Text 10 Winterthur
It is spring ... a time of year when many Americans like to visit historic homes and gardens.
One such place in the eastern state of Delaware is also a museum of early American arts.
It is a more than 390-hectare property called "winterthur'.
Steve Ember has more.
Winterthur was a working farm for 150 years before it was opened to the public.
Frenchman Eleuthere Irenee du Pont bought the first 182 hectares of land in the early 1800s.
His daughter Evelina and her husband Jacques Biderman built the house in 1839.
They named it after his family home in Switzerland.
Henry Francis du Pont became the owner of the property in 1926.
He collected American furniture and art made in the United States before 1860.
He began adding rooms to the house so that he could show what he had bought.
Mister du Pont supervised the farms on the property
and developed an art and history research library too.
He also created and improved garden areas around the house.
He opened the house and grounds to the public in 1951.
Henry Francis du Pont died in 1969.
He left the house,garden and library for the public to enjoy.
About 200,000people visit each year,
Today, the art and furniture he collected can be seen in some of the 175 rooms in Winterthur.
Visitors see examples of early American furniture, rugs, wallhangings, dishes and silver.
Silver drinking mugs made by the famous colonial citizen, Paul Revere,
and dinner plates owned by George Washington are part of the collection.
Outside, visitors enjoy beautiful gardens of flowers and plants.
They can walk through the flower gardens or ride around them in a bus-like vehicle.
Winterthur also holds special events on holidays like an Easter egg hunt in the spring,
and Christmas tours in the winter.