BlockBefore
Decorative drawing: a small American settlement seen from a low hill. Not a photograph of this place.

Ware, Massachusetts

30 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1887 and the latest in 1985. It stands in Ware town. It lies in ZIP code area 01082. The Survey maps it on the Ware quadrangle. 6,266 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 423 feet above sea level.

Ware within Hampshire County

Population over time

3 figures

Ware grew from 6,174 to 6,266 between 2000 and 2020. These are the recorded population figures Wikidata holds for this place, reached through the Geographic Names Information System number this page is keyed on rather than by name, so they belong to this place and not to another of the same name. Most are census counts, but not all are: an early figure may be a founding or settlement estimate. The change column is computed, and is left blank where more than 20 years separate a figure from the one before it, because a gap that long is not a change between two counts.

YearPeople Change
20006,174
20106,170-4 (-0%)
20206,266+96 (+2%)

Then and now

1887 to 1985

The same ground, surveyed 98 years apart. Drag the handle to wipe between them. Both sheets are United States Geological Survey originals; neither has been altered.

Topographic sheet of Ware, surveyed 1985
Topographic sheet of Ware, surveyed 1887

Topographic sheets covering this place

30 sheets

Matched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.

In the county-history sources

6,162 words on this township

Geology of Old Hampshire County, Massachusetts : Comprising Franklin, Hampshire, and Hampden Counties, published 1898 names this settlement in its chapter on Ware Town. These are the passages that mention it, exactly as the scans read.

The eastern band of schists leaves the county at the south line of Orange, and, traversing Worcester County for a long distance, reenters the area of the map in Ware and crosses Palmer and Monson. The fourfold division of the schists, which has been persistent over so large an area, and which seems to be somewhat less distinct at the beginning of this band in Orange, here fails entirely. It is reduced to a twofold division of amphibolites below, resting directly upon the Monson gneiss, and a great volume of fibrolitic mica-schists, the lower portion of which may represent the whetstone-schist, but in which no persistent lithological distinctions can be established.

Passage source: Geology of Old Hampshire County, Massachusetts : Comprising Franklin, Hampshire, and Hampden Counties, published 1898.

Mica-schist from Ware. In the bluff near the contact of mica-schist on hornblende-schist, 175 rods southwest of B. Bond's house, is seen a black, fine-grained schist with wavy, shining lamination surface, which may almost be called an argillite, with rarely deep-red garnets and large porphyi-itic spots of white feldspar.

Passage source: Geology of Old Hampshire County, Massachusetts : Comprising Franklin, Hampshire, and Hampden Counties, published 1898.

Across this town the western band of amphibolite is broad and well marked; it commences where the town line runs north nearly to the Ware River, and continues south to Fentonville, being well exposed west of E. Shorley's in the middle of its length. The eastern band is wanting.

Passage source: Geology of Old Hampshire County, Massachusetts : Comprising Franklin, Hampshire, and Hampden Counties, published 1898.

Machine-read from a century-old scan, so expect the errors a machine makes: misspelled names, dropped words, stray characters.

Read the whole chapter on Ware Town - it names this place 5 more 5 times.

Fires near this place

34 since 2015

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 34 fires within 5 miles of Ware between 2015 and 2020, burning about 17 acres in total. 7 started naturally. None was recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause Fires
Equipment and vehicle use10
Missing data/not specified/undetermined9
Natural7
Recreation and ceremony4
Debris and open burning3
Smoking1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
10 September 2016Equipment and vehicle useunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
9 July 2020Debris and open burningunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
5 June 2015Naturalunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
27 June 2020Debris and open burningunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
9 May 2015Equipment and vehicle useunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
4 May 2015Equipment and vehicle use2.0 acresMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
31 May 2020Recreation and ceremonyunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named
27 May 2015Recreation and ceremonyunder an acreMassachusetts Bureau of Forest Fire Controlnot named

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Hampshire County

Specimens collected near this place

12 of 419 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. Museums hold 419 specimens collected within 10 miles of Ware between 1857 and 1975: 225 Animalia, 123 Plantae, 70 Fungi, 1 Chromista. 12 distinct Species records are shown. Collected by A. C. Gibson, A. Lavallee, A. P. Chute and others. Each is a physical object with a catalogue number, and each entry opens the museum's record. This is what was collected and kept, not a survey of what lives here - nothing can be concluded from a species being absent.

Image SpeciesYear Collected by Where, as recorded
A photograph of the species Krigia virginica, not of this specimenKrigia virginica (L.) Willd.1857not recorded
A photograph of the species Carex cephalophora, not of this specimenCarex cephalophora Muhl. ex Willd.1858J. Blake
A photograph of the species Carex vestita, not of this specimenCarex vestita Willd.1858J. BlakeWare
A photograph of the species Castilleja coccinea, not of this specimenCastilleja coccinea (L.) Spreng.1858A. P. Chute
A photograph of the species Celastrus scandens, not of this specimenCelastrus scandens L.1858s.coll.
A photograph of the species Ranunculus flabellaris, not of this specimenRanunculus flabellaris Raf.1858A. P. Chute
Trifolium agrarium L.1858not recorded
A photograph of the species Zizia aurea, not of this specimenZizia aurea (L.) W.D.J.Koch1859A. P. Chute
A photograph of the species Carex tribuloides, not of this specimenCarex tribuloides Wahlenb.1870H. G. JesupBelchertown
A photograph of the species Nymphoides lacunosa, not of this specimenNymphoides lacunosa (Vent.) Kuntze1870H. G. JesupBelchertown
A photograph of the species Ilex laevigata, not of this specimenIlex laevigata (Pursh) A.Gray1872H. G. Jesup
A photograph of the species Menyanthes trifoliata, not of this specimenMenyanthes trifoliata L.1872H. G. Jesup

All 419 specimens within 10 miles, at the Global Biodiversity Information Facility.

Mines and quarries near this place

6 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 6 workings within 5 miles of Ware: 4 past producers, 1 producer, 1 plant. 2 still produce. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
A Giard and SonsSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast ProducerSedimentary
B and C Gravel CompanySand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Cemetery Road PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Tobias PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Ware PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Ware Pit & PlantSand and Gravel, ConstructionPlant

Every working recorded in Hampshire County

Storms near this place

28 since 1995

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Ware in 28 storm reports between 1995 and 2025: 18 thunderstorm wind, 4 flood, 3 hail, 2 lightning. The reports record 3 injuries. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
August 2013LightningWare3 hurt, $1,000Lightning struck the medical office building on the campus of Baystate Mary Lane Hospital in Ware, blowing out the building's electrical panel. In addition, three people who were on the telephone at the time of the strike reported feeling numbness and a tingling in their arms. All three walked over to the hospital to be checked out and were fine.
July 2008Flash FloodWare$210,000In Amherst, a newly paved driveway washed out onto Bay Road. There was substantial damage on the University of Massachusetts-Amherst campus. In the Morrill Science Center IV, a transformer blew up when one foot of water flooded the room where it is housed. Two to six feet of water flooded portions of the Murray D. Lincoln campus center damaging meeting rooms, offices, and one escalator. Finally, in the Boyden Gymnasium, floodwaters caused a concrete gym floor to heave. In Ware, Anderson Road was flooded out, closing the road.
July 2010LightningWare$100,000A lightning strike ignited an attic and chimney fire at a house on Pinecrest Circle in Ware.
May 2010Thunderstorm WindWare$25,000Numerous trees and wires were downed in Ware, including along Gilbertville and Campbell Roads. Six other roads were also closed due to the downed trees and wires.
May 2025Thunderstorm WindWest Ware$10,000In Ware, power lines was down on cars.
July 2008Thunderstorm WindWare$8,000Trees and wires on Route 9 and North and Prospect Streets were downed by thunderstorm winds. A telephone pole also was downed by these winds.
August 2009Thunderstorm WindWare$7,500A utility pole on Brimfield Road was downed by thunderstorm winds.
May 2025Thunderstorm WindWare$5,000In Ware, a roof collapsed on Cherry St.
August 2016FloodWare$5,000A car was stuck in floodwaters on Pleasant Street.
May 2015Thunderstorm WindWare$5,000A large tree on Ware Brook Drive was downed by thunderstorm winds.
July 2012Thunderstorm WindWare$5,000A tree on Route 32 was downed by thunderstorm winds.
July 2006Thunderstorm WindWare$5,000no account filed
July 2024Thunderstorm WindWare$2,000In Ware, trees and wires were down on West Warren Rd, Maple St, and South St.
August 2020Thunderstorm WindWest Ware$1,800In Ware, trees and wires were down on Belchertown Rd and a tree was down on Beaver Rd.
July 2020Thunderstorm WindWare$500In Ware, several large tree branches were downed.
July 2019FloodWare-Flooding was reported on Spring Street in Ware.
January 2018FloodWare-At 1018 AM EST, an amateur radio operator reported flooding related to an ice jam on the Ware River in Ware. The Ware Airport was flooded, and a portion of Church Street was closed.
February 2016Thunderstorm WindWare-An amateur radio operator recorded a wind gust of 65 mph on their home weather station in Ware. No damage was reported.
July 2013Thunderstorm WindWare-An aluminum dock on Beaver Lake was overturned by thunderstorm winds.
September 2011FloodWest Ware-One lane of Route 9, starting at the Belchertown line, was closed due to flooding. In addition, several small streams and rivers went into flood during this time. No damage was reported with this flooding. These rivers included: the West branch of the Westfield River at Huntington, the Mill River, and the Connecticut River at Northampton.
June 2007Thunderstorm WindWare-Trees and wires down on Cottage Street, Palmer Road, High Street, and Bridge Street.
June 2007Thunderstorm WindWare-Large trees down on Shoreline Drive.
July 2007Thunderstorm WindWare-Trees and wires downed.
August 2008HailWare-no account filed
July 2001HailWare-no account filed
July 1997Thunderstorm WindWare-no account filed
August 1995HailWare-no account filed
August 1995Thunderstorm WindWare-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Hampshire County

Nearest settlements

The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.

Map PlaceDistance Sheets
Ware Center1.8 miles32
Gibbs Crossing3.0 miles35
West Ware4.9 miles32
Cold Spring6.2 miles35
Enfield (historical)6.3 miles32
Bardwell7.4 miles35
South Quabbin Villa7.4 miles32
Belchertown8.6 miles32

Elsewhere

Matched on this settlement's Geographic Names Information System number rather than its name, so it cannot be a different place of the same name in another state.

Wikipedia article on WareAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q7969240The structured record the population and elevation above come from. Public domain (CC0).

Provenance

This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 609762. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.

Specimens. Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF), https://www.gbif.org/. Only records licensed CC0 or CC BY are used. Records licensed CC BY-NC are excluded because this site carries advertising. Images are checked individually and any whose licence is non-commercial, no-derivatives or unreadable is refused.

Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.