company's Haskell Laboratory raised doubts about the safety of the solvent, DuPont replaced HMPA with NMP and calcium chloride. Memeger describes his subsequent work at DuPont investigating melt processible polymers, which share some properties with Kevlar but lack equivalent chemical and thermal stability, as well as his work on ring opening routes to polymers with novel properties. An accomplished artist, Memeger continues to be impressed by the elegance and simplicity of the Kevlar polymer that produces such remarkable properties.
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Collection ID: History of Kevlar oral history interviews (Accession 2014.249)
Hagley ID: 2014249_20140819_Memeger
Collection: History of Kevlar oral history interviews

Title: Interview with Horace Collins, 1986 June 18 [audio] (part 5)
Date(s): 1986-06-18
Contributor(s): Collins, Horace Spencer, 1912-1989 (Interviewee), Turner, John James, Jr., 1930-2019 (ivr)
Description: Horace Collins is shown a series of slides with photographs taken at Anselma Mill in 1972. The subjects vary widely and include the cider press, power hack saw, drill press, a dog tread power used to churn butter, and an old clock. Collins describes each slide, discusses the memories they evoke, and how they related to the running of the mill. Slides 109 to 121.
Collection ID: The Mill at Anselma oral history interviews (Accession 2019.226)
Hagley ID: AUD_2019226_ID13
Collection: The Mill at Anselma oral history interviews

Title: Interview with John E. Krauss, 1958 May 14 [audio](part 2)
Date(s): 1958-05-14
Contributor(s): Krauss, John E. (interviewee), Monigle, Joseph P. (interviewer), Wilkinson, Norman B. (interviewer)
Description: Krauss describes his father's working career, including an incident in which Mr. Krauss asked Mr. Francis G. du Pont not to smoke a cigar near the powder mill. His interview describes his childhood at Squirrel Run, including his education at A.I. du Pont School, his summer jobs in the mill at Hagley, his impressions of du Pont family members, and his later working career at DuPont.
Collection ID: Eleutherian Mills-Hagley Foundation interviews on the history of the DuPont Company Powder Yard (Accession 1970.370)
Hagley ID: 1970370_71113_Krauss_part2
Collection: Oral histories on work and daily life in the Brandywine Valley

Title: Interview with Eugene Bruno, 1981 March 12 [audio](part 1)
Date(s): 1981-03-12
Contributor(s): Bruno, Eugene (interviewee), Tremaine, Dorothy (interviewer)
Description: Bruno's interview details his childhood in Wilmington, Delaware. He describes the homes in Squirrel Run, how the children used to spend the weekends there after the move having picnics and watching the adults play bocce ball, and his job working at Hodginson Brothers Woolen Mills. He also describes Wilmington in the early twentieth century, particularly the area of Little Italy, where he grew up.
Collection ID: Eleutherian Mills-Hagley Foundation interviews on the history of the DuPont Company Powder Yard (Accession 1970.370)
Hagley ID: 1970370_92013_bruno_part1
Collection: Oral histories on work and daily life in the Brandywine Valley

Title: Interview with Katherine Collison, 1954 September, 1955 January [audio]
Date(s): 1954?/1955?, 1954, 1955
Contributor(s): Collison, Katherine (interviewee), Monigle, Joseph P. (interviewer), Wilkinson, Norman B. (interviewer)
Description: Collison describes the house itself and the hardworking maids who lived there; how the children played and entertained themselves at the powder yards; various explosions and the reactions of the families; the cultural and social makeup of the community; and Collison's relationship with members of the du Pont family, including her friendship with Sophie du Pont.
Collection ID: Eleutherian Mills-Hagley Foundation interviews on the history of the DuPont Company Powder Yard (Accession 1970.370)
Hagley ID: 1970370_62713_collison
Collection: Oral histories on work and daily life in the Brandywine Valley

Title: Interview with Walter Aurand, 1981 May 14 [audio]
Date(s): 1981-05-14
Contributor(s): Aurand, Walter George, 1891-1983 (interviewee), Tremaine, Dorothy (interviewer)
Description: Influenced by his high school teacher and educated in chemistry at the University of Delaware, Walter describes life in Wilmington during the early twentieth century. His interview details a work atmosphere at DuPont, a powder explosion that killed three women, testing the bullets in New Castle, and safety in the workplace.
Collection ID: Eleutherian Mills-Hagley Foundation interviews on the history of the DuPont Company Powder Yard (Accession 1970.370)
Hagley ID: 1970370_102313_aurand
Collection: Oral histories on work and daily life in the Brandywine Valley

Title: Interview with John and Sara Cordivano
Date(s): 2018-06-28
Contributor(s): Williams, Amrys O. (interviewer), Cordivano, John (interviewee), Cordivano, Sara (interviewee)
Description: In this interview, the Cordivano's reflect on their longstanding involvement in the mushroom industry, from their experiences growing up in mushroom families, to John's experience with making better mushroom compost. John Cordivano describes his family entering the business and his own work for several mushroom companies over the years (Cordivano Brothers, John Swayne, a farm in Maryland, Oxford Royal, Laurel Valley) and the various jobs he performed there. Sara Cordivano, talks about her...
Show moreIn this interview, the Cordivano's reflect on their longstanding involvement in the mushroom industry, from their experiences growing up in mushroom families, to John's experience with making better mushroom compost. John Cordivano describes his family entering the business and his own work for several mushroom companies over the years (Cordivano Brothers, John Swayne, a farm in Maryland, Oxford Royal, Laurel Valley) and the various jobs he performed there. Sara Cordivano, talks about her experience in mushrooms, converting a dairy barn into their personal mini mushroom farm, managing the marketing for it, and describes their children getting involved, but eventually moving on to careers they desired.
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Collection ID: Oral history interviews on cultivated mushroom industry (2018.219)
Hagley ID: Cordivano_John_and_Sara_20180628
Collection: Oral history interviews on cultivated mushroom industry

Title: Interview with Tyler Blackwell and Carla McKinney
Date(s): 2018-01-31
Contributor(s): Spohn, Benjamin (interviewer), Blackwell, Tyler (interviewee), McKinney, Carla (interviewee)
Description: In this interview, Mckinney and Blackwell talk about their lives in the mushroom industry. They talk about growing up and working with their father, Clinton Blackwell. They also talk about how the mushroom industry has changed since they started working in the industry in the early and mid 2000s.
Collection ID: Oral history interviews on cultivated mushroom industry (2018.219)
Hagley ID: Blackwell_Tyler_and_McKinney_Carla
Collection: Oral history interviews on cultivated mushroom industry

Title: Interview with Frank T. Stirlith, 1960 January 12, 1960 January 14 [audio](part 3)
Date(s): 1960-01-12, 1960-01-14
Contributor(s): Stirlith, Frank T. (interviewee), Monigle, Joseph P. (interviewer), Wilkinson, Norman B. (interviewer)
Description: Stirlith describes his family history and immigration to the United States, his childhood growing up in Chester, life in Wilmington during his adult years, his career at DuPont, and his impressions of and interactions with various members of the du Pont family. He also recounts, in detail, William Jennings Bryan's Cross of Gold speech, which he heard in Wilmington in 1896.
Collection ID: Eleutherian Mills-Hagley Foundation interviews on the history of the DuPont Company Powder Yard (Accession 1970.370)
Hagley ID: 1970370_71613_Stirlith_Part3
Collection: Oral histories on work and daily life in the Brandywine Valley

Title: Interview with Don Sturgeon, 2019 January 24
Date(s): 2019-01-24
Contributor(s): Sturgeon, Don (interviewee), Plasky, Joseph G. (interviewer)
Description: In his interview, Don Sturgeon gives a comprehensive account of his involvement with Kevlar applications at DuPont. He first describes his early life in Argentina. He then details the interview process he went through to get a position at DuPont. He describes in detail his first assignment at the PRL (Pioneering Research Laboratory), providing a snapshot of how DuPont managed technology in the late 1960s. He describes the application of Kelvar to both the Lockheed L-1011 TriStar airplane and...
Show moreIn his interview, Don Sturgeon gives a comprehensive account of his involvement with Kevlar applications at DuPont. He first describes his early life in Argentina. He then details the interview process he went through to get a position at DuPont. He describes in detail his first assignment at the PRL (Pioneering Research Laboratory), providing a snapshot of how DuPont managed technology in the late 1960s. He describes the application of Kelvar to both the Lockheed L-1011 TriStar airplane and to non-rubber reinforcement uses. He comments at length on the competition of Kevlar with Fiberglass and steel. He recalls the transition of Kevlar to venture status and the birth of Kevlar Special Products as initially a lesser contributor to venture economics that relied more heavily on tires and mechanical rubber goods.

He then describes his time (1976-1980) in the technical section of the DuPont Seaford plant, focusing on personnel management and frustrations. From his perspective, the first line technical personnel felt they had much responsibility but little authority and support from management. He describes the unsuccessful attempt by Human Relations staff to improve morale of the technical section of the Seaford plant. Concerning his time at Seaford, Sturgeon also details his attempt to bring a staple process CPU (Continuous Production Unit) online and his role in developing new carpet products for DuPont's commercial and residential carpet shows.

Sturgeon then discusses his return to Wilmington in Kevlar special products, which grew to include such applications as missiles, aircraft, armor, helmets, aero-engines, personnel protection, and optical cables. Many of the special products Sturgeon and his group developed were for specific niche applications but required large engineering and management efforts to design, test, and qualify. Sturgeon comments on the massive effort required to develop Kevlar in the marketplace and recalls DuPont's strategic efforts at forward integration, moving from being a materials supplier to a manufacturer of parts and sub-components. He also comments on high-density polypropylene, a competitor of Kevlar. In this discussion of Kevlar, Sturgeon remarks on the difficulties encountered in obtaining export licenses for Kevlar products to Asia and South America.

Sturgeon also describes his leadership of an Advanced Composite Systems products group, which was part of DuPont's efforts at forward integration. The multi-specialty group was formed to integrate DuPont product and processes and add any technology to make composite products using DuPont specialty fibers and resins. According to Sturgeon, however, management ultimately did not support the group due to the high labor costs and small market inherent in the products they were developing. Sturgeon remarks that the similar European composites group also did not succeed. He notes that reduced military spending after the end of the Cold War further contributed to the failure of the groups at DuPont, as the military had been a major customer for advanced composites products.
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Collection ID: Oral history interviews with former employees of DuPont Company's Textile Fibers Department (Accession 2010.215)
Hagley ID: 2010215_20190124_Sturgeon
Collection: Oral history interviews with former employees of DuPont Company's Textile Fibers Department

Title: Interview with Clarence A. Fahs [transcript]
Date(s): 1966-04-22, 1966-05-02, 1966-05-04
Contributor(s): Fahs, Clarence A. (interviewee), Monigle, Joseph P. (interviewer), Wilkinson, Norman B. (interviewer)
Description: Transcript of interview with Clarence A. Fahs who was a machinist for DuPont. The interview took place in Wilmington, Delaware.
Collection ID: Eleutherian Mills-Hagley Foundation interview transcripts on the history of the DuPont Company Powder Yard (Accession 2026)
Hagley ID: 2026_052913_01
Collection: Oral histories on work and daily life in the Brandywine Valley

Title: Interview with Bob Forney, 2008 September 24
Date(s): 2008-09-24
Contributor(s): Forney, Bob, 1927- (interviewee), Plasky, Joseph G. (interviewer)
Description: Forney's interview chronicles the development of a continuous polymerization process for polyester fibers, including the use of the two-step pre-polymerization process, for the prototype at Seaford and the implementation at Kinston, where he moved to supervise the project. Forney also discusses his experience concerning the development of EFT and his work at Old Hickory as assistant plant manager. He also discusses the modernization of Nylon spinners in Wilmington.
Collection ID: Oral history interviews with former employees of DuPont Company's Textile Fibers Department (Accession 2010.215)
Hagley ID: 2010215_20080924_Forney
Collection: Oral history interviews with former employees of DuPont Company's Textile Fibers Department

Title: Interview with Gary Johnston, 2018 June 26 and June 27
Date(s): 2018-06-26/2018-06-27, 2018-06-26, 2018-06-27
Contributor(s): Johnston, Gary (interviewee), Plasky, Joseph G. (interviewer)
Description: In his interview, Gary Johnston provides insight into corporate marketing, particularly focusing on his role in the DuPont STAINMASTER advertising campaign.

In the interview, Johnston describes DuPont's business approach at the time he was assigned as a consultant in the carpet fibers division of the Textile Fibers Department with the objective of improving the earnings of the division. He gives his opinion as to why the division was not producing satisfactory earnings, and he details how, by...
Show moreIn his interview, Gary Johnston provides insight into corporate marketing, particularly focusing on his role in the DuPont STAINMASTER advertising campaign.

In the interview, Johnston describes DuPont's business approach at the time he was assigned as a consultant in the carpet fibers division of the Textile Fibers Department with the objective of improving the earnings of the division. He gives his opinion as to why the division was not producing satisfactory earnings, and he details how, by analyzing the carpet fiber market, he concluded DuPont was not marketing correctly to get a reasonable share of the branded fiber market.

Johnston devotes significant time in his interview to the development, introduction, and marketing of STAINMASTER carpet. He details that a critical component to the advertising campaign was to demonstrate the product's performance in a very simple way at the retail level. To achieve this, he and his colleagues developed the "swizzle stick" demonstration, which involved dipping a stick covered in STAINMASTER carpet and one covered with a competitor's carpet into red fruit juice. The sticks were then used to stir clear water, and the stain would subsequently disappear from the DuPont product but not the other sample. The demonstration proved highly successful for the company. He also discusses the taping of the first national TV commercial for STAINMASTER carpet, which aired October 16, 1986.

He then relates the origin and operation of the "DuPont STAINMASTER Flooring Centers," which began in 1995 as part of the second phase of carpet retailing after the 1986 introduction of STAINMASTER carpet. In this phase, consumer communication shifted slightly to refocus on the retail floor. He also discusses some of the other major contributers to the STAINMASTER launch on the DuPont team.
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Collection ID: Oral history interviews with former employees of DuPont Company's Textile Fibers Department (Accession 2010.215)
Hagley ID: 2010215_20180626_Johnston
Collection: Oral history interviews with former employees of DuPont Company's Textile Fibers Department

Title: Interview with George Washington Jones, 1984 April 25 [transcript]
Date(s): 1984-04-25
Contributor(s): Jones, George Washington (interviewee), Meyers, Louise (interviewer)
Description: Transcript of second interview with George Jones who continues to recall home life in his youth along the Brandywine. The interview took place in Wilmington, Delaware.
Collection ID: Eleutherian Mills-Hagley Foundation interview transcripts on the history of the DuPont Company Powder Yard (Accession 2026)
Hagley ID: 2026_061713_13
Collection: Oral histories on work and daily life in the Brandywine Valley

Title: Interview with William Ball "Billy" Montgomery, 1988 April 29 [transcript]
Date(s): 1988-04-29
Contributor(s): Montgomery, William Ball (interviewee), Bennett, Peggy (interviewer)
Description: Transcript of second interview with William "Billy" Montgomery who continues to recall what life was like growing up along the Brandywine. The interview took place in Wilmington, Delaware.
Collection ID: Eleutherian Mills-Hagley Foundation interview transcripts on the history of the DuPont Company Powder Yard (Accession 2026)
Hagley ID: 2026_062113_06
Collection: Oral histories on work and daily life in the Brandywine Valley

Title: Interview with Rocco Perrone, 1984 July 10 [transcript]
Date(s): 1984-07-10
Contributor(s): Perrone, Rocco Mathew, 1901-1989 (interviewee), Frazier, Chris (interviewer)
Description: Transcript of interview with Rocco Perrone who lived in Squirrel Run as well as the du Pont estate while his father worked for Colonel Henry A. du Pont. The interview took place in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania.
Collection ID: Eleutherian Mills-Hagley Foundation interview transcripts on the history of the DuPont Company Powder Yard (Accession 2026)
Hagley ID: 2026_070113_05
Collection: Oral histories on work and daily life in the Brandywine Valley

Title: Interview with Jack L. Stout, 2009 March 27
Date(s): 2009-03-27
Contributor(s): Stout, Jack L. (interviewee), Plasky, Joseph G. (interviewer)
Description: Interview primarily relates to Stout's role in the DuPont Co.'s Nylon and Dacron business.
Collection ID: Oral history interviews with former employees of DuPont Company's Textile Fibers Department (Accession 2010.215)
Hagley ID: 2010215_20090327_Stout
Collection: Oral history interviews with former employees of DuPont Company's Textile Fibers Department

Title: Interview with Louise F. Poole, 1974 March 4 [transcript]
Date(s): 1974-03
Contributor(s): Poole, Louise F. (interviewee), Ward, Mary Sam (interviewer)
Description: Transcript of interview with Louise Poole whose husband Edward worked at the Experimental Station and recounts her own work volunteering as well as her family geneology. The interview took place in Wilmington, Delaware.
Collection ID: Eleutherian Mills-Hagley Foundation interview transcripts on the history of the DuPont Company Powder Yard (Accession 2026)
Hagley ID: 2026_060313_13
Collection: Oral histories on work and daily life in the Brandywine Valley

Title: Inverview with Kewal Likhyani, 2021 August 24
Date(s): 2021-08-24
Contributor(s): Likhyani, Kewal, 1947- (interviewee), Plasky, Joseph G. (interviewer)
Description: Kewal discusses his experience early in his career and his assignments researching Kelvar. He then talks about his work with a hollow fil aramid fiber for use in reverse osmosis applications.
Collection ID: Oral history interviews with former employees of DuPont Company's Textile Fibers Department (Accession 2010.215)
Hagley ID: 2010215_20210824_Likhyani
Collection: Oral history interviews with former employees of DuPont Company's Textile Fibers Department

Title: Interview with James Kindbeiter, 1984 April 6 [audio](part 1)
Date(s): 1984-04-06
Contributor(s): Kindbeiter, James (interviewee), Bennett, Peggy (interviewer)
Description: Kindbeiter describes community life at Hagley, including church life at St. Joseph's, the house layout, the Gun Club, children's pastimes and entertainments, daily chores, and Christmas and holiday traditions.
Collection ID: Eleutherian Mills-Hagley Foundation interviews on the history of the DuPont Company Powder Yard (Accession 1970.370)
Hagley ID: 1970370_102513_kindbeiter_part1
Collection: Oral histories on work and daily life in the Brandywine Valley

Title: Interview with Jane "Jenny" Toomey, 1985 February 12 [audio](part 1)
Date(s): 1985-02-12
Contributor(s): Toomey, Jane M. (interviewee), Johnson, Dorothy (interviewer)
Description: Toomey describes her house in Charles Banks, various foods she cooked and baked, relations between Italian and Irish immigrants, and daily chores. Her son, Joe Toomey (b. 1925), also describes his childhood, including mushroom picking, caddying at the DuPont Country Club, raising chickens, and his family's history and immigration from Ireland.
Collection ID: Eleutherian Mills-Hagley Foundation interviews on the history of the DuPont Company Powder Yard (Accession 1970.370)
Hagley ID: 1970370_112513_toomey_part3
Collection: Oral histories on work and daily life in the Brandywine Valley

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