The Great Bed of Ware links a specific date with a cautious historical interpretation: it is dated to around 1590, during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, and was probably made as a tourist attraction for Ware’s inns. Together with medieval architecture, reminders of the town’s history and riverside scenery, it offers a range of themes for your stay in Ware.
Buildings and Town History
The Ware Museum’s subjects range from archaeology and geology to photography, social history, industrial history and cultural history. Admission is free; check the latest visitor information before your trip. If you are interested in the town’s development, the museum brings several historical subjects together under one roof.
Place House Hall is a medieval manor house in the centre of Ware. It stands in a small walled courtyard and is listed as a Grade I building. The Church of St Mary offers a different architectural trace of the past: its chancel and transepts date from the 13th century. Ware Priory is a restored riverside building. Together, these buildings illustrate different aspects of the area’s architectural heritage, from the manor house and church to a restored building by the river.
Local industrial history has its own landmark, too: the Maltmaker Statue was erected in 2000 to recognise the importance of malting in the town’s history. Ware’s riverside gazebos, also known as summerhouses, were built in the 18th century. Innkeepers and other landowners erected them along the busy High Street. The Great Bed, meanwhile, points to an earlier period with its presumed date of around 1590. Its likely purpose for the inns should explicitly be understood as a supposition.
Another connection to literary history leads to John Scott, an 18th-century Quaker poet. Amwell House was his home from around 1750 until his death. He built Scott’s Grotto in Ware in the 1760s; the site is listed Grade I. The two places represent different aspects of his life, without implying anything about present-day visitor access.
Water Meadows and Paths along the River Lee
King’s Meads in Ware is one of the largest water meadows in Hertfordshire. Nearby is Amwell Nature Reserve, with reedbeds, grassland, woodland and Great Hardmead Lake. The nearby reserve can be reached via the riverside path from Ware. This makes it possible to explore the town’s water meadows and the reserve’s diverse habitats as distinct nature destinations.
The Lee Valley Regional Park stretches along the River Lee for 26 miles, from Ware in Hertfordshire to East India Dock Basin on the Thames. Activities available in the park include cycling. These distances describe a regional landscape; cycling is listed as a park activity. Amwell Nature Reserve offers a specific nature destination nearby in Ware.
The seasonal Ware & Hertford Waterbus offers another way to experience the river landscape. It runs between Ware and Hertford through the River Lee’s picturesque floodplains. The route passes through two original locks that are still in operation. The Waterbus is a scheduled service; the journey takes approximately 75 to 90 minutes each way. Check the operating season and timetable before your trip.
Planning Your Trip
Ware has frequent train services between London Liverpool Street and Hertford East. Check the timetable for your travel date if you plan to arrive by train. For the Waterbus, the seasonal service and approximate journey time are relevant: a trip can be a standalone activity, while the museum, buildings and town history offer a different focus. You can plan your time around the subjects that interest you most, without treating regional nature destinations as if they were buildings in the town.
Discover more destinations: Ardeley, Hitchin, Hertford, Broxbourne, Wigginton, Hailey, Tewin, Meriden.
For the regional travel overview: Hertfordshire.
