Toronto Star

TRIAL OF GRACE MARKS

A young maid confesses but her lover hangs for the 1843 murders of an Ontario farmer and his housekeepe­r

- by Lynn Crosbie
?? TORONTO PUBLIC LIBRARY ?? 1. In July 1843, 16-year-old maid Grace Marks murdered her employer, a wealthy Richmond Hill farmer named Thomas Kinnear, and his housekeepe­r, Nancy Montgomery. Marks’s accomplice was Kinnear’s 22-year-old stable hand, James McDermott. Kinnear and...
TORONTO PUBLIC LIBRARY 1. In July 1843, 16-year-old maid Grace Marks murdered her employer, a wealthy Richmond Hill farmer named Thomas Kinnear, and his housekeepe­r, Nancy Montgomery. Marks’s accomplice was Kinnear’s 22-year-old stable hand, James McDermott. Kinnear and...
?? QUEEN’S ARCHIVES ?? 5. McDermott and Marks were tried and convicted. Both were sentenced to die. McDermott was hanged. Marks’s punishment, because of her sex and age, and because she fainted, most femininely, at her trial, was altered to imprisonme­nt. She entered the...
QUEEN’S ARCHIVES 5. McDermott and Marks were tried and convicted. Both were sentenced to die. McDermott was hanged. Marks’s punishment, because of her sex and age, and because she fainted, most femininely, at her trial, was altered to imprisonme­nt. She entered the...
?? TORONTO PUBLIC LIBRARY ?? 3. When Kinnear arrived home, McDermott lured him into the kitchen and shot him to death. Marks fled and McDermott shot at her, missing. Marks and McDermott would admit to the murders, yet their stories differed, substantiv­ely, each claiming to be...
TORONTO PUBLIC LIBRARY 3. When Kinnear arrived home, McDermott lured him into the kitchen and shot him to death. Marks fled and McDermott shot at her, missing. Marks and McDermott would admit to the murders, yet their stories differed, substantiv­ely, each claiming to be...
?? ?? 2. The crime was especially gruesome. McDermott, urged on by Marks — who then disappeare­d to milk the cows — hit Montgomery on the head with an axe and carried her limp body to the cellar. The two schemers returned later to find her still alive so they...
2. The crime was especially gruesome. McDermott, urged on by Marks — who then disappeare­d to milk the cows — hit Montgomery on the head with an axe and carried her limp body to the cellar. The two schemers returned later to find her still alive so they...
?? BALDWIN ROOM/TORONTO REFERENCE LIBRARY ?? 6. Almost nine years into her sentence, Marks began to show signs of depression and insanity. She was transferre­d to the new Provincial Lunatic Asylum in Toronto, where she was treated for a year and a half. She was eventually transferre­d back to...
BALDWIN ROOM/TORONTO REFERENCE LIBRARY 6. Almost nine years into her sentence, Marks began to show signs of depression and insanity. She was transferre­d to the new Provincial Lunatic Asylum in Toronto, where she was treated for a year and a half. She was eventually transferre­d back to...
?? ?? 4. Why did Marks kill? She apparently loathed Montgomery, whom she considered shiftless and dictatoria­l. But was she McDermott’s pawn? In her voluntary confession, Marks stated this was the case; conversely, McDermott claimed to be spellbound by the...
4. Why did Marks kill? She apparently loathed Montgomery, whom she considered shiftless and dictatoria­l. But was she McDermott’s pawn? In her voluntary confession, Marks stated this was the case; conversely, McDermott claimed to be spellbound by the...
?? ?? 7. Marks is best known to us through Margaret Atwood’s brilliant 1996 novel Alias Grace. In it, Marks is viewed through shifting perspectiv­es, her relative innocence both championed and challenged. Atwood encountere­d Marks in Life in the Clearings...
7. Marks is best known to us through Margaret Atwood’s brilliant 1996 novel Alias Grace. In it, Marks is viewed through shifting perspectiv­es, her relative innocence both championed and challenged. Atwood encountere­d Marks in Life in the Clearings...

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