“Not everyone who works or lives in the neighbourhood is familiar with its rich manufacturing history, and for us, it was important to bring that history to light,” says Hélène Veilleux, Executive Director of the SDC District Central. “These interpretive panels—which are absolutely beautiful!—are a wonderful way to make this heritage accessible to everyone.”

Indeed, before the historical panel was installed, you could sip a coffee at Barista, located at 111 Louvain Street West, without realizing that the vacant lot just steps away had once been home to a vital link in Canada's wartime effort.

More specifically, the vacant lot was once home to the Montreal Works munitions plant at 9500 Saint-Laurent Boulevard. Built by Defence Industries Limited, the facility began operations in 1943 to support Canada's participation in the Second World War. Nearly 3,000 women worked at the plant, and a streetcar stop was built nearby to make it easier for them to travel to and from work each day.

After 1946, the military complex was repurposed for manufacturing and became home to a variety of businesses, including a sheet metal workshop, a leather processing facility, and clothing manufacturers. As textile production gradually shifted overseas with globalization, the building was progressively abandoned before ultimately being demolished in 2016.