James J. Ward

File:James J. Ward, 1910.jpg

James J. Ward (born Jens P. Wilson; 1886 in Denmark – January 7, 1923)[https://web.archive.org/web/20221007155612/http://collections.mnhs.org/MNHistoryMagazine/articles/54/v54i08p330-341.pdf Shooting Star: Aviator Jimmie Ward of Crookston] by Steven R. Hoffbeck (Wayback retrieval) was a pioneer aviator who made one of the earliest attempts at transcontinental flight. He was also known as Jimmie Ward.

He flew a Curtiss Model D pusher biplane named the "Hearst Pathfinder". On September 13, 1911 he attempted to win the William Randolph Hearst Prize flying from Governors Island in New York to California.{{cite news |title=Flier, Seeking to Reach San Francisco, Lands at Calicoon Late in the Afternoon |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1911/09/15/archives/ward-138-miles-nearer-pacific-flier-seeking-to-reach-san-francisco.html |quote=James J. Ward, who left New York for San Francisco Wednesday, flying for the W.R. Hearst $50,000 prize for a transcontinental flight, reached Callicoon, N.Y., a few miles from here, at 4:35 o'clock this afternoon. He covered 59 1-10 miles in 57 minutes, having left Middletown, N.Y., at 3:38 o'clock. |work=New York Times |date= September 15, 1911|access-date=2010-11-25 }} He withdrew from the race on September 22, 1911 after his aircraft's engine failed and he crashed in Addison, New York.{{cite news |title=Ward Quits Coast Flight. Comes to Grief at Addison |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1911/09/23/archives/ward-quits-coast-flight-comes-to-grief-at-addison-rodgers-at-elmira.html |work=New York Times |date=September 23, 1911 |access-date=2010-11-26 }}

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