DeCew House (variably spelt DeCow, Du Coo or DeCou) was built c.1808 in Thorold Township,

Upper Canada The Province of Upper Canada (french: link=no, province du Haut-Canada) was a part of British Canada established in 1791 by the Kingdom of Great Britain, to govern the central third of the lands in British North America, formerly part of the ...

. The two-story house had limestone walls thick.

Early history

DeCew was a captain in the 2nd

Lincoln Militia , colors = , identification_symbol_2 = , identification_symbol_2_label = Tartan , identification_symbol_4 = , identification_symbol_4_label = Abbreviation , march = "The Lincolnshi ...

during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

, and also spent almost a year as a

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of wa ...

. During his absence, his house was used by the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

army as a detachment headquarters under the command of Lieutenant

James FitzGibbon James FitzGibbon (16 November 1780 – 10 December 1863) was a British soldier in the War of 1812. Early life and career Born to Garrett (Gerald) FitzGibbon and Mary Widenham in Glin, County Limerick, Ireland, he enlisted in the Knight of G ...

. The house is remembered as the destination of

Laura Secord Laura Secord ( Ingersoll; 13 September 1775 – 17 October 1868) was a Canadian heroine of the War of 1812. She is known for having walked out of American-occupied territory in 1813 to warn British forces of an impending American atta ...

's celebrated journey to warn the British of a planned American attack. Thanks to her warning, FitzGibbon was prepared for the attack, and in the ensuing

Battle of Beaver Dams The Battle of Beaver Dams took place on 24 June 1813, during the War of 1812. A column of troops from the United States Army marched from Fort George and attempted to surprise a British outpost at Beaver Dams, billeting themselves overnight in ...

was able to secure the surrender of an American force of approximately 500 men. Following the war, DeCew lived in the house with his wife Katharine, raising eleven children and operating a mill (a predecessor of the

Morningstar Mill Morningstar Mill is a heritage site located in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. The site includes the Morningstar Mill, a sawmill, the home of the Morningstar family, a barn used for blacksmith demonstrations, and the Decew Falls gorge along the ...

) a short distance away. He sold the house when he relocated to

Haldimand County Haldimand County is a rural city-status single-tier municipality on the Niagara Peninsula in Southern Ontario, Canada, on the north shore of Lake Erie, and on the Grand River. Despite its name, it is no longer a county by definition, as all m ...

in 1834. The house was purchased by David Griffiths, and he and his descendants occupied the house until 1942. At that time, the property was acquired by the Hydro-Electric Power Commission of Ontario (a predecessor of

Ontario Power Generation Ontario Power Generation Inc. (OPG) is a Crown corporations of Canada, Crown corporation and "government business enterprise" that is responsible for approximately half of the electricity generation in the province of Ontario, Canada. It is w ...

). Most of the surrounding land was flooded to create Lake Gibson as a reservoir for hydroelectric power generation purposes. The house, being on high land, was not flooded and continued to stand unoccupied. In 1950, it was destroyed by fire under suspicious circumstances.

Modern history

In January 2008, John Burtniak, chair of Thorold's War of 1812 bicentennial committee, urged the City of Thorold to acquire the property to assure the protection of this important historical asset. However, Thorold Council rejected the proposal citing the cost of upkeep. Despite this, the City of Thorold assumed ownership of the DeCou House in early 2011 from the Ontario Power Generation for a nominal fee, completing a restoration project in October of that year. Due to the historical significance of the structure, the lower part of the stone walls were preserved. The Power Commission installed a flagstone floor and a plaque explaining the history of the structure. The

Laura Secord Legacy Trail Laura Secord Legacy Trail is a 32-kilometer (20 mile) trail as a monument to Laura Secord's journey and legacy. It includes the Laura Secord Commemorative Walk that was established in 2013. Secord embarked on a journey in June 1813 during the War o ...

was established to commemorate Secord's walk on June 22, 2013; the 200th anniversary of it.

References

{{Coord, 43, 06, 28, N, 79, 15, 01, W, scale:10000_type:landmark_region:CA-ON, name=DeCou House, display=title Houses in Ontario Houses completed in 1808 Demolished buildings and structures in Ontario Buildings and structures demolished in 1950

Early history

Modern history

See also

References