Arthur Yates
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
The History of Arthur Yates
Arthur Yates was born in Darlington, Durham, England, he was born to parents William J. and Elizabeth Yates, and emigrated from the Liverpool port to the Montreal port around 1892 . He arrived in Canada at approximately seven years old, and it is safe to speculate he stayed in Montreal to attend McGill in 1909 when he was the only Rhode Scholar for that year. He studied English and earned his teaching degree. He arrived at Victoria High School in 1912 when the Cornerstone for the current building was laid, and served as an English teacher until March 1917.
Master Yates is described as the one of the most energetic and well-liked teachers of the school. He devoted much of his time to the Matric plays. He was also connected to other activities around the school including coaching athletics and the Beta Delta that in which he had taken a keen interest. He assisted with The Camosun where for some time he had the position as a literary advisor. He earned the respect of both the faculty and the students as a whole.
Even after resigning from his teaching post, and enlisting in the Canadian Expeditionary Force in March 1916, Yates was very involved in The Camosun in his years of service. He sent few documents that were published in the Camosun. A student of Victoria High School received a letter from the former teacher, describing what his time was like in Ypres, and acknowledged its historical impact for future generations when he wrote, “Some fate must have determined it that my first experience of the war area should have been gained in one of the most famous and historical sections of the war zone, viz, the Ypres sector.” In the letter, he continues on in the two and a half page letter to divulge that the living conditions in the trenches were not as glamorous as they were portrayed. In his letter, it is clear that his knowledge and comprehension of what is going on around him is perceptive, and he understands many points of view evident in the following excerpt: “I don’t think that you who are almost citizens of Canada can have too much impressed upon you the misery and agony men have suffered in this part of the globe to make the world, not only safe, but hopeful for democracy.”
Unlike many of these other soldiers that you will read about, Arthur Yates survived and returned home to his wife Dorothy. Not long after the war in 1920, he and his wife Dorothy as well as their son Allen H Yates were living in Oakland, California with her parents. Six years later, he became a naturalized US Citizen residing in Boston, Massachusetts with his second wife, Charlotte.
- by Krysteena White
Master Yates is described as the one of the most energetic and well-liked teachers of the school. He devoted much of his time to the Matric plays. He was also connected to other activities around the school including coaching athletics and the Beta Delta that in which he had taken a keen interest. He assisted with The Camosun where for some time he had the position as a literary advisor. He earned the respect of both the faculty and the students as a whole.
Even after resigning from his teaching post, and enlisting in the Canadian Expeditionary Force in March 1916, Yates was very involved in The Camosun in his years of service. He sent few documents that were published in the Camosun. A student of Victoria High School received a letter from the former teacher, describing what his time was like in Ypres, and acknowledged its historical impact for future generations when he wrote, “Some fate must have determined it that my first experience of the war area should have been gained in one of the most famous and historical sections of the war zone, viz, the Ypres sector.” In the letter, he continues on in the two and a half page letter to divulge that the living conditions in the trenches were not as glamorous as they were portrayed. In his letter, it is clear that his knowledge and comprehension of what is going on around him is perceptive, and he understands many points of view evident in the following excerpt: “I don’t think that you who are almost citizens of Canada can have too much impressed upon you the misery and agony men have suffered in this part of the globe to make the world, not only safe, but hopeful for democracy.”
Unlike many of these other soldiers that you will read about, Arthur Yates survived and returned home to his wife Dorothy. Not long after the war in 1920, he and his wife Dorothy as well as their son Allen H Yates were living in Oakland, California with her parents. Six years later, he became a naturalized US Citizen residing in Boston, Massachusetts with his second wife, Charlotte.
- by Krysteena White
The letter below is historical fiction, based on details uncovered about Arthur Yates.
- created by Krysteena White.