GARZIFICIO SANITARIA CESCHINA [IT]
Exploration #131. Garzificio Sanitaria Ceschina was founded in 1907 by the 28-year-old Luigi Gaetano Ceschina, a former representative of medical and surgical items, as the Società Anonima Sanitaria, it quickly became the most important industry in its field.
Its fortune came during the Great War, when the demand for medical supplies for the army and the Red Cross was extremely high. The factory produced medical equipment, cotton for weapons (light cotton) and gas masks. The factory produced a large number of masks, which were tested by Ceschina himself. In fact, the entrepreneur had himself locked up in a room full of poisonous gas to test the quality. On 15 November 1937 Ceschina was appointed Cavaliere del Lavoro. He died in 1960, leaving everything to his three sons.
The business continued until 1976 when, on 25 October, Mario, one of Luigi’s sons, was kidnapped by the Mafia and killed shortly after the family had paid a ransom of 400 million lire. Following this event, the factory began a slow decline and closed down a few years later. Since then it has been in a state of neglect and abandonment.
