The name L. Dresco, or the initials L.D., refers to Laurent Dresco. His name and initials appear in numerous archival documents and are stamped on many Dresco hurricane lanterns.

Laurent Dresco himself probably never sold hurricane lanterns: he died in 1887, before lantern production can be documented. Production was built up by his widow, Marie Louise Charlotte Tourret, who appears in official records as Vve L. Dresco. Vve is the abbreviation of Veuve, French for widow.

The origins of Dresco go back to 1858, when Félix Dresco and Pierre-Antoine Dresco, together with other partners, founded a tinworks under the name Dresco Frères. The Dresco brothers probably came from Varzo in Northern Italy, near the Swiss border, a region known for its skilled metalworkers.

Contemporary reports place the factory at 62 Rue Amelot, Paris. In 1869 Dresco Frères took over the factory and inventory of Société Sernich et Debout at 11 Rue Chapon, Paris. Documentation on Dresco Frères is scarce, but a notice from 1880 confirms that the partnership was dissolved.

A newspaper article from 1875 mentions Laurent Dresco and C. Savaglio in connection with Dresco Frères. In July 1875 a newspaper names George, Laurent and Jean Dresco as the proprietors of Dresco Frères.

Later references list Dresco Frères at 26 Rue Fontaine-au-Roi. A detailed article from 1902 describes a substantial production of moulds and dies for various applications. The firm may have gone bankrupt under Gabriel Dresco, after which parts of the operation were continued by relatives and production was carried on under the name L. Dresco.

Gabriel Dresco was a son of Antoine Dresco, one of the original Dresco brothers.

The earliest independent reference to Laurent Dresco is a Swiss newspaper announcement from 1874 for the opening of a shop in Tramelan-Dessus, Switzerland. Under the name Savaglio & Dresco, the shop sold tinware, including lamps, pipes and related goods.

The partnership was short-lived. In January 1875 its dissolution was announced in the press, with Laurent Dresco continuing on his own. By July 1875 both names reappear in connection with Dresco Frères, which suggests a move to Paris to work in the family business.

The name L. Dresco itself is difficult to trace directly. The earliest confirmed reference is a payment document from 1893, which already names Vve L. Dresco.

Earlier patents from 1880 and 1881 are attributed simply to Dresco and list the address 11 Rue Chapon, previously occupied by Sernich et Debout and later by Dresco Frères.

A header from an invoice from 1905:

This confirms that Veuve L. Dresco operated from the original Dresco Frères premises.

Laurent Joseph Fidèle Dresco was probably a son or close relative of one of the Dresco brothers. He married Marie Louise Charlotte Tourret in 1873. Their daughter, Alice Marie Henriette Dresco, was born in 1879 and would later play a role in the continuation of the company.

After Laurent Dresco’s death in 1887, Marie Louise Tourret continued the business – unusual for a woman at that time. She will not have run the company alone, but no name other than Vve L. Dresco appears in the surviving records.

Her first known patent dates from 1889 and concerns a hygienic bucket. A newspaper article from 1893 describes a fire at a neighbouring property and names Veuve Madame L. Dresco as the owner of the workshop.

The first documented Dresco hurricane lanterns appear in a catalogue from 1905. A newspaper article from 1917 states that the model “L’Indispensable” had by then been in production for 15 years, which points to an introduction around 1902.

Marie Tourret filed several patents related to lighting and hurricane lantern construction:

• 1906 – Reflector / lampshade for lanterns with tubes
• 1909 – Wall bracket
• 1911–1912 – Improved protective cage
• 1913 – Cleaning openings in the air tubes
• 1918 – Improved air intake and spring mechanism

Marie Dresco died in 1918. Her obituary still lists the name Veuve L. Dresco.

In 1900 Alice Dresco married Louis-Auguste Eugène Balland. After Marie Dresco’s death they took over the company, which was renamed A. Balland-Dresco around 1919–1920.

In 1921 Louis-Auguste Balland-Dresco filed patents, including:

• Replacement of the traditional convex glass globe with flat glass panels
• An alternative chimney cover (1922)

A 1920 register of the French Army contains an advertisement for Dresco hurricane lanterns, noting their use by the French, British and Belgian armies.

In 1924 the company was reorganized as the partnership Balland, Dresco et S.A.G.E. The abbreviation S.A.G.E. stands for Société des Applications Générales de l’Éclairage.

The arrangement was short-lived: the partnership was dissolved in January 1926. This marked the end of Dresco as a hurricane lantern manufacturer.

In April 1926 the name Balland-Dresco appears once more, in a newspaper article about an innovation involving a magnifying glass. The notice mentions the same address previously associated with Dresco.

Additional information about Dresco is always welcome. An overview of the hurricane lantern models attributed to L. Dresco can be found on the Dresco lanterns page.

With thanks to Jörg Wekemann for sharing his knowledge and information, and to Simeon Denbaes and Henk Kloosterman for sharing their passion for French hurricane lanterns and their valuable insights.

Sources – numerous references were consulted. Questions or comments about the information above are welcome via the contact page.

• Delcampe.net – historical invoices
• gallica.bnf.fr – historical newspaper articles
• retronews.fr – historical newspaper articles
• Inpi.fr – patent records
• Geneanet – genealogical information