"calcium light, torch that burns calcium oxide (lime) and gives off intense white light," 1854, named for Scottish engineer Capt. Thomas Drummond, R.E., (1797-1840), who invented it c. 1825.
Entries linking to drummond light
limelight n.
1826, popular name for Drummond light or calcium light, a brilliant light created by the incandescence of lime (n.1); adopted for lighthouses and later for the Victorian stage, where it illuminated the principal actors, hence the figurative use of the phrase in the limelight "on stage, at the center of attention" (1877).