Laura Secord: Trailblazing a Multidimensional Understanding of World History

Written by Robbie Kozman, 02/11/2025

Each year on Valentine’s Day, my grandparents bring us chocolates. The box is stamped “Laura Secord'' and comes tied up with a signature gold ribbon. For the better part of my childhood, I believed that Laura Secord was the Canadian version of the Lindt chocolatier. I envisioned her as an apron-clad grandmother, lovingly stirring chocolate. This image was shattered in my Grade 7 Canadian History class, a learning experience that changed my understanding of History’s importance, and the world. History is not only a study of the past; it is a tool which allows us to think critically, question, and change inequitable aspects of our modern world.

Laura Secord was a heroine in the War of 1812 and was not connected in any personal way to the confectionery business begun by Frank O’Connor in 1913. She risked her life to deliver critical military intelligence in the conflict which guaranteed Canadian independence from the United States. During the American War of Independence, Laura’s father sided with the Canadians. He moved his family from the Niagara Peninsula to Queenston in 1795, along with other Loyalists who were granted land for their patriotism. Laura was twenty years old at the time. Soon, she married James Secord. By the time the war broke out in 1812, she was a mother to five children. Laura rescued a wounded James from the battlefield and brought him home to Queenstown. While nursing James back to health, the Secord home was occupied by American officers. Laura was forced to see to them. Upstairs tending to James, Laura overheard the soldier's discussing an ambush. The Americans planned to attack Beaver Dams. Military intelligence of this degree would have been delivered to the British forces by James, as he was both a soldier and a man. But James was wounded and incapable of making the difficult journey. Instead, Laura, despite knowing the dangers ahead, deviated from her gender role as a caregiver and nurturer in the home and embarked on the trek. The most obvious danger was getting captured by American soldiers patrolling the lands. Physical challenges also posed serious risks, from crossing the rocky terrain surrounded by black flies, mosquitoes, and wildlife, or braving the elements without hiking gear or soldier’s equipment. Laura covered an astounding 30 kilometres in 19 hours, finally reaching the British on June 22 (which is, coincidentally, my birthday). She was caked in mud, blistered, bleeding, and exhausted. Having hiked in the Ontario wilderness, I cannot imagine how arduous this trek would have been. Laura’s information of the invasion confirmed what Fitzgibbon likely already knew from the Iroquois warriors. Now certain, Fitzgibbon commanded the Caughnawaga forces to ambush the Americans, thwarting their invasion. This victory at Beaver Dams signalled British success for the duration of the War.

In the immediate aftermath, the victory was credited to Lt. Fitzgibbon, with the efforts and bravery of both the Indigenous soldiers and Laura overlooked. This is, sadly, a familiar pattern in our understanding of history. The contributions of women and marginalized people throughout history are minimized by the powerful – the military and political elite who document historical events from their perspective, for their purposes. Laura was never mentioned in any reports following the battle. She received no accolades or compensation for her bravery despite petitioning the government for a pension multiple times throughout her life. Fitzgibbon did write about Laura’s journey in 1931, at her request, to bolster her petition. As an impoverished, elderly widow, she was awarded 100 sterling from the Prince of Wales in recognition of her military service. Before she passed away in 1868, Laura did live to witness the Canadian Confederation, an event that would not have happened had the War of 1812 ended differently.

It was not until the suffrage movement that Secord was elevated to the national stage, as part of a campaign to push for equal rights. Suffragists were promoting the strength and courage of women leaders, past and present. Laura Secord was an excellent example. In the 19th century, women were thought of as unsuited for work outside the home, especially in politics and the military. Laura went outside of her prescribed gender role by demonstrating mental and physical toughness, the political astuteness to recognize and deliver military intelligence, and to venture and persevere in society. At a time when women were not in the military, she rescued her wounded husband on the battlefield and trudged through soldier-occupied territory to reach Fitzgibbon. Laura’s bravery is impressive given the gender politics at the time and was appropriately highlighted during women’s suffrage. However, it benefited the Suffragists’ agenda to highlight Laura, a war heroine. By studying Secord throughout history, it is clear that her story has been told (in the case of the Suffragists), or not told (in the case of Fitzgibbons), as it suits the political actors of the time. Furthermore, the story that I thought I knew of Laura, the chocolatier, was not even her real story. This reveals the subjective nature of history.

The contrast between my childhood image of Laura – the apron-clad chocolate-stirring grandmother – and my historically-informed one - a stoic and battered heroine sharing news of an imminent attack – is stark. The chocolate image evokes home, femininity, and strict gender roles for women while the other connotes bravery, military might, and the public world of politics and war. Today, Laura is commemorated with statues and her legacy is included in the Canadian curriculum. Yet, I wonder how many people, students in particular, associate the Laura Secord name with confectionary delights, relegating her back to the confines of her gender role as a nurturer and nourisher and diminishing her contributions to history?

History is not, as I once thought, a one-dimensional field, the study of past events. It is multi-dimensional, complicated by those who can determine which stories in history are elevated and which are excluded. Secord’s story has enriched my understanding of history. History teaches us to make sense of our modern world including the unjust trends that have stood the test of time - one can find similarities by examining and interpreting these trends. It reveals the inadequate recognition, representation, and misrepresentation of women and members of marginalized communities (such as the Indigenous soldiers in the War of 1812). Not only does this expand our understanding of humanity and the modern world, but these observations also enable us to ameliorate those inequities. While I have no biographical connections to Laura, her story resonates with me and connects me to the study of history. It turned this chocolate connoisseur into a budding historian. I am reminded of the quote “Life is like a box of chocolates; you never know what you're going to get.” History is also like a box of chocolates. By studying Laura Secord, I understand that you don’t always know what you are going to get. You need to open up the box and dig right in, because history is not only a study of the past; it is a tool which allows us to think critically, question, and change inequitable aspects of our modern world.