Laura Secord
Laura Secord was a heroine of the War of 1812. Unsung in her lifetime, she has become an icon of Canadian patriotism since. Laura Secord was considered to be an average woman. She was neither peasant nor nobility. She had no military background or commission. Her father was a Patriot (to patriotic Canadians, he was a rebel) in the American War of Independence. He arrived in Canada following the wave of Loyalists and was granted land, founding what would later become Ingersoll.
Laura Secord’s famous walk
The next summer, the Americans invaded Upper Canada again, taking able-bodied men prisoner and occupying homes in Queenston. On June 21, 1813, Laura overheard plans to attack an outpost commanded by Lieutenant FitzGibbon.
The next morning, she stole away, walking 32 km to warn Lieutenant FitzGibbon.
Delays at the American headquarters postponed the departure of the American attack for two full days.
On June 24, 1813, a force of First Nations warriors from Quebec rallied under the command of Captain Dominique Ducharme. They attacked the American column and fought a running battle with the U.S. troops. Reinforcements of British, Canadian and Indigenous forces arrived just in time to see the surrender of the entire American force. The First Nations warriors had fought the entire Battle of Beaver Dams on their own. They had forced the surrender of 542 American soldiers with field cannons.
Captain Ducharme asked Fitzgibbon to negotiate the surrender. He didn’t think his English skills were good enough to speak with the American commander.
No mention of Laura Secord was recorded, although the Americans knew that local people had passed on information about their movements. Fitzgibbon had been brought up from the ranks by Colonel Isaac Brock before the War of 1812. His only hope of promotion was battlefield exploits. He needed all the credit for himself, but FitzGibbon did write letters on Laura’s behalf in 1820, 1827 and 1837, attesting to her bravery.
Nevertheless, it would seem that her contribution to the war would be lost to history. Several times, she petitioned for recognition, to no avail.
The family struggled financially. James died in 1841, and his small war pension ended.
The only recognition she received in her lifetime was in 1860. She was 85 years old when the Prince of Wales awarded her £100, a considerable sum in the 19th century.
Laura Secord lived to see Canadian Confederation and died in 1868. She is buried in the Drummond Hill Cemetery in Niagara Falls.
By 1880, people began to take notice. The women’s suffrage movement needed real female heroes as role models. Over the years, the Laura Secord story has been retold many times, and honours abound:
- Monuments to her stand in Queenston and in Ottawa.
- Her face has graced a commemorative quarter and a postage stamp
- Her portrait was hung in Parliament.
- Her home in Queenston is now a museum.
- Schools and a chocolate company are named after her.
(copied from GoC website)