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Origin and history

Lancey's stationery, founded in the second half of the 19th century in Villard-Bonnot (Isère), is an emblematic factory of the French paper industry. Created by the engineer Aristide Bergès, they exploit hydraulic energy via forced pipelines, innovative with the "white coal" — a hydropower transformed to power the machines and illuminate the factory. The site spreads rapidly, including a stationery in 1883 and a dynamo Gramme, while illuminating neighbouring municipalities. Bergès, a key figure of this energy revolution, popularized the term "white coal" at the Universal Exhibition of 1889.

The factory experienced a major expansion between 1880 and 1907, shaping Villard-Bonnot with workers' towns, trams and public facilities. Employing up to 1,800 people in the 1920s (nearly half of them foreign, including Spanish and Italian), it diversified its production during the First World War, manufacturing up to 6,000 shells a day. In 1921, it merged with other sites to form the Société des Papeteries de France, the leading national group in the sector. Its decline began in the 1970s, marked by economic crises, redundancies and floods, culminating in its final closure in 2008.

The site has maintained a protected historical heritage since 1992: the forced pipes of 1869 and 1889, the home of Aristide Bergès (now the Musée de la Houille blanche in 2011), and the facilities of the first factory. These vestiges bear witness to industrial innovation and the social paternalism of the company, with workers' cities still visible. After closure, part of the site hosts a business incubator, while other flood-prone areas remain decommissioned. The legacy of stationery continues through its museum and its role in the history of industrial electricity in France.

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