Lemington, WW1 munitions factory

The site of the present Anglo Great Lakes Factory, at Lemington Point, formed by the horseshoe bend in the river has a rather interesting industrial history. During World War 1 Lemington Point was known as "Canary Island" due to the existence of a munitions factory using a substance (cordite) with a bright yellow colouring. For many years after the war local people in the area still had traces of this colouring on their hair and skin. The Point was an ideal location for a munitions factory, given its isolated site - it was physically separated from the rest of Lemington, and accessed only by a wooden bridge. The Anglo Great Lakes Graphite Factory closed in 1992. Workers there also tried not to get the dust onto their skin as graphite forms an almost permanent shiny grey layer.