Last updated: January 3, 2026
Person
Henry A. du Pont
Library of Congress
Quick Facts
Significance:
Medal of Honor Recipient, US Senator
Place of Birth:
Greenville, Delaware
Date of Birth:
July 30, 1838
Place of Death:
Winterthur, Delaware
Date of Death:
December 31, 1926
Place of Burial:
Wilmington, Delaware
Cemetery Name:
Du Pont de Nemours Cemetery
Henry Algernon DuPont was a soldier, businessman and politician from New Castle County, Delaware, and a member of the famous DuPont family of Delaware. In his memoirs, he called the Battle of Cedar Creek, "the most momentous episode of my whole military career."
Civil War Service
DuPont attended the University of Pennsylvania in 1855 before graduating first in his class at the United States Military Academy at West Point just after the beginning of the Civil War in 1861.
DuPont served as an artillery officer at various posts throughout the war, before being promoted to captain and being assigned to the Shenandoah Valley. DuPont received a brevet promotion to major for gallant service at the Third Battle of Winchester (September 19, 1864) and Fisher's Hill (September 22, 1864). At the Battle of Cedar Creek (October 19, 1864) he commanded three batteries, totaling 16 cannons, as part of the Army of West Virginia.
Post War Fame
Henry DuPont continued his military service until 1875. He returned to Delaware and served as the president and general manager of the Wilmington & Northern Railroad Company from 1879 to 1899. DuPont was twice elected to the United States Senate (1906-1917).
Thirty-four years later, in 1898, Congress officially recognized DuPont's heroic actions at Cedar Creek, awarding him the nation's highest military honor, the Medal of Honor.
Henry du Pont returned to Cedar Creek one last time in 1920 to honor his old West Point classmate, Confederate General Stephen Ramseur. Du Pont delivered the keynote address during the dedication ceremony to a monument erected in Ramseur's memory.