Mildred Lewis Ware: A Brave Homesteader

• Mildred Lewis Ware was the brave and gentle wife of the famous cowboy John Ware. She and her family worked hard, establishing the work ethic often paired with Alberta ranchers. 

• Mildred was born in 1871 in Toronto. Her father was a skilled carpenter, and made his living that way in Toronto and after the family moved to Alberta. When Mildred was nineteen, she and her family climbed aboard the Canadian Pacific Railway and soon found themselves in Alberta. 

• Mildred soon found herself under the attention of John Ware, a rugged cowboy from South Carolina. John and Mildred didn’t have much in common; Mildred and her family were educated, attended church, and loved music, even to the point of lugging a piano all the way from Ontario.  

• Despite all their differences, the couple was married on February 29, 1892, in Calgary. Over the next thirteen years, John and Mildred lived on John’s ranch land, homesteading in the middle of the desolate prairie.  

• In 1893, Janet Ware was born and was soon followed by five other siblings: Robert, William, Mildred Jane, Arthur and Daniel. Mildred taught her children at home early on, until they were old enough to attend school in Baltimore, where Mildred’s parents lived.  

• After their house was washed away by a flood, the family had to work hard and build a new house. After the birth of their youngest son, Mildred found herself rather weak from the difficult birth and the strenuous work a ranch required.  

• In 1905, little Daniel died, just before his third birthday, and Mildred’s health was failing too. She was soon admitted to a hospital in Calgary, and at the end of March, she passed after a battle with pneumonia.  

• Mildred Lewis Ware was a strong woman, willing to work hard and learn new ways for the sake of her family, and despite her early death, she had quite the impact just from her resilient spirit and strong mind. 

Bibliography 

John Ware. The Canadians, Hundey, Ian. Markham, Ontario, 2006. Print.