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Ajax 'bomb girl' Louise Johnson, 105, tells her story in new book

Ajax resident Louise Johnson, 105, who worked at a top-secret munitions plant in the Second World War, has shared her story in a new book, with proceeds from the first 100 copies supporting the Ajax Pickering Hospital Foundation.

By Daily Durham News

Nov 8, 2026, 8:17 a.m. ET1 min read

Ajax Public Library main branch, a modern building with a glass entrance and a lawn in front; no people visible. — File photo: Ajax Public Library main branch, where the book launches November 11. (Ramosc55 / Wikimedia Commons) · Credit: Ramosc55, Wikimedia Commons

Ajax resident Louise Johnson, 105, has told her story in a new book, 'A Life Legacy,' written with author C.L. Golding after Johnson sat down with Golding to share it.

Johnson took a train in the early 1940s from Saskatoon to what is now Ajax to help with the war effort, becoming a 'bomb girl' at the DIL munitions plant, where she filled bomb shell casings with explosive cordite to send overseas.

All proceeds from the first 100 copies sold go to the Ajax Pickering Hospital Foundation. The book launches at a special event on Remembrance Day, November 11, at 1:30 p.m. in the Rotary Room at the Ajax Public Library's main branch, with copies signed by Johnson herself.

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