The Tragedy of the Ward Children.
David Ward was one of the first settlers on the Toronto Islands around 1830. He had seven children, the eldest of whom, William, was an accomplished sailor despite his young 15 years.
On May 12, 1838, he took his five sisters out for a sail – Rose, 5; Jane, 7: Cecilia, almost 9, Phoebe, 11, and Mary Ann, who was 12. They were in an open dinghy with a single sail and steered by an oar. The group sailed up and down the shore for about an hour when the craft was struck by a heavy gust of wind. William fell off the stern; then the boat filled with water and capsized throwing all the children into the freezing water. With great exertion he was able to right the dinghy and get three of the girls into it, where they died. One of the others managed to get back into the boat through her own efforts and the remaining one held on to the gunwale. Another gust of wind filled the sail capsizing the boat a second time. The three dead bodies were washed away. Phoebe held on to the boat as long as she could and then went down.
All five girls perished.
Fortunately for William a man on shore saw the accident and ran to find a boat, arriving at the scene just in time to rescue the exhausted boy.
Naturally, the experience was traumatic for William who subsequently became famous for his lifesaving activities in the area saving many doomed sailors from ships which fell victim to Lake Ontario’s infamous storms.
David Ward was one of the first settlers on the Toronto Islands around 1830. He had seven children, the eldest of whom, William, was an accomplished sailor despite his young 15 years.
On May 12, 1838, he took his five sisters out for a sail – Rose, 5; Jane, 7: Cecilia, almost 9, Phoebe, 11, and Mary Ann, who was 12. They were in an open dinghy with a single sail and steered by an oar. The group sailed up and down the shore for about an hour when the craft was struck by a heavy gust of wind. William fell off the stern; then the boat filled with water and capsized throwing all the children into the freezing water. With great exertion he was able to right the dinghy and get three of the girls into it, where they died. One of the others managed to get back into the boat through her own efforts and the remaining one held on to the gunwale. Another gust of wind filled the sail capsizing the boat a second time. The three dead bodies were washed away. Phoebe held on to the boat as long as she could and then went down.
All five girls perished.
Fortunately for William a man on shore saw the accident and ran to find a boat, arriving at the scene just in time to rescue the exhausted boy.
Naturally, the experience was traumatic for William who subsequently became famous for his lifesaving activities in the area saving many doomed sailors from ships which fell victim to Lake Ontario’s infamous storms.
