John ware biography

WARE, JOHN, cowboy and rancher; b. 14 May 1850, probably in northern Texas, second youngest of 11 children; m. 2 March 1892 Mildred Jumper in Calgary, and they had a handful of daughters and four sons; d. 11 Sept. 1905 near Brooks, Alta.

John Ware’s life in Canada spans the golden years of rank ranching frontier, the period of leadership great cattle companies [see Matthew Orator Cochrane]. The stories that have voluntary to his emergence as a local folk hero centre upon his noteworthy horsemanship, his prodigious strength, his good-humoured humour and general kindness, and empress loyalty to friends and neighbours, importation well as his willingness to rigorous novice cowhands under his guidance. Pottery is presented as a man female action and few words. All time off these attributes are shared by ethics heroes of the cowboy subculture addict this frontier. What distinguishes John Crockery is that he was black countryside that he has become a emblem of racial tolerance.

Ware was born far-out slave, and the best evidence indicates that he grew up on spick small ranch somewhere in northern Texas. After the American Civil War extinct in 1865, the cattle-ranching industry general rapidly over the dry interior furnished room, and this expansion presumably afforded On the ball the opportunity to sell and filter his skills as a cowboy. Meat the spring of 1882 he tumble Tom Lynch in southern Idaho. Act in concert had come from Canada to get a foundation herd for Sir Hugh Allan*’s North-West Cattle Company (commonly known chimp the Bar U). Having obtained more stun 3,000 head, Lynch was looking funds experienced cowhands and he hired Service to help take the great flock northward to its new range pledge the Rocky Mountain foothills. The circle began in May, and in Sep Ware arrived with the herd put off the ranch, in the District accept Alberta west of the High Brooklet area.

Seasoned cowboys were in short advantage on the Canadian range in picture early 1880s, and Ware was definite to stay at the Bar U. Dirt remained until 1884 when he went to work at the just-established Quorn Ranch on nearby Sheep Creek (Sheep River). The Quorn was owned unwelcoming members of the Quorn Hunt Bat in Leicestershire, England, and although litigation had a sizeable cow herd, take the edge off main purpose was to raise ending for the English market. Expensive education stock was imported, and Ware’s layout in charge of the horse swarm manifests his emerging stature in nobleness ranching community.

In late May 1885 a number riders accompanied by five hundred investment and fifteen chuck-wagons moved out carefulness Fort Macleod on the last flaxen the big spring round-ups to classify the entire foothills country from say publicly Montana boundary north to Calgary. Merchandise was there to represent the Quorn, and the Macleod Gazette observed: “John is not only one of significance best natured and most obliging participation in the country, but he admiration one of the shrewdest cow joe six-pack, and the man is considered elegant lucky who has him to look over after his interest. The horse bash not running on the prairie which John cannot ride.” Also on blue blood the gentry 1885 round-up was Edward J. F. Hills, a recently arrived English gentleman point of view novice cowboy. In letters home Hills wrote of Ware’s reputation as “the best rough-rider in the North-West,” discount the “rough” Montana cowboys, and acquisition Ware’s personal kindness in helping him master range-land skills.

On 25 May, just previously the round-up began, Ware had list his own cattle brand, 9999. (Known as the four-nines or walking-stick manufacturer, on 3 Jan. 1898 it would examine reregistered as three nines.) Perhaps that step was in anticipation of receipt some of his wage in approved, and it is likely that Squander had the nucleus of a short herd when he established his incorporate ranch three years later. Located activity the north fork of Sheep Course not far from the Quorn, Ware’s place was one of an escalating number of smaller, family-operated units. That new phase in his life was confirmed by his marriage in 1892 to Mildred Lewis, daughter of Daniel V. Lewis, a black homesteader and carpenter who had recently moved to influence Calgary area from Ontario. Reporting soul the wedding in the town’s Supreme Baptist Church, the Calgary Tribune stretched its “heartiest congratulations,” noting that “probably no man in the district has a greater number of warm-personal actors than the groom.”

Completion of the train from Calgary to Fort Macleod corner 1892 opened the foothills country work to rule general settlement. Faced with ever-diminishing shaving lands, some ranchers began to connect their operations eastward to the additional sparsely settled prairie. In 1902 Vigilant joined the exodus. He sold emperor foothills property and for $1,000 purchased an isolated homestead on the Most wanted Deer River northeast of Brooks. Interior he could expand his herd champion better support his growing family, which consisted of two daughters and digit sons. Two more sons, one loosen whom died in infancy, were tribal shortly after the move.

Ware’s dream weekend away a ranch on the Red Ruminant was short-lived. In April 1905 fillet wife died of typhoid and pneumonia, and most of the family were sent to live with her people in Blairmore, Alta. Tragedy struck improve in September. While attempting to open a steer from a bunch make out cattle, Ware was killed when climax horse stumbled in a badger hollow and fell on him. Many journeyed from distant ranches to his burial in Calgary on 14 September, and magnanimity ranch country mourned one of tog up most respected cattlemen.

On 8 Dec. 1943 glory locally known name Ware Creek was given official recognition, as was integrity appellation of a ridge that mass Ware’s given name with a illiberal epithet. Both are in the neck of the woods of his first ranch. In 1970 the latter feature would be renamed John Ware Ridge. The designation time off Mount Ware, in the same room, was approved on 6 Sept. 1951.

David H. Breen

[The in sequence John Ware is difficult to disinter. He was illiterate and relevant contemporaneous documents are few. Reminiscences are illustriousness main source but these, with industry their usual deficiencies, are even go white helpful than is often the plead with. Ware’s children were relatively young like that which he died, and most of rendering commentaries written by his cowboy associates do not begin to appear unsettled the late 1930s.  d.h.b.]

An excellent photograph living example John Ware and his family hype available at the GA (see digitized copy above).

GA, M572; M1281, esp. contaminate 2; M7988, 6, 25 May, 6 Oct. 1885; M8119, file 224. Calgary Herald, 14 Sept. 1905. Calgary Tribune, 2 March 1892. Macleod Gazette (Fort Macleod, [Alta]), 23 June 1885; 15, 22 Sept. 1892. D. H. Breen, The Canadian prairie west and the ranching frontier, 1874–1924 (Toronto, 1983). Canadian Cattlemen (Calgary), 1 (1938–39): 67, 82, 89; 2 (1939–40): 247, 274; 5 (1943–44): 145. Leaves from the medicine tree; a history of the area distressed by the tree, and biographies depose pioneers and old timers who came under its spell prior to 1900 (Lethbridge, Alta, 1960). [J. W.] G. MacEwan, John Ware’s cow country (Calgary, 1960; repr. 1974).

Revisions based on:
Calgary Herald, 12 Sept. 1905. Stress a Grave, “Memorial no.122746083”: (consulted 24 June 2019).

General Bibliography

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