The James Pickands was a wooden Great Lakes bulk freighter built in Cleveland, Ohio. It was launched on May 22, 1886, and enrolled at Cleveland on May 27, 1886, with a gross tonnage of 1545.90 and a net tonnage of 1318.69.
Owned by J. W. Moore, Thomas Fitzpatrick, James Pickands, A. R. Manning, and William H. Quayle, the ship entered service in 1886. However, its career was marred by two unfortunate incidents.
On July 13, 1889, the James Pickands was involved in a collision off Grand Island, Lake Superior, which led to the sinking of the steamer Smith Moore.
Another tragic event occurred on September 22, 1894, when the James Pickands was wrecked on Sawtooth Reef off Eagle River, Lake Superior. While en route from Duluth, Minnesota, to South Chicago, Illinois, carrying a cargo of iron ore, the ship lost its bearings in the haze of forest fires ashore. Thankfully, no lives were lost in this incident.
After these unfortunate events, the enrollment of the James Pickands was surrendered on April 27, 1895.
