History

Though she married a Hollywood actor, she wasn’t one for big-city sizzle. Her wholesome country upbringing ensured that she never developed a taste for fast living—she certainly bore little resemblance to such contemporary heiresses as Barbara Hutton and Doris Duke, party girls who traveled the world in pursuit of one excess after another. By contrast, Marion led a well-ordered, industrious life focused on serious pursuits. She maintained houses and barns in Camden, South Carolina; Saratoga, New York, and Delaware but was most content on her beloved Orange County estate. When she did travel, it was to follow the race circuit up and down the eastern seaboard and occasionally to England, but no matter where she went she was always eager to return home to Montpelier.

As with many wealthy individuals who shun the spotlight, Marion surrounded herself with a few very close friends who shared similar interests and protected her privacy. But all accounts present her as generous and caring, embodying noblesse oblige. Throughout her life, she supported numerous eleemosynary organizations in the surrounding community.

One of her biggest contributions was the Montpelier races, which were free of charge during her lifetime. In addition to covering the costs of putting on the event, she also put up the money for the purses. Her generosity extended to Christ Church in nearby Gordonsville, which received funds as well as many personal items she donated to its annual “silver tea” rummage sales. Quietly, she underwrote the education of five sisters from Gordonsville, daughters of friends of hers who lacked sufficient means to cover the costs themselves. In addition to these smaller gestures, she also gave on a more substantial level, bequeathing $4 million to the equine center at Morven Park in Leesburg. She was highly valued by her friends and greatly respected for her contributions to the world of American turf. It is worth noting that at her funeral in 1983, some of her pallbearers had been in her employ for more than 50 years.

Montpelier is now a very different house from the one Marion knew. For one thing, it is considerably smaller, and the stucco added in the mid-19th century has been removed, returning the façade to its original rosy brick. Whether you loved it or hated it, there is no question that the du Pont Montpelier looked very much like an institution, its three stories giving it a monolithic, sterile appearance—despite its unconventional pink color.