c. 1925; the Thousand Islander was the third of three popular steamers owned by the Chatham Navigation Company that made regular runs between Chatham, Ontario and Detroit, Michigan via the Thames River; the City of Chatham steamer made its maiden voyage on May 24, 1889 and was sold in 1912; it was replaced by the larger Ossifrage in 1912 which was active until 1920; the Ossifgage was replaced by the Thousand Islander in 1920, but by then, car travel was becoming more popular and fewer were travelling by boat; steamer travel between the two cities ended in the 1920s.