Ward's Island, actually the east section of the old peninsula, was named after the Ward family who first settled here about 1830. David Ward, a local fisherman, raised seven children. His son, William, built the landmark Ward's Hotel in 1882, just south of the ferry docks at Channel Avenue.

Originally the building had two floors and a central, third story tower, but in 1922 the tower and upper floor were removed after the structure deteriorated. The remaining building operated as a grocery supply and ice-cream parlour until its demolition in 1966. The hotel, in addition to Wiman's Baths, built in 1881,...