The Life of John Ware
A true legend of Western Canada
The story of John Ware begins around 1845 when he was born into slavery. As for where he was born, the sources vary between South Carolina and Tennessee.
At some point, he was growing up on a ranch in Northern Texas. When the Civil War ended in the United States, the ranching industry expanded in Texas and Ware took advantage of the opportunities it presented to him.
In 1882, he was hired to bring cattle from Texas to Canada, he brought 3,000 cattle into Canada for the North-West Cattle Company. His destination would be the Bar U Ranch, now a National Historic Site.
After driving the cattle north, Ware found that he enjoyed the landscape and people of Canada. He chose to remain in the area. Since there were few experienced cowboys in the area, he immediately became a sought-after ranch hand.
In May 1885, Ware, along with 100 cowboys, 500 horses and 15 chuckwagons began the journey from Fort Macleod in one of the last spring round-ups in the foothills of present-day Alberta. The Montreal Gazette wrote of Ware during the journey,
“John is not only one of the best natured and most obliging fellows in the country, but he is one of the shrewdest cow men, and the man is considered pretty lucky who has him to look after his interest. The horse is not running on the prairie which John cannot ride.”
That same year, Ware created his own cattle brand, which was 9999.
In 1887, he established his own ranch near Millarville, Alberta.
He became known for his skills as a cowboy and horseman. There are some claims that he helped popularize steer wrestling, which became a staple event of the Calgary Stampede.
He and his wife Mildred eventually had five children. In 1900, they moved to Duchess, Alberta. Unfortunately, their home was destroyed in a flood in 1902.
Ware rebuilt the home on higher ground along what is now called Ware Creek.
In 1905, Mildred died of pneumonia. A few months later, John Ware was killed when his horse tripped in a badger hole. John was crushed by the horse and his neck was broken in the fall.
His funeral was one of the largest ever held in Calgary to that point.
In his life and afterwards, John Ware was one of the most respected figures of the history of the Alberta frontier.
Many places are named for him including the John Ware Ridge, Mount Ware, Ware Creek and John Ware Junior High School in Calgary.
In 2012, Canada Post issued a stamp about him.
Cheryl Foggo created a fantastic NFB documentary about John Ware called John Ware Reclaimed. Watch it here:
There is also Howdy, I'm John Ware, written by Ayesha Clough and illustrated by Hugh Rockwood. You can find it here:
In 2022, he was named as a person of National Historic Significance.
Sources: