Toronto Inglis Factory
| Type | 156 Factory | |
| Historical Name of Location | Toronto, Ontario, Canada | |
| Coordinates | 43.639013000, -79.411113000 |
Contributor: C. Peter Chen
ww2dbaseJohn Inglis and Company, having roots as a grist and flour mill machinery company dating back to 1859, did not relocate its production facilities to Toronto, Ontario, Canada until Sep 1881. The factory in Toronto produced war materials (shells and shell forgings) for the first time during WW1. In Mar 1938, the company was awarded a British-Canadian joint contract to produce 12,000 Bren light machine guns, 5,000 for the British Army and 7,000 for the Canadian Army. Production began in the Toronto factory in 1940, and the contract was extended several times. By 1943 Inglis was producing 60% of the total global output of Bren guns (Bren guns were also produced in Britain, India, and Australia). A number of the Bren guns were exported to Nationalist Chinese forces during WW2; a special characteristic of these examples was that they were chambered 7.92x57-millimeter Mauser ammunition for the ease of Chinese logistics. The Inglis Toronto factory also produced Browning Hi-Power handguns for Canadian, Chinese, and Greek use. After the war, Inglis' Toronto facility returned to civilian production. In 1981, the company moved its headquarters to Mississauga, Ontario, and the site was sold off slowly. Today the former Inglis Toronto factory site is occupied by residential and commercial buildings.
ww2dbaseSource: Wikipedia
Last Major Update: Mar 2015
Toronto Inglis Factory Interactive Map
Photographs
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Visitor Submitted Comments
11 Nov 2016 01:21:36 PM
my mom Shirley Gillete worked at Inglis plant.
It is great to see rhe pictures and read more of the history.
Mom married Howard William Gorle a Dieppe veteren.
Her first husband Walter Peacock died overseas.
9 Nov 2017 07:14:42 AM
A good friend of the family, Joe Thomas worked there and arranged for my aunt Mildred Varey and her brother Manley Varey to get jobs at the plant during the war. Did they make gas masks there as well as guns?
12 May 2018 05:51:22 PM
My mother, Marion Johnston (nee Sproull), worked at the Inglis plant with her best friend Evelyn (who became a sister-in-law) and her sister Iona Sproull. Mom worked on the magazine of the Brenn Gun. Mom was from a farm on the outskirts of Millville, New Brunswick. My father, Roland Johnston was off to war. Dad drove the first tank on his section of Juno Beach on D-Day (Third Anti-Tank) and fought the Battle of Normandy and was a liberator of Holland. After the war Mom and Dad moved to Toronto to and operated the Penrose Fish and Chips. Dad passed away in 1994 after going back to Europe for the 50th Anniversary of D-Day. Mom passed away August, 2012 at the age of 91.
22 Sep 2020 06:51:36 AM
The location pin for the factory on the map is wrong. It should be over by Strachan and Liberty.
C. Peter Chen says:22 Sep 2020 01:28:30 PM
Thank you, anonymous of 22 Sep 2020, we have adjusted the location of the pin.
11 Nov 2020 05:24:46 AM
My mother, Vera (Fallis) Johns worked at the Inglis plant. She passed July 29, 2020 at the age of 97.
30 May 2021 03:22:29 PM
Does anyone know who owns the copyright to this photo series? Also who took the photos? They are so well done.
5 Jul 2022 08:12:46 PM
Hi, both my mum and dad met and worked at the Small Arms plant during WW11. My sister and I would love to find more information on what their jobs were within the Inglis company. Are there any records that would give us this information and are they accessible? Thank you, would love to hear back with any information.
Mums name Gladys Johnston
Dads name George Sands
Cheers,
Peggy Sands
30 Jul 2022 04:56:28 PM
This article has good photos. It is interesting to often be hearing of yet more war products that Inglis made. People who want to read articles on the Small Arms Limited factory at Long Branch should look at the multi part one in Calibre magazine available at gun stores or by searching for it on the web. SAL was separate from Inglis.
C. Peter Chen says:1 Aug 2022 10:13:52 AM
Direct link to the Mississauga/Long Branch "Small Arms, Ltd." article at WW2DB:
https://ww2db.com/facility/Small_Arms,_Ltd/
21 Mar 2024 10:05:39 AM
A book about this factory was published in 1994. "Working At Inglis; The Life and Death of a Canadian Factory" is based in part on interviews with those who worked there, going back to WW II. The plant was closed in 1989 and production was transferred to Clyde, Ohio.
All visitor submitted comments are opinions of those making the submissions and do not reflect views of WW2DB.
| WW2-Era Place Name | Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| Lat/Long | 43.6390, -79.4111 |
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8 Jul 2016 01:34:06 PM
My dad, James (Jim) Ferris worked at Inglis Factory during WW!!. As a young girl I remember the metal pieces stuck in the sole of his shoes. I tried to remove them as I was worried they would pass through into his feet. I have no idea what his job title was but he was a wonderful fun loving man so anyone who worked with or for him were very lucky.