On November 24, 1872, the Mary Ward ran aground on a shoal 4 kilometres off Northwinds Beach in Craigleith, near Collingwood in Georgian Bay, Ontario. That fateful night a dramatic story unfolded, of mystery, intrigue, heroism, and human failing in a disaster that left 8 people dead and the ship permanently entombed in the graveyard of the reef.
The ship had been recently purchased by businessmen in Owen Sound to carry salt, coal and hardware from Sarnia to Collingwood. In Tobermory, passengers were picked up from the Cumberland, whose captain had decided it was too late to brave the waters of Lake Superior as originally planned.
The waters were calm and there was warm south west breeze when she ran aground in the early evening. Around midnight, a fierce storm blew up and panic set in.