14

Workers at the back of Plant 1.
1944
Downsview, Ontario, Canada

15

Parts pickers in the Stores Dept.
1944
Downsview, Ontario, Canada

16

A Mosquito taking off.
1944
Downsview, Ontario, Canada

17

A group of workers.
1944
Downsview, Ontario, Canada

18

Throughout the Depression years, de Havilland Canada was a very small company involved in assembly of British aircraft that were sent to Downsview in crates by sea and rail. There were only 30 employees in 1935, and there were still only 195 at the end of 1939.

Orders for large numbers of Tiger Moth and Anson trainers came through early in 1940, and by July, 1941, the decision had been made that Downsview would build the hot new D.H. 98 Mosquito bomber, although it would be more than a year before the public was informed of this. Rapid growth took place in 1942, with employment rising to 2,400, and the frantic construction of the huge new Plant 2 behind the original facility.

By 1944, staff peaked at close to 7,000, but there were an estimated 15,000 working at hundreds of sub-contractors around Canada and the U.S.A. Layoffs started early in 1945, with the winding down of the war effort. At the end of August, the Mosquito contract had been cancelled, and de Havilland Canada (DHC) was once again a relatively small company.