14

When “Victory” Trumpets Sound the Call

Canada’s involvement in the Second World War lasted five years, eight months, and six days. When Germany unconditionally surrendered on May 7, 1945, the need for ammunition dropped almost immediately. Every soul who worked at GECO longed for the war to end, yet when the order to “cease fire” was issued, its declaration was so sudden that GECOites were taken aback. Thousands of women and men quickly had to face the psychological, emotional, and economic implications of impending peace. After four long years in operation, “Scarboro” would close its doors.

Lay Down Your Arms

GECO’s day shift was well underway when the official declaration came through on Monday, May 7, 1945. Word rippled first through the dirty side of the plant, then over to the clean side. There were no whoops, hollers, or claps of joy. Women continued to fill fuses. “As a matter of cold fact,” Ross Davis wrote in the next issue of the plant’s newspaper, “we’ve seen Scarboro a good deal more excited about a visit by screen celebrities or a military band around Victory Loan time.”1

“How are they taking it inside?” a woman asked a worker as she stepped over the clean-side barrier to take her lunch break.2 “I just came from the High Side (high explosives line), and it’s very quiet there,” was her reply. “A few women are crying.”3

Women proceeded to the cafeteria for their lunch at noon, and they quietly ordered and ate their Monday choice of beefsteak pie or breaded veal cutlet, the same way they had done for the past four years.4 Bob Hamilton announced Tuesday, May 8 would be a holiday “with pay.”5

Management expected a mass exodus after lunch and had buses waiting.6 The buses left empty.7 When lunch break was over only a few failed to return to their workshops.8 Over 90 percent of the afternoon shift showed up for work at 3:00.9 “To complete this chronicle of devotion to duty,” Ross Davis wrote, “a devotion that has become traditional with Scarboro, it is essential to add that when the Plant’s operations resumed with the night shift on Tuesday (official V-Day) at 11:00, over 80 percent of the normal number of employees passed through the time clocks — sober and ready for work.”10

Why was there such a tepid reaction to the end of a global conflict so dreadful, so brutal, and on a scale of human suffering never seen before in the history of mankind? The reasons were as varied, personal, and unique as the women who worked at the plant. Many women had to face a stark and sober reality that their loved one was not coming home. Others, out of respect for grieving women, tempered their own elation at knowing they would be reunited with their loved ones again. GECOites who needed extra money to keep their homes and feed their children feared the impending loss of income. For some women, they foresaw a loss of newfound identity. These women had filled a vital need for the Allied forces — they had become mighty Fusiliers, Bomb Girls, and the Girls Behind the Guns. With the war over, could they be content with the humble title of Mother, Nana, or the Girl Next Door again?

And what of the impending loss of community and friendship? Thousands of GECOites brought together in a united, altruistic, fiercely patriotic purpose were about to scatter, heading back to their pre-war lives, perhaps back to aprons, back to the mundane — and sometimes lonely — duties of the home, back to school, or back to life on the farm. How could they replace the unique comradery and solidarity forged on fuse-filling lines of a top-secret munitions plant?

“Scarboro has always had an esprit de corps very similar to that found in the armed services,” Ross wrote, “and the bonds which tied all sections of the Plant together, forged in the fires of a deep-seated patriotism, have grown stronger than most of us had realized.”11

And perhaps the most obvious reason of all? GECOites, regardless of their mood or desire to celebrate, knew well the potentially dire consequences of carelessness or distraction — even for the best reasons — while on the job.

As days passed, women warmed to the inevitable ending of their wartime work. “… after the first shock had spent its force,” Ross wrote, “individual reactions became more apparent. ‘Golly, am I glad it will be over soon’, said one supervisor we talked to, — and she really meant it. ‘No more night shifts — no more dirty gunpowder.’ ‘Won’t it be swell just to stay at home and look after the housework’ was another reaction. ‘Am I going to take a good holiday in the sunshine’ was still another remark heard.”12

Less than two weeks after Germany capitulated, the Government of Canada sent out a notification to the Hamiltons from Ottawa on May 22, 1945, stating production at GECO would end June 30, 1945.13 Within twenty-four hours, Bob Hamilton received a Final Production Plan from the Department of Munitions and Supply.14 The first round of layoffs would come quickly, scheduled to begin within the week.15 GECO’s photographer, George Rutherford, hastily took workshop photographs, in an effort to capture a moment in time for as many employees as schedules would allow.16 On May 28, management reduced production shifts from three to two.17 With layoffs imminent, and with some time to absorb and accept their eventual parting, the spirits of men and women at GECO rebounded.

Thanks for Your Faithful Service

The Hamilton brothers formally thanked their employees in GECO Fusilier’s May 28, 1945 edition:

In an organization such as Geco at Scarboro, it is necessary to have many auxiliary or service departments in order to keep the primary or Production Department operating at a high efficiency. It will be of interest to all employees to know that in addition to your remarkable production record the splendid results obtained by the service departments in keeping operations going with no lost time due to mechanical, power, maintenance, or transportation difficulties; the improvements in methods, designs, and knowledge of ammunition problems; the tenor of your housekeeping and the safety record; the results of your medical care and research; the Personnel Departments; and the cafeteria; the activities and co-operation of the Munitions Workers Association; the keen interest developed by the Recreation Club, the war veterans and other charitable groups; your generous response to all war loan and other drives; your co-operation and spirit of give and take with all departments of Inspection Control, and of course the splendid spirit of mutual respect between workers and staff is known and appreciated not only in our locality but throughout Canada, and in the United States, Great Britain and Australia.

Your products have always been of the highest quality and have gained the proper respect of both friend and foe. Truly, this is a record of which we may all be proud.

During the course of our associations these last five years we have made friendships both in the production lines and throughout the staff that will remain with us always. We will never forget such scenes as a production shop at 2:00 in the morning with dozens of workers busily engaged at their respective jobs, or the cheerful greeting of a guard just off patrol on a cold and blustery night, or the enthusiasm of thousands greeting a concert artist during a war bond rally.

In closing, may we express the wish that your future endeavours will bring to you continued happiness and well being. For doing such a grand job at Scarboro, we thank you sincerely.

R.M.P. Hamilton and P.D.P. Hamilton18

From Ammunition-Filling Jobs They Proudly Can Retire

Wrapping up and winding down came quickly. GECO Fusilier, in its June 11, 1945 edition, acknowledged the sudden and frenetic pace at which the plant was closing.

Everywhere the Fusilier has heard regrets openly expressed at the threatened dissolution of that “all for one and one for all!” spirit which was built up during the months of stress when calls came to “pass the ammunition” in ever increasing quantities.

At the time we were too busy to realize how strong the bonds were that were being forged. Realization has come since. Out of this realization has come, as we said before, a strong desire in many quarters to carry on the tradition that seems to have been a uniquely Scarboro thing.19

To help with their transition back to “civilian” life, employees established an “Old Boys’ and Old Girls’ Association” to foster the friendships and associations formed during their time at Scarboro.20

In early June, management formed a committee to determine the best method for desensitizing the plant and equipment.21 By the fifteenth of June, GECO had terminated its lease at their employment office at 1350 Danforth Avenue.22 The Medical Department closed its blood donor clinic the same day.23 Management held their last staff meeting four days later.24

Carol LeCappelain completed her dedicated service at GECO on June 23, 1945.25 In retrospect, she wondered aloud what happened to the thousands of pairs of shoes when the plant closed down.26 She recalled fondly that the shoes were “the most comfortable shoes I’d ever had.”27

The Hamiltons reduced production to one shift with another massive layoff of workers on the third day of July.28 The plant published the last issue of GECO Fusilier on July 31, 1945.29 The front cover depicted Mrs. Eva Needham enjoying the distinction of filling the last, or the 8,604,742nd, 119 fuse at GECO.30

Production at GECO ended.

The last layoff of GECO’s operators occurred in early August 1945.31 Because of the continuing need for her skills as tele-typist, and regardless of military conflict, Molly Danniels stayed on at GECO until August, after most employees had already moved on.32

Regardless of how women felt about the war ending, losing their jobs, and heading back to their domestic duties, a huge indicator of their “Thank God, it’s over” attitude would become evident quickly, about nine months later actually, with the commencement of the “Baby Boom.” Many women were happy to be back in the home doing “women’s work,” and caring for their children. Young women were eager to marry a returning vet and start families.

Rationing stopped, the economy picked up, and Canada’s future looked bright, with the winds of change alive across the nation. Women had proven they could perform jobs that had been solely in their male counterparts’ realm before the war. Many women were not ready to be just homemakers again. As peacetime lengthened, increasing numbers of women sought work outside the home.

Men who worked at GECO, for the most part, returned to their peacetime occupations, found new jobs within their trades, or retired.

Canada experienced a time of economic growth and prosperity after the war. Industry returned to manufacturing, and consumer goods were readily purchased and enjoyed by ration-weary Canadians more than ready to spend their Victory Bonds. Quickly expanding families of the “baby boomer” generation moved out of the city to affordable new housing in rapidly growing suburbs.

Scarboro’s Spoils of War

Production: Collateral Damage

While GECO originally intended to fill seven different “natures,” or types of fuses, the plant had been designed to be completely flexible and responsive to the needs of the Allied forces.33 Good thing, too. The plant eventually tooled up for and filled forty-one types of ammunition.34

GECO’s production accomplishments were remarkable in many aspects. Perhaps one of its biggest claims to fame was the fact that workers filled more than 256 million units of ammunitions without one fatal accident, a feat not only unique in Canada and North America, but globally.35 This statistic becomes more remarkable when one considers the number of operations that were required to unpack, fill, pack, and ship a single fuse at GECO.36 Each and every step in the fuse-filling process presented an opportunity for explosion. In particular, 8,604,742 No. 119 fuses were filled at GECO, with seventy-six different operations needed to load just this one type of fuse.37 Simple math suggests that more than 653 million manual operations were needed to prepare the more than eight million Fuse 119s for service. Fuse-filling workshops reached the height of production in July 1944, when the plant filled 11,466,878 .303 Flame Tracer bullets alone, giving an all-time high production in the plant of 14,753,003 units for that month.38

Example of a timer fuse filled at GECO. Courtesy of Barbara Dickson, from Scarborough Historical Society.

To add icing to GECO’s cake, the facility boasted an acceptance record by government inspectors of nearly 99 percent, unparalleled within the munitions industry.39

Total products shipped from GECO were valued at $112,692,316.40

GECO’s impressive munitions display. Over the course of the war, workers filled forty-one types of ammunition, including percussion and time fuses, nose and base fuses, tracer-igniters, and flame tracer bullets. GECO filled an impressive 13,426,587 Fuse 251s by June 30, 1945 — the largest production of any single fuse at Scarboro, or in Canada. Courtesy of Archives of Ontario.

Scarboro’s War Score: July 1941 to July 1945

Fuses, Primers, etc. filled: 129,066,629

.303 Tracers filled: 127,601,555

Total munitions filled: 256,668,18441

Final Headcount

GECO reached its employment peak in July 1943, with 5,324 operators plus an additional 980 Inspection Board personnel.42 In total, 17,104 operators worked at GECO over four years.43 Including support staff and Inspection Board personnel (of about four thousand), that number swells to more than twenty-one thousand employees.44 GECO paid out $27,165,212 in wages.45

It’s in You to Give

Above and beyond purchasing Victory Bonds, employees managed to raise $34,480 to support many charitable organizations, which included British War Victims’ Fund, Canadian Red Cross (including P.O.W. care packages), GECO Veteran’s Fund, Sunshine Club (a comfort service for disabled veterans), various local welfare agencies, and the Salvation Army with the purchase of a mobile canteen.46 More than 250 wallets were given as gifts to enlisting GECOites, four tons of books and magazines were sent to servicemen, and $3,000 was spent to host annual children’s Christmas parties.47 This bounty does not reflect the thousands of dollars donated to various philanthropic organizations for which records were not kept.48

Shrapnel

Other curious figures and totals, of no less importance, of a top-secret munitions plant include:

• 2,151 individual employees made 8,453 blood donations to the Red Cross;
• GECO purchased 22,640 female uniforms and 5,266 uniforms for male employees;
• a total of 36,344 purchase orders were placed from about 1,300 different firms for approximately 10,000 different items, not including combustible materials needed for component stores;
• 41,000 messages were transmitted or received by Scarboro;
• buses transported 9,161,258 passengers and covered 3,095,040 miles;
• GECO’s cafeteria served 6,854,287 meals;
• the plant consumed 39,841 tons of coal and 357,520,600 gallons of water;
• total Employee War Loan Subscriptions reached $3,873,643;
• GECO’s Medical Department treated 173,456 patients — of which the vast majority were suffering from non-occupational injury or illness;
• GECO spent nearly $7.2 million in capital and $102.2 million in operating expenditures.49

Before the first stick of TNT ripped up Scarboro’s countryside, T. Holmes Bartley, Toronto Industrial Commission, estimated the cost to design, construct, and equip the top-secret munitions plant in the east end of Toronto stood at between $5 million and $8 million.50 GECO’s management team felt they could build the plant for a modest $2.25 million.51 When all was said and done, the final cost of construction reached $7,181,124,52 almost three times GECO’s original estimate.

They’ll Hear … “They Kept ’Em Firing”

The war decree, “They Kept ’Em Firing,” from Canada’s fighting sons honouring the faithful back on the homefront, still echoes across the decades since the Allied forces laid down their arms. The story of GECO at Scarboro is an incredible tale, one of which legends are made.

“The record, we think, will stand,” wrote Ross Davis, proudly, in the GECO Fusilier, “as lasting proof of what can be achieved by a company of purposeful Canadian men and women drawn from all walks of life, when faced with grave necessity.”53