10 Facts About Henrique Dumont

Henrique Honore Dumont was a Brazilian engineer, coffee farmer and father of Alberto Santos-Dumont.

Henrique Dumont returned to Brazil and began to render services to the city of Ouro Preto.

In 1872, during the reign of Pedro II, Henrique Dumont was commissioned to construct a section of the Central Railroad of Brazil in Minas Gerais, on the ascent of the Mantiqueira Mountains.

Henrique Dumont left Minas Gerais and went to the municipality of Valenca, in Rio de Janeiro; in this region, his son Alberto was baptized in 1877 in the parish of Santa Tereza, current municipality of Rio das Flores.

Henrique Dumont then owned a little more than 300 contos e reis and 80 slaves, with 150 being rented.

In 1857 Henrique Dumont formed the largest coffee farm in Brazil, with 5.7 million plants and on October 10,1888 Henrique Dumont signed a contract to connect his farm to the railroad, building 100 km of tracks.

Henrique Dumont helped create the first gasoline car along with Henry Ford.

In December 1890, Henrique Dumont fell from a cart on one of his farms breaking his arm and hitting his head, leaving him hemiplegic.

In 1891, shortly before his death, Henrique Dumont emancipated his minor children and gave each one his share in the inheritance.

Henrique Dumont tried to return to France due to his deteriorating health, but died on August 30 of 1892, at the age of 60, in the city of Rio de Janeiro.