(c) Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association, Deerfield MA. All rights reserved. Contact us for information about using this image.
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This map shows the small industrial town of Ware in 1873. Located in the southeast corner of Hampshire County, Ware was established as a district in 1761 and a town in 1775. In the decades before the Civil War, the town saw considerable industrial development along theWare river (See "Ware PO" on the map). The primary industries produced cotton and woolen goods. In 1865 a colony of skilled knitters was recruited from Knottingham England to produce stockings. As in so many other New England communities, transportation went hand-in-hand with industrial development. In 1870 the Ware River Railroad was constructed, partially with public funds from the town. It was soon became a branch of the private Boston and Maine Railroad.