Located at 3 East Diamond Avenue, the Thomas Cannery operated from 1918 to 1962 and was the only food cannery in Montgomery County, as well a major employer in Gaithersburg. The cannery was damaged by a fire in 1962 and never resumed operation after that. The photo on the left was taken in 1986 and as you can see, an excellent job was done in preserving this structure, which now houses offices as well as a spa.
| Name | Date | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Karen Brown | 9/10/09 | My grandfather, George D Knill Sr worked at the cannery for as long as I can remember. He actually died there after having a heart attack and falling. I would spend the weekend with my grandparents in Winfield and my grandpap would bring me in with him on Monday morning where my dad would pick me. Many memories of seeing the process of cleaning the vegetables that were canned there. By Karen Brown |
| Fred Powell Jr | 9/24/10 | I knew I remembered the cannery burned down around JFK's assassination, memory is foggy & I thought the fire was after JFK was gone. |
| mitch gardner | 4/30/11 | I remember riding my bike there while it was a working cannery There were these fountains that cooled the water I guess. Most of the workers were African-american. I thought it a very neat place. |
| Jim Wells | 10/31/13 | This is one of the few pics here where the after looks better than the before. Most are quite sad. :( |
| bonica patterson | 1/25/14 | my grandmother worked here for 4 years before the fire. |
| Alan Gaidelis | 8/31/15 | N&H Autobody was also located there for several years until the mid 1980's when the business was relocated to Frederick, MD |
| Danny Brodt | 10/3/15 | The smells from the "canning factory" in the summer gave a new meaning to country air! A "fixture" in old G'burg .. "They paved paradise and put in a parking lot". |