Praise The Ward

Guelph Author, historian and Ward knowledge-keeper Bonnie Durtnall has favoured us with a presentation each year about Ward History. This year she’ll be sharing from her new book that recounts the storied history of the International Malleable Iron Company (IMICO) and the lives of the people who powered it. A key employer in “The Ward,” IMICO grew from a small foundry of fewer than 100 employees in 1913 to become one of the city’s largest employers, boasting nearly 500 workers before its closure in 1989.

Beyond the corporate timeline, the presentation will explore the human experience within the factory, detailing the industry’s fluctuations during the Great Depression and the challenges posed by modern technology and internationalism in the 1970s.