Married Women and the Law of Property in Victorian Ontario

A meticulously researched and revisionist study of the nineteenth-century Ontario?s Married Women's Property Acts. They were important landmarks in the legal emancipation of women. Contents 5 Foreword: The OSGOODE Society for Canadian Legal History 7 Acknowledgments 9 Introduction 11 1. ‘So Entirely under His Power and Control’: The Status of Wives before Reform 24 2. ‘A Life That Is Simply Intolerable’: Alimony and the Protection of Wives 38 3. ‘To Properly Protect Her Property’: Marriage Settlements in Upper Canada 63 4. ‘If the Laws Were Made More Salutary’: The Act of 1859 80 5. ‘The Difference between Women’s Rights and Women’s Wrongs’: The Acts of 1872 and 1873 102 6. ‘Many Frauds Not Previously Practicable’: Creditors and the Acts of 1859 and 1872 115 7.‘But How Are You to Exempt It from His Control’?: Abuse of Trust by Husbands 132 8. ‘A Thing of Shreds and Patches’: The Act of 1884 147 9. ‘Lending Aid or Encouragement to Fraudulent and Dishonest Practices’: Wives and Their Creditors after 1884 158 10. ‘Being Terrified and in Fear of Violence’: The Limitations of Separate Property as a Protective Device 176 Conclusions and Epilogue 189 Notes 195 Bibliography 233 Index 243

Until this century, married women had no legal right to hold, use, or dispose of property. Since the ownership of property is a critical measure of social status, the married women's property acts of the nineteenth century were important landmarks in the legal emancipation of women. Reform campaigns represented the first organized attempts by women in Upper Canada to challenge their status in society. Ironically, emancipation was not the first goal of reformers: their demands reflected a concern with protection from economic instability. The laws granting women new rights and privileges were designed to force men to behave more responsibly and to mitigate the worst hardships imposed upon wives by abusive or negligent husbands.

The most detailed and complete account of married women's property law reform yet written for any North American jurisdiction, this fascinating study will be of interest to those in the areas of law, women's studies, and nineteenth-century social history.

Until This Century, Married Women Had No Legal Right To Hold, Use, or dispose of property. Since the ownership of property is a critical measure of social status, the Married Women's Property Acts of the nineteenth-century were important landmarks in the legal emancipation of women.Reform campaigns represented the first organized attempt by women in Upper Canada to challenge their societal status. Ironically, emancipation was not the first goal of reformers: their demands reflected a concern with protection from economic instability. The Acts granting women new rights and privileges were designed to force men to behave more responsibly and to mitigate the worst hardships imposed on wives by negligent husbands. This emphasis has had on-going implications for women in the twentieth century.This is a meticulously researched and revisionist study of a significant topic that has received little attention from Canadian historians.