Letson & Burpee, Ltd. was founded in New Westminster sometime before 1893, and moved to Vancouver in 1895. They also had a presence in Bellingham, WA. Among their products they made shingle machines, large resaw bandsaws, and gasoline engines. Their numerous other products, including canning machinery, anchor windlasses, and mine-sweeping winches, are outside the scope of this website so we do not have information on them.
Illustration from article in June 1906 Canadian Machinery
The company seems to have survived into the 1980s and perhaps beyond. At some point their product line was acquired by wood-processing product vendor USNR.
Information Sources
- The online index to the library at the University of British Columbia indicates that they have early catalogs, correspondence, photos, and clippings relating to this firm. If you are in Vancouver, perhaps you'd like to do some research and send me your findings.