Sidewheel Steamer Milton D. Ward

Identification & Site Information

• Name: Milton D. Ward
• Other Names: None
• Official Number: 90162
• Vessel Type at Loss: Sidewheel Steamer (Passenger & Freight)
• Builder: Philander Lester, Marine City, Michigan
• Year Built & Launched: 1870 (Launched April 1870)
• Specifications:  Length: 175 ft (53.3 m)  Beam: 28.5 ft (8.7 m)  Depth: 7.8 ft (2.4 m)
  • Gross Tonnage: 538.31 GT
• Number of Decks: 1
• Number of Staterooms: 30 (24 cabin staterooms, 6 outside staterooms)
• Propulsion: Sidewheel, steam-powered
• Engine Type: Vertical Beam (Walking Beam)
• Engine Size: 42” x 10’, 500 hp (Salvaged from previous ships: Canadian (1853), Fashion, and Dove)
• Original Owner: River & Lake Shore Steamboat Company (Owned by industrialist Eber Brock Ward)

Service History & Modifications

The Milton D. Ward was a passenger and package freight Steamer, originally operating between Detroit and Port Huron, Michigan. She was designed for river and lake travel, featuring bluff bows and a spacious cabin arrangement with 30 staterooms.

• 1870, May 28: Officially enrolled in Detroit and began operations.
• 1872, March: Transported silver ore from Fort William (Thunder Bay, Ontario).
• 1872, July: Seized for customs violations (details unknown).
• 1873: Sold to J.M. Nichol, Detroit, then to John Pridgeon & Co.
• 1874: Sold to Star Line Steamship Company.
• 1875: Lengthened and Rebuilt with a new Keelson & guards at J.M. Jones Shipyard, Detroit.  New dimensions: 182.5 ft length, 544.1 GT  Sharper bow for improved handling.
• 1877, September: Collided with the wreck of the Nile; released by Tug Prince Alfred.
• 1879: Ran on the Star Line route (Detroit to Port Austin, Michigan).
• 1882: Acquired by White Star Line, Detroit. June 15: Collision with Steamer A.W. Colton.
• 1886: Sold to S.B. Grummond.  July 18: Engine breakdown; repaired in Marine City. September 12: Collided with steambarge Lake St. Clair.
• 1887: Operated between Cheboygan and Sault Ste. Marie.
• 1888: Major renovation: New square pilothouse.  Upgraded staterooms and extended hurricane Deck.
• September 9, 1892: Chartered by the Detroit Board of Health as a floating hospital during a cholera epidemic.
• August 16, 1894: Burned; never repaired.

Final Disposition

1898: Officially Abandoned at Waterworks Park, Detroit, in the Detroit River.  November 16, 1898: Enrollment surrendered.

1900:  Moved to 24th Street, Detroit.  Engine removed, Hull broken up.

Located By & Date Found

No wreck remains, as the Hull was broken up in 1900  No known artifacts or surviving structures.

Resources & Links

• Maritime History of the Great Lakes: http://www.maritimehistoryofthegreatlakes.ca
• Great Lakes Maritime Database (GLMD): https://greatlakeships.org
• David Swayze Shipwreck File: https://usace.contentdm.oclc.org
• Great Lakes Vessel Database (BGSU): https://greatlakes.bgsu.edu/vessels

Conclusion

The Milton D. Ward was a versatile Sidewheel Steamer, serving passenger and freight routes across Lake Huron, Lake Michigan, and the Detroit River. Over her 24-year career, she endured multiple ownership changes, collisions, and modifications. Her final years were marked by service as a floating hospital during the 1892 cholera epidemicbefore she was destroyed by fire in 1894 and Abandoned in 1898. By 1900, her Hull was scrapped, leaving no remains of this once-prominent Great Lakes Steamer.