B
Beryl M
Guest
Tribute to the General Engineering Co of Canada
Germany’s unprovoked attack on Poland – September 1, 1939 – World War II, a mere twenty-one years after the First, was underway. . .
Two days later, France and Great Britain declared war on Germany (although Ireland would remain neutral, a great number of Irish quickly volunteered for the British Army). All the Dominions of the British Empire, including Canada, followed suit. Britain’s war was their war. But the awesome military might of Germany with its millions of well-trained idealistic troops, and its technologically advanced weaponry, seemed unstoppable
Following the defeat of Poland, in rapid succession Germany, blitzkrieged through Denmark, Norway, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Belgium. Then France, the one country deemed capable of thwarting a German invasion, was attacked in May-June of 1940 and ignominiously defeated. Europe was being prostrated.
Having brushed aside French resistance, the invincible German Army now controlled the shores of Normandy. Their next prey: Great Britain. Cocky, battle-hungry German troops amassed in Calais in picturesque Picardy could almost make out the White Cliffs of Dover, a scant twenty one miles or so west across the English Channel. This … was to be a very bleak period in the history of the British Empire!
As a ‘softening up’procedure, before a planned invasion by land, Germany assaulted England (especially London) with devastating bomb attacks, day and night. Only the very heroic efforts of a group of highly skilled R.A.F. pilots averted the threat of England being quickly brought to its knees (In the historically noted Battle of Britain, the German’s total loss of aircraft was 2,698 compared to the loss of 915 for the R.A.F.). Throughout, the morale of the British people and their resolve under the gritty leadership of their new Prime Minister Winston Churchill remained steadfast. However, for any Allied country under siege at the time, morale and resolve were puny weapons at best against the superior power of the incredible German military machine.
More than anything else in those initial stages of the war, Britain needed a continuous supply of all manner of arms. To attempt to win a war, or at least to defend itself against a determined enemy, without the use of arms and shells, would have been folly – sheer suicide.
In a doomed, fateful attack on Dunkirk, May 26, 1940, some 300,000 Allied troops were quickly evacuated when swarms of rapidly advancing Germans stormed the area. In the process, vast stores of an entire British Army were either destroyed or abandoned to the enemy. British weapons, bolstered and stockpiled before the outbreak of World War II, were now dangerously wearing away. No longer could British production lines meet the unexpected increased demands. For one thing, and not the least thereof, the growing frequency of air raids with its necessary blackout conditions constantly interrupted and slowed the manufacture of desperately needed arms and munitions.
The growing tempo of the German offensive from the air daily constituted a very real threat to Britain’s arsenals and converted war plants. At the time, one such place was in Woolwich, a metropolitan borough of London – a continuous wrinkle in the brow for the Defence Department. Here was located one of England’s most productive arsenals (in the early stages of the bombing, the Woolwich arsenal had already been struck once, but damage was minimal). Although surrounded by acres of anti-aircraft weapons, and the new system of radar detection, there was always an excellent chance that enemy bombers would eventually destroy it. Of course if this were to happen, and with the concomitant eradication of other major arsenals, the survival of the whole of the United Kingdom would at once be in serious jeopardy, stiff British-upper-lips, high morale and firm resolve notwithstanding.
To be sure, and probably Britain’s main saving-grace in those early days of the war was Hitler’s preoccupation with assembling the gretest part of his armies for an invasion (on June 22, 1941) of Russia – a more formidable foe than Britain. Nevertheless, by late 1940, Britain stood very much alone against the German’s fierce air onslaught. The Brits needed help!
In one of his numerous famous speeches, Winston Churchill made an urgent appeal to all of England’s friendly allies, for ‘tools.’ The United States (which remained neutral and would not, as a nation, enter the fray until the end of 1941) responded immediately. To help save England from imminent, total collapse, Congress, in early 1941, approved aid in the form of a Lend-Lease programme. Very soon, tons of military ‘tools,’ in the holds of a dozen disguised British merchant ships, slipped out from a quiet bay in the state of New Jersey to begin the hazardous return trip to the arsenals of the British Isles. Of course, the Commonwealth countries, Australia, New Zealand and Canada, responded in kind.
Stepping into the breach, the Canadian Government under Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King, offered to expeditiously construct two major munitions plants and, as soon as practicable thereafter, to begin shipping vast caches of much needed ready-to-fire arms to the Allied effort in war-torn Europe. Apart from its armed forces (which were already overseas fighting at Britain’s side, along with Aussies and New Zealanders), there was no greater contribution Canada could have made. Without the export of munitions to reinforce retain depleting arsenals, the Empire, the King and Churchill would eventually have to surrender to Hitler and his mob. Only the most astute of present day historians could speculate on the subsequent status of English-speaking countries of the world if that had occurred.
At the outbreak of the war, Canada had only one major munitions plant, located at Valcartier, Québec. However, even here they were capable of filling only token quantities of small arms ammunition. Nothing bigger! They were not equipped and therefore were quite incapable of filling with combustible materials the much larger shells such as those used in anti-aircraft guns and tanks. Nor were they capable of fuse-filling. (The ‘fuse’ it seems was a very complicated, extremely important device in World War II weaponry. It was designed to detonate automatically when the shell, to which it was attached, passed near to the target, whether it actually hit it or not.) Shell casings, fuses and so on might be manufactured elsewhere, but without the addition of a combustible powder it remained useless.
In Canada, the unusual undertaking of filling the wide variety of larger shells was hitherto unheard of. Now, though, there was an urgent need. The time was pressing. The fortunes of war in mother England were rapidly turning in favour of the belligerent German nation. Churchill and all of the watching world fully knew that if Germany decimated Russia, then the preponderance of the military machine of the Third Reich would be re-routed and hurled into action against Britain; subsequently, and no historical reason to doubt otherwise, to the very shores of North America,
Immediately, for the location of the first of two proposed major shell-filling plants, the Canadian government chose a site in Bouchard, Québec. Construction began at once. The second more complex and much larger plant was yet to begin. For this larger plant, proposed to be of unprecedented production in Canada when in full operation, the Canadian government chose the Toronto, Ontario area.
'Project 24’, as it was entered into the records of the Allied War Supplies Corporation, began in earnest in December 1940. On that very date the cision was made that the responsibility for the design and construction of what was to become the principal fuse-filling plant in Canada should be given to a reputable, established American-owned company called the General Engineering Company (Canada) Limited. The proposed plant, to be built somewhere in proximity to the city of Toronto, and which was to assemble ready-to-fire fuses, and igniting devices for large projectiles such as for machine guns, field guns, tank and anti-aircraft weapons, was to be designed, built, tooled and staffed for full scale production as quickly as possible. There was not a moment to lose. Britain, Europe, indeed all those Allies at the frontlines were waiting. To the very best of its potential ability, Canada must do its part. Inherently, the Dominion of Canada (in area, second largest country in the world) possessed most of the necessary raw materials, but more than that, it now had a cause.
To be sure, for the General Engineering Company, theirs was no easy task in those initial days of the war. First, though, a suitable site had yet to be found, but this remained the responsibility of the Federal Government, and not of the newly commissioned General Engineering Company.
In record time, the Government of Canada had found and secured an almost perfect area for the construction of ‘Project 24.’ By now the General Engineering Company (Canada) Limited [GECO] had done its own homework, also in record time, and was as ready as it could be to start. Technically complex blueprints, barely dry with ink, were on standby ready to be doled out to the various trades in the field. There was no time to lose. . .
This was a big project! In Europe, the war still raged on unabated. The need was greater than ever. England, Churchill, Canadian and other Allied forces overseas were very much depending on the successful completion of significant projects such as this one. Even Canada’s Prime Minister McKenzie King, ordered that he be kept informed on the progress of ‘Project 24,’ underway in the farming community just north of Toronto.
The total expenditure for labour, machinery, equipment, buildings and so on, was $7,181,124. A lot of money in 1941! Geco had been built fast, but built well. All the buildings in the complex were designed to have a limited life (for better or for worse, the war could not last forever), but were constructed to provide maximum protection for workers under rather stringent conditions. With the additions to the original plan, the complex on completion was comprised, in total, of 172 buildings with an overall floor area of 789,433 square feet.
More than just a place for wartime employment for the Allied cause, Geco had been designed, built and would soon be operated as a ‘mini-city.’
Many notable people such as Government dignitaries, heroes of World War I, and contemporary Military Brass often visited Geco. Some of the famous names welcomed within Geco’s gates at the time were: His Excellency the Earl of Athlone, Governor General of Canada and Princess Alice, Lieutenant General A.G. McNaughton, Minister of National Defence, Air Vice Marshal G.G. Brooks, R.C.A.F. High on the list were also movie stars, one of whom was the famous Canadian born actress of the silent screen era, Mary Pickford - holding a large bouquet of roses, Mary Pickford was formally photographed amid a group of sixteen Geco women employees. Visitors such as she came to look, to entertain, and to inspire. Visits and speeches by dignitaries were always a morale booster for the workers. On occasion, thousands of employees would applaud and cheer a concert artist performing during a War Bond Rally. People on the outside, especially the media, started to take an interest in this new, vast, Government-sponsored wartime munitions plant, know only as ‘Geco.'
The War raged on in Europe. From the daily news reports in all of the major newspapers, Canadians were given no reason to be optimistic for an early end to the war. Losses on both sides, Axis and Allies, were now numbering in the hundreds of thousands. To be sure, Geco was doing its fair share for the war effort. Production on a twenty-four-hour basis never slowed or slacked. It was a gigantic effort by veritable hoards of dedicated workers – not only at Geco, but also at other similar industries across the whole of the Dominion of Canada. Absenteeism due to extreme fatigue may have been a common malady among those employed at munitions plants, but malingering was seldom seen. The incentive was high. In 1941-42, there was much evidence in North American newspapers that the Allies in Europe, especially the Brits, were having no easy time of it.
On June 21, 1941, German Field Marshall, Erwin Rommel, launched a final attack on the British held town of Tobruk, Libya. Rommel captured the town, its garrison of 35,000 men, and a vast stock of supplies and arsenals. This was one of the worst disasters up to then to befall the British Empire. National news of this magnitude always added impetus to the workers on the production lines at Geco.
A lot of blood would be spilled before the Allies could retake Tobruk, and defeat the rest of the enemy army entrenched in North Africa. Finally after months of bitter warfare, a quarter of a million German troops surrendered to the Allies on May 12, 1943. The Axis Empire in North Africa had come to an end. But there was no time for complacency and celebration. Heavily armed German forces numbering in the hundreds of thousands were spread across Sicily and Italy. The war was far from over. The need for a constant supply of arms was greater than ever. Furthermore, most Canadians knew that thousands of their own boys were already doing battle in Sicily. . .
By July 1943, the number of Geco employees peaked at 6,000. It was full steam ahead. Daily, by rail or by road to waiting ships, thousands of ready-to-fire shells were on their way to Europe. The workers had all the incentive they needed. To contemplate the German Empire eventually invading the shores of Canada was a frightening prospect indeed, and never a remote possibility in mid 1943. For the remainder of that year and into the next, plant production at Geco was at an all time high. One of the most complimentary accolades ever bestowed upon the thousands of Geco employees for their contribution to the war in Europe, came over the airwaves of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (C.B.C.) in February 1944:
‘Salute to the Employees of the General Engineering Co Canada The Spotlight Points with Pride ... to-night takes aim ... and fires its salute at the men and women of General Engineering Company (Canada) Ltd., near Toronto, Ontario. Pays tribute to their spirit and efficiency ... to their workmanship and sure skill of their hands. For here is Canadian wartime industry dedicated to Victory with all the speed and energy and heart that workers and management can muster. Right from the time that ground was broken, just three short years ago, and continuing into production which started only four months later, there has been an unbeatable spirit in the ceaseless efforts of this great army of war-winning workers. From their hands are flowing vital parts for the missiles of war that are blasting the enemy. Yes, they have loaded tens of million of fuses, primers and tubes without which ammunition would not fire ... and anti-tank mines would not explode. Here too, are filled the tracer bullets that help the anti-aircraft gunner to down the invader and the airman to make his kill. These careful, fast moving explosive experts are engaged in work requiring the greatest skill in shops that are kept spotlessly clean through constant care. And because of the nature of this work, seventy-five percent of the 5,000 employees here are women, and women occupy nine out of ten places on the filling lines. Indeed, no higher tribute can be paid to these folks than their own production and safety record. Over 99% of all work turned out passes inspection and goes into service ... and their safety record is among the highest in the industry. And so to you Scarboro men and women war-workers ... whose production is becoming Freedom’s message on every fighting front ... your Nation through the Spotlight ... POINTS WITH PRIDE!’ [
Slowly over the next two years, the Allied victories outnumbered those othe Axis powers. The once powerful might of the German Empire had withered to an unrecoverable point.
On May 7, 1945, Nazi Germany unconditionally surrendered. The European phase of World War II had come to an end. With this most welcome news, production which had remained constant until the final day, ceased at once and forever at the General Engineering Company The need for arms was gone. A Canadian wartime legacy had ended.
On July 31, 1945, the last issue of the ‘Geco Fusilier’ magazine/paper was distributed to the employees. An article read as follows:
‘It is with mingled feelings of regret and gratitude that we write - regret for the breaking of ties with as fine a body of people as we ever hope to associate with - gratitude that the threat to everything we hold dear has been withdrawn and the urgent necessity to fashion weapons of death no longer exists.. . . till we meet again - so long'. . Thus, with those final words on the gates to a magnificent wartime munitions plant, Geco, closed.
In the final analysis, total production from the inception of Canada’s most major shell-filling plant in July 1941 (while construction was still in progress) until its demise in July 1945, over 256 million units were prepared for use by the Military overseas. This was Geco’s response to Winston Churchill’s urgent plea for ‘tools.’
Late in 1945, the entire plant was cleaned up and decontaminated (i.e. powder residues removed) and desensitized. In the process, 6,804 pounds of various combustible powders were completely destroyed. Geco was then turned over to the ‘War Assets Department’ of the Federal Government to be made available for civilian uses. .
Here, then, ends the story of one of Canada’s most successful contributions to the Empire during World War II.
Bibligraphy
Encarter
Barbara Dickson & Geco
Germany’s unprovoked attack on Poland – September 1, 1939 – World War II, a mere twenty-one years after the First, was underway. . .
Two days later, France and Great Britain declared war on Germany (although Ireland would remain neutral, a great number of Irish quickly volunteered for the British Army). All the Dominions of the British Empire, including Canada, followed suit. Britain’s war was their war. But the awesome military might of Germany with its millions of well-trained idealistic troops, and its technologically advanced weaponry, seemed unstoppable
Following the defeat of Poland, in rapid succession Germany, blitzkrieged through Denmark, Norway, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Belgium. Then France, the one country deemed capable of thwarting a German invasion, was attacked in May-June of 1940 and ignominiously defeated. Europe was being prostrated.
Having brushed aside French resistance, the invincible German Army now controlled the shores of Normandy. Their next prey: Great Britain. Cocky, battle-hungry German troops amassed in Calais in picturesque Picardy could almost make out the White Cliffs of Dover, a scant twenty one miles or so west across the English Channel. This … was to be a very bleak period in the history of the British Empire!
As a ‘softening up’procedure, before a planned invasion by land, Germany assaulted England (especially London) with devastating bomb attacks, day and night. Only the very heroic efforts of a group of highly skilled R.A.F. pilots averted the threat of England being quickly brought to its knees (In the historically noted Battle of Britain, the German’s total loss of aircraft was 2,698 compared to the loss of 915 for the R.A.F.). Throughout, the morale of the British people and their resolve under the gritty leadership of their new Prime Minister Winston Churchill remained steadfast. However, for any Allied country under siege at the time, morale and resolve were puny weapons at best against the superior power of the incredible German military machine.
More than anything else in those initial stages of the war, Britain needed a continuous supply of all manner of arms. To attempt to win a war, or at least to defend itself against a determined enemy, without the use of arms and shells, would have been folly – sheer suicide.
In a doomed, fateful attack on Dunkirk, May 26, 1940, some 300,000 Allied troops were quickly evacuated when swarms of rapidly advancing Germans stormed the area. In the process, vast stores of an entire British Army were either destroyed or abandoned to the enemy. British weapons, bolstered and stockpiled before the outbreak of World War II, were now dangerously wearing away. No longer could British production lines meet the unexpected increased demands. For one thing, and not the least thereof, the growing frequency of air raids with its necessary blackout conditions constantly interrupted and slowed the manufacture of desperately needed arms and munitions.
The growing tempo of the German offensive from the air daily constituted a very real threat to Britain’s arsenals and converted war plants. At the time, one such place was in Woolwich, a metropolitan borough of London – a continuous wrinkle in the brow for the Defence Department. Here was located one of England’s most productive arsenals (in the early stages of the bombing, the Woolwich arsenal had already been struck once, but damage was minimal). Although surrounded by acres of anti-aircraft weapons, and the new system of radar detection, there was always an excellent chance that enemy bombers would eventually destroy it. Of course if this were to happen, and with the concomitant eradication of other major arsenals, the survival of the whole of the United Kingdom would at once be in serious jeopardy, stiff British-upper-lips, high morale and firm resolve notwithstanding.
To be sure, and probably Britain’s main saving-grace in those early days of the war was Hitler’s preoccupation with assembling the gretest part of his armies for an invasion (on June 22, 1941) of Russia – a more formidable foe than Britain. Nevertheless, by late 1940, Britain stood very much alone against the German’s fierce air onslaught. The Brits needed help!
In one of his numerous famous speeches, Winston Churchill made an urgent appeal to all of England’s friendly allies, for ‘tools.’ The United States (which remained neutral and would not, as a nation, enter the fray until the end of 1941) responded immediately. To help save England from imminent, total collapse, Congress, in early 1941, approved aid in the form of a Lend-Lease programme. Very soon, tons of military ‘tools,’ in the holds of a dozen disguised British merchant ships, slipped out from a quiet bay in the state of New Jersey to begin the hazardous return trip to the arsenals of the British Isles. Of course, the Commonwealth countries, Australia, New Zealand and Canada, responded in kind.
Stepping into the breach, the Canadian Government under Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King, offered to expeditiously construct two major munitions plants and, as soon as practicable thereafter, to begin shipping vast caches of much needed ready-to-fire arms to the Allied effort in war-torn Europe. Apart from its armed forces (which were already overseas fighting at Britain’s side, along with Aussies and New Zealanders), there was no greater contribution Canada could have made. Without the export of munitions to reinforce retain depleting arsenals, the Empire, the King and Churchill would eventually have to surrender to Hitler and his mob. Only the most astute of present day historians could speculate on the subsequent status of English-speaking countries of the world if that had occurred.
At the outbreak of the war, Canada had only one major munitions plant, located at Valcartier, Québec. However, even here they were capable of filling only token quantities of small arms ammunition. Nothing bigger! They were not equipped and therefore were quite incapable of filling with combustible materials the much larger shells such as those used in anti-aircraft guns and tanks. Nor were they capable of fuse-filling. (The ‘fuse’ it seems was a very complicated, extremely important device in World War II weaponry. It was designed to detonate automatically when the shell, to which it was attached, passed near to the target, whether it actually hit it or not.) Shell casings, fuses and so on might be manufactured elsewhere, but without the addition of a combustible powder it remained useless.
In Canada, the unusual undertaking of filling the wide variety of larger shells was hitherto unheard of. Now, though, there was an urgent need. The time was pressing. The fortunes of war in mother England were rapidly turning in favour of the belligerent German nation. Churchill and all of the watching world fully knew that if Germany decimated Russia, then the preponderance of the military machine of the Third Reich would be re-routed and hurled into action against Britain; subsequently, and no historical reason to doubt otherwise, to the very shores of North America,
Immediately, for the location of the first of two proposed major shell-filling plants, the Canadian government chose a site in Bouchard, Québec. Construction began at once. The second more complex and much larger plant was yet to begin. For this larger plant, proposed to be of unprecedented production in Canada when in full operation, the Canadian government chose the Toronto, Ontario area.
'Project 24’, as it was entered into the records of the Allied War Supplies Corporation, began in earnest in December 1940. On that very date the cision was made that the responsibility for the design and construction of what was to become the principal fuse-filling plant in Canada should be given to a reputable, established American-owned company called the General Engineering Company (Canada) Limited. The proposed plant, to be built somewhere in proximity to the city of Toronto, and which was to assemble ready-to-fire fuses, and igniting devices for large projectiles such as for machine guns, field guns, tank and anti-aircraft weapons, was to be designed, built, tooled and staffed for full scale production as quickly as possible. There was not a moment to lose. Britain, Europe, indeed all those Allies at the frontlines were waiting. To the very best of its potential ability, Canada must do its part. Inherently, the Dominion of Canada (in area, second largest country in the world) possessed most of the necessary raw materials, but more than that, it now had a cause.
To be sure, for the General Engineering Company, theirs was no easy task in those initial days of the war. First, though, a suitable site had yet to be found, but this remained the responsibility of the Federal Government, and not of the newly commissioned General Engineering Company.
In record time, the Government of Canada had found and secured an almost perfect area for the construction of ‘Project 24.’ By now the General Engineering Company (Canada) Limited [GECO] had done its own homework, also in record time, and was as ready as it could be to start. Technically complex blueprints, barely dry with ink, were on standby ready to be doled out to the various trades in the field. There was no time to lose. . .
This was a big project! In Europe, the war still raged on unabated. The need was greater than ever. England, Churchill, Canadian and other Allied forces overseas were very much depending on the successful completion of significant projects such as this one. Even Canada’s Prime Minister McKenzie King, ordered that he be kept informed on the progress of ‘Project 24,’ underway in the farming community just north of Toronto.
The total expenditure for labour, machinery, equipment, buildings and so on, was $7,181,124. A lot of money in 1941! Geco had been built fast, but built well. All the buildings in the complex were designed to have a limited life (for better or for worse, the war could not last forever), but were constructed to provide maximum protection for workers under rather stringent conditions. With the additions to the original plan, the complex on completion was comprised, in total, of 172 buildings with an overall floor area of 789,433 square feet.
More than just a place for wartime employment for the Allied cause, Geco had been designed, built and would soon be operated as a ‘mini-city.’
Many notable people such as Government dignitaries, heroes of World War I, and contemporary Military Brass often visited Geco. Some of the famous names welcomed within Geco’s gates at the time were: His Excellency the Earl of Athlone, Governor General of Canada and Princess Alice, Lieutenant General A.G. McNaughton, Minister of National Defence, Air Vice Marshal G.G. Brooks, R.C.A.F. High on the list were also movie stars, one of whom was the famous Canadian born actress of the silent screen era, Mary Pickford - holding a large bouquet of roses, Mary Pickford was formally photographed amid a group of sixteen Geco women employees. Visitors such as she came to look, to entertain, and to inspire. Visits and speeches by dignitaries were always a morale booster for the workers. On occasion, thousands of employees would applaud and cheer a concert artist performing during a War Bond Rally. People on the outside, especially the media, started to take an interest in this new, vast, Government-sponsored wartime munitions plant, know only as ‘Geco.'
The War raged on in Europe. From the daily news reports in all of the major newspapers, Canadians were given no reason to be optimistic for an early end to the war. Losses on both sides, Axis and Allies, were now numbering in the hundreds of thousands. To be sure, Geco was doing its fair share for the war effort. Production on a twenty-four-hour basis never slowed or slacked. It was a gigantic effort by veritable hoards of dedicated workers – not only at Geco, but also at other similar industries across the whole of the Dominion of Canada. Absenteeism due to extreme fatigue may have been a common malady among those employed at munitions plants, but malingering was seldom seen. The incentive was high. In 1941-42, there was much evidence in North American newspapers that the Allies in Europe, especially the Brits, were having no easy time of it.
On June 21, 1941, German Field Marshall, Erwin Rommel, launched a final attack on the British held town of Tobruk, Libya. Rommel captured the town, its garrison of 35,000 men, and a vast stock of supplies and arsenals. This was one of the worst disasters up to then to befall the British Empire. National news of this magnitude always added impetus to the workers on the production lines at Geco.
A lot of blood would be spilled before the Allies could retake Tobruk, and defeat the rest of the enemy army entrenched in North Africa. Finally after months of bitter warfare, a quarter of a million German troops surrendered to the Allies on May 12, 1943. The Axis Empire in North Africa had come to an end. But there was no time for complacency and celebration. Heavily armed German forces numbering in the hundreds of thousands were spread across Sicily and Italy. The war was far from over. The need for a constant supply of arms was greater than ever. Furthermore, most Canadians knew that thousands of their own boys were already doing battle in Sicily. . .
By July 1943, the number of Geco employees peaked at 6,000. It was full steam ahead. Daily, by rail or by road to waiting ships, thousands of ready-to-fire shells were on their way to Europe. The workers had all the incentive they needed. To contemplate the German Empire eventually invading the shores of Canada was a frightening prospect indeed, and never a remote possibility in mid 1943. For the remainder of that year and into the next, plant production at Geco was at an all time high. One of the most complimentary accolades ever bestowed upon the thousands of Geco employees for their contribution to the war in Europe, came over the airwaves of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (C.B.C.) in February 1944:
‘Salute to the Employees of the General Engineering Co Canada The Spotlight Points with Pride ... to-night takes aim ... and fires its salute at the men and women of General Engineering Company (Canada) Ltd., near Toronto, Ontario. Pays tribute to their spirit and efficiency ... to their workmanship and sure skill of their hands. For here is Canadian wartime industry dedicated to Victory with all the speed and energy and heart that workers and management can muster. Right from the time that ground was broken, just three short years ago, and continuing into production which started only four months later, there has been an unbeatable spirit in the ceaseless efforts of this great army of war-winning workers. From their hands are flowing vital parts for the missiles of war that are blasting the enemy. Yes, they have loaded tens of million of fuses, primers and tubes without which ammunition would not fire ... and anti-tank mines would not explode. Here too, are filled the tracer bullets that help the anti-aircraft gunner to down the invader and the airman to make his kill. These careful, fast moving explosive experts are engaged in work requiring the greatest skill in shops that are kept spotlessly clean through constant care. And because of the nature of this work, seventy-five percent of the 5,000 employees here are women, and women occupy nine out of ten places on the filling lines. Indeed, no higher tribute can be paid to these folks than their own production and safety record. Over 99% of all work turned out passes inspection and goes into service ... and their safety record is among the highest in the industry. And so to you Scarboro men and women war-workers ... whose production is becoming Freedom’s message on every fighting front ... your Nation through the Spotlight ... POINTS WITH PRIDE!’ [
Slowly over the next two years, the Allied victories outnumbered those othe Axis powers. The once powerful might of the German Empire had withered to an unrecoverable point.
On May 7, 1945, Nazi Germany unconditionally surrendered. The European phase of World War II had come to an end. With this most welcome news, production which had remained constant until the final day, ceased at once and forever at the General Engineering Company The need for arms was gone. A Canadian wartime legacy had ended.
On July 31, 1945, the last issue of the ‘Geco Fusilier’ magazine/paper was distributed to the employees. An article read as follows:
‘It is with mingled feelings of regret and gratitude that we write - regret for the breaking of ties with as fine a body of people as we ever hope to associate with - gratitude that the threat to everything we hold dear has been withdrawn and the urgent necessity to fashion weapons of death no longer exists.. . . till we meet again - so long'. . Thus, with those final words on the gates to a magnificent wartime munitions plant, Geco, closed.
In the final analysis, total production from the inception of Canada’s most major shell-filling plant in July 1941 (while construction was still in progress) until its demise in July 1945, over 256 million units were prepared for use by the Military overseas. This was Geco’s response to Winston Churchill’s urgent plea for ‘tools.’
Late in 1945, the entire plant was cleaned up and decontaminated (i.e. powder residues removed) and desensitized. In the process, 6,804 pounds of various combustible powders were completely destroyed. Geco was then turned over to the ‘War Assets Department’ of the Federal Government to be made available for civilian uses. .
Here, then, ends the story of one of Canada’s most successful contributions to the Empire during World War II.
Bibligraphy
Encarter
Barbara Dickson & Geco
Mo