Jessie Ball du Pont
| Jessie Ball duPont | |
|---|---|
Portrait from 1910
|
|
| Born |
Jessie Dew Ball January 20, 1884 Hardings, Northumberland County, Virginia, United States |
| Died | September 27, 1970 (aged 86) Wilmington, Delaware U.S. |
| Resting place | Wilmington, Delaware |
| Residence | Epping Forest |
| Nationality | American |
| Education | Farmville (Virginia) Normal School |
| Occupation | teacher, philanthropist |
| Years active | 1923–1970 |
| Employer | Alfred I. duPont Testamentary Trust |
| Known for | Philanthropy, Jessie Ball duPont Fund |
| Home town | Jacksonville, Florida, U.S. |
| Net worth | $42 million (value of estate at death) |
| Spouse(s) | Alfred I. du Pont (1921–1935; his death) |
| Parent(s) | Lalla Gresham and Thomas Ball |
Jessie Ball duPont (January 20, 1884 – September 26, 1970) was an American teacher, philanthropist and designated a Great Floridian by the Florida Department of State.
Jessie Dew Ball was born on January 20, 1884 in Hardings, Northumberland County, Virginia to Lalla Gresham and Thomas Ball, a Confederate Civil War veteran and attorney. Aside from a year in Austin, Texas and a year in Baltimore, Maryland, Ball duPont grew up in Virginia. She earned a Life Certificate from the Farmville (Virginia) Normal School and began teaching in Lancaster County, Virginia, at the age of 18. She taught at the Shiloh School in Northumberland County in 1906-1907. She continued that career after moving in 1909 with her family to San Diego, California. As a young adult, she began amassing profits from the and real estate which she used to fund need-based college scholarships. Eventually vice-principal of the elementary school where she was employed, she contributed to the upkeep of her elderly father and mother until they died in 1917 and 1920, respectively.
Ball duPont had met and befriended Alfred I. duPont when she was 14 and he 34, and they maintained a correspondence thereafter. After the 1920 death of his second wife, they entered a courtship which resulted in marriage on January 22, 1921. The couple made their home in the Nemours Mansion and Gardens in Wilmington, Delaware. Retired from teaching, Ball duPont oversaw maintenance of the family estate, took over raising her husband's daughter, Denise, and began to assist duPont in his business.
In 1923, duPont hired Edward Ball, one of Ball duPont's four siblings to survive to adulthood. Ball relocated to Delaware to become manager of the Clean Food Products Company and additionally to advise duPont and manage the estate fortune. The arrival of her brother freed Ball duPont from some of her business concerns so that she could dedicate more time to her charities.
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