Orenda's Empty Lot

Both sides are gated and have signs claiming there are cameras. Likely a bluff. I also noted an elderly man out for a walk on the CIL side so take that as an indication of how concerned to be.

Everything is very grown in and there is a lot to trip on or to cut yourself on, and the brush and grass obscures much of it. Also a lot of plants with spikes.

The combined locations of a chemical plant for the manufacture of explosives and a windtunnel facility, located either side of the road.

The CIL (Canadian Industries Limited) plant was opened in the 1910s, and ended up provided munitions during WWI before closing in 1922. The nearby town itself bears the name Nobel in reference to the inventor of dynamite, and was once part of the plant.

It was reopened in 1927 or 1928, and continued operations through WWII, when it was expanded for war production. Post-war, the site was reduced again to its earlier size, running until 1984, when newer explosives were taking over the market.

A map with the former layout of the site can be seen here: https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/b846b52b25b542909349adbac096a01c

The Orenda test facility opened just after the Second World War and was in operation until 1959 when the Avro Arrow, which was to use Orenda's Iroquois jet engine, was cancelled.

It is an interesting little bit of Canadian history connected to the Avro Arrow, an aircraft with much national mythmaking surrounding it.

While not specifically tied to this location, if of interest, I'd recommend Russell Isinger's paper "The Avro Canada CF-105 Arrow programme : decisions and determinants" for a thorough dive into the history of the aircraft and a sober academic assessment of its real abilities rather than the legendary status Canadian pop history assigns it.

A place that piqued my interest mostly out of historical interest and my particular fascination with the Cold War.

There's not a lot to see beyond concrete rubble and debris but if you are the type who can stand in a ruined, grown in place and imagine what once was and what it meant to history, maybe it's still worth a stop. You may never meet the person but you can stand at their grave and wonder.