Written By Ella Gibson
In July 1843, a murder case occurred which would re-frame the way the upper echelons would view those intended to be in their pockets — their servants.
In this article, I will explore how the murder trial of Grace Marks, a sixteen-year-old maidservant from Ireland, would cause a moral panic amongst Canadian elites and how the mythologisation of this trial calls into question the debate regarding the impact of literature on the presentation of historical figures.
Having grown up in Ireland, Grace Marks and her family moved to Canada in search of employment in 1840. Having begun working as a maidservant for Thomas Kinnear, all reports point to Grace as having been a loyal worker. Thus, the events which transpired in 1843, the finding of the bodies of both Kinnear and Nancy Montgomery (his housekeeper), and the murder trial that later transpired, were one of the first examples of a re-thinking of the power held by the lower classes, and especially women. The case itself is riddled with intrigue, despite it being a focal point for many journalists of the era and many historians since. No conclusive evidence was ever found to suggest who truly committed the murders and what the intent was, but we do have details regarding the finding of the bodies. The mystique surrounding the events which led to the murders of Kinnear and Montgomery has encouraged the fictionalisation of Marks. She is a criminal enigma, and as such, it is easier for those engaged in her story to treat her more like a character or a feature in a true crime case, rather than a sixteen-year-old girl manipulated by the men in her life.
Whilst there is no conclusive evidence as to Grace’s relation to her accomplice, the age and power differentiation between herself and fellow servant McDermott leads many to draw the conclusion that Grace had been immensely manipulated. The account given from McDermont frames Grace as a chief manipulator who forced him to assist her with murder and then run away with her. Grace’s account differs and places McDermont as the central figure, and her as a mere bystander forced to participate for her own safety, but the lack of evidence ensures we have no final verdict on what truly occurred. Historians have surmised that should a case such as this be brought to court today, Grace would’ve been viewed at worst as an accessory to murder due to her age and the imbalance of power between the pair. They escaped to New York together following the murder, with hordes of goods from the victim’s house. Whilst they didn’t evade arrest for long, the crime committed quickly circulated amongst the press, generating a moral panic amongst upper class employers. What is so striking about the press circulation following the murders was the ability it had to call into question a judgement of the lower classes. Working class, young, Irish women like Grace were the backbone of the serving class, often immigrating to Canada in search of work; with no links to home, they were an easy target for employers to place within abhorrent conditions. For many, Grace struck a chord of fear, as she was a character whom many could identify as being in close quarters to themselves. Suddenly, those who had previously been viewed as subservient, behind-the-scenes characters were placed as a central point of concern. What concerned the populace about Grace’s case was the differentiation between her actions and the popular belief regarding the Victorian ‘angel of the house’. Women were believed to be morally cleaner and purer than men, and as such, there was no need for employers to second guess the morality of those living invisibly within their homes. When the body of Nancy Montgomery was found, it was discovered she was pregnant; thus, Grace’s crime appeared even more severe. She was not only committing murder against her employers but against femininity itself.
The murder trials themselves were the epicentre of the moral panic. It was both heavily attended and documented in the press. Reports from McDermont’s trial stated that the courtroom was so packed with onlookers that the floor began to give way, causing everyone to evacuate the premises. Whilst at Grace’s trial, she was reported as being ‘devoid of expression’, causing many to speculate as to her mental sanity and true emotive reaction to her actions; this was perhaps furthered by her attending the trial in the stolen dress of the murdered Nancy. It is easy to view the trial as the historical equivalent for a true crime podcast or drama series filled with intrigue. However, in doing so, Graces identity as a manipulated individual is entirely removed. She is viewed without nuance, causing a distance between us as historians and her as an average sixteen-year-old girl.
The results of the trial implemented McDermont as the chief murderer and Grace as his accomplice. He was hanged, with his final words being a scathing remark of Grace as the true orchestrator. Grace, however, was spared the gallows, most likely due to her age, and instead sentenced to life imprisonment. Here she stayed until she was forty, whereby she was finally acquitted due to the work of those who had been chiefly invested in her case having a pardon granted in her favour. From here, Grace crossed the border and began working in a household amongst those who knew her story. From here, Grace’s story is lost to history; whilst it could be that she managed to re-invent herself, the likely tale is that she spent her remaining years as they had begun, in service to others.
Grace’s story lay somewhat dormant, as a scary story re-told to children at Halloween. However, over one hundred years later, author Margaret Atwood began reading of Grace, and the story stayed with her as she produced her most formative work ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’, until eventually, in 1996, Atwood published ‘Alias Grace’, a re-telling of the crime story from Grace’s perspective. A clearly hyperbolised tale, Atwood employs themes of the gothic and the supernatural. Yet, in the same vein, it also gives voice to Grace, who in many aspects is the most silent in her own story. Criticisms can be drawn from the impact of literature and the media on how we perceive historical figures. Does it reinforce the distance and thus lack of humanity between ourselves and Grace? Or instead, give voice to tales of her distress?
While Atwood’s work has certainly elevated the story of Grace Marks, it has filled in many gaps which remain in the Historical discourse. Atwood herself, in the afterword, acclaimed that she felt free to “invent” certain details regarding the case. This is something, of course, that we cannot do; it is perhaps impossible for us to ever know what truly happened on the day of the murder. Was Grace the mastermind behind the plot all along, or merely an innocent teenager who was easily manipulated by a man in a higher position of power? With the rise of movements in recent years like MeToo and TimesUp, the perception of workplace harassment was placed at the forefront of many of our minds. Therefore, in applying a contemporary contextual understanding to the Marks case, many of us may be drawn to sympathise with her and view her as a victim of her surroundings and upbringing. Whilst we will never know the truth of the case, perhaps what is important is what it reveals to us about the conflicting notions of femininity, and the moral panic that later ensued. The potential actions of one woman had the power to unravel a carefully constructed social hierarchy in which it was believed that working class women did not have the ability to disrupt the lives of their superiors.
Retrospect Journal 