Born in Newark, New Jersey, Ward completed preparatory studies.
He served as captain and major in the state militia during the Whiskey Rebellion in 1794.
Ward was elected one of the judges of the Essex County Court in 1804 and reelected in 1809.
[2] Ward purchased a number of properties in Otsego and St. Lawrence counties in New York from James Fenimore Cooper.
[3] The former Ward estate in Newark is the site of St. Patrick's Pro-Cathedral.