Alice du Pont Mills
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Alice du Pont Mills (December 13, 1912 - March 13, 2002) was an American aviatrix, thoroughbred race horse breeder and owner, environmentalist, philanthropist and a member of the prominent Du Pont family.
Born in Wilmington, Delaware, the daughter of Alexis F. du Pont (1879-1948) and Mary Chichester (1878-1965), after graduating from Oldfields School in Glencoe, Maryland, the wealthy Alice du Pont pursued a wide variety of interests. Like her brothers, Felix and Richard, she too had a passion for flying. In 1932, she was only twenty years old when she and brother Richard flew an open-cockpit plane up the Amazon River.
In 1935, she married James Paul Mills (1908-1987), who shared her love of flying and with whom she had the following children:
- May Chichester Mills
- Phyllis Overton Mills
- James Paul Mills Jr.
Her grandson was Richard P. Mills (aka Grimnir Wotansvolk / G. Heretik, owner of the American National Socialist black metal record label and distro "Vinland Winds") who died in mysterious circumstances on August 28, 2006. During World War II, Ms du Pont Mills served as a volunteer flight instructor for United States military pilots at an airfield on Long Island, New York. With the war over, in 1946 she and her husband flew a single-engine plane from New York City to Buenos Aires, Argentina.
The Chichester du Pont Foundation was incorporated in 1946 by Alice du Pont Mills, Felix du Pont, Lydia Chichester du Pont, and Mary Chichester du Pont Clark. The foundation, which remains in operation, is primarily involved in supporting youth with donations made to social service organizations for the direct benefit of children.
In 1949, she and her husband settled on a country estate in Middleburg, Virginia where they maintained Hickory Tree Farm and Stable, a thoroughbred breeding and racing operation. Her stable won numerous stakes races and at the 1982 Keeneland yearling sale bought the Windfields Farm colt Devil's Bag. Trained by Woody Stephens, Devil's Bag was the Eclipse Award champion two-year-old of 1983 and a favorite for the 1984 Kentucky Derby, However, the horse had to be retired after sustaining an injury while winning the Derby Trial Stakes at Churchill Downs. Devil's Bag was syndicated for $36 million as a breeding sire, and produced more than 40 stakes winners before his death in 2005.
Through her involvement with thoroughbred horses, Alice du Pont Mills became a member of the Virginia Thoroughbred Association, Hickory Tree Farm and Stable elected a member of its Hall of Fame. She served as a Trustee of the United States Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association, was an Advisory Trustee to the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame, and was a Director of the Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation. A founding member of the Marion du Pont Scott Equine Medical Center in Leesburg, Virginia, Alice du Pont Mills' cousin, Marion du Pont Scott, was a significant owner/breeder in both flat and steeplechase racing.
Involved in a number of charitable works, Alice du Pont Mills was a member of the national board of directors of Planned Parenthood. A conservationist, she was an active advocate for the preservation and careful management of the environment and of natural resources, serving as founding member of Virginia's Bull Run Conservancy and the Piedmont Environmental Council and became a Trustee of the Virginia Outdoors Foundation.
Alice du Pont Mills died in Virginia in 2002.
