Idaho Developer and State Legislator Capt. John E. Yates [otd 02/04]

Idaho rancher and Boise banker and developer John E. Yates was born February 4, 1845 in Bristol, Maine, a coastal town about forty miles northeast of Portland. His father disappeared on a sea voyage when John was four years old, a fate that had overtaken several of John’s forebears and relatives. Despite that, Yates went to sea himself when he was sixteen. Ten years of experience gained him promotion to ship’s captain and the wherewithal to invest in the ships he commanded. 

Captain Yates. [French]

By 1873 he owned a share of the schooner Beckie E. Yates. Three years later, he was noted as part owner and captain of a barkentine that had just been launched. He continued at sea until about 1886, on routes around the Caribbean. Then, for reasons he never explained, he settled in a small town near DeKalb, Illinois, and married a local girl there.

In 1891, Yates began investing in Idaho livestock and in development projects in Boise. Five years later, he sold an estate in Bristol (he called it a “summer home”) and two years after that moved his family to Boise. By that time, he seems to have had “extensive sheep interests,” which were kept on range west of Payette Lake.

Captain Yates also owned considerable real estate in and around Boise. That included “one of the most attractive homes” on the outskirts of the city, and a fruit farm.

In the late summer of 1900, he helped organize the new Bank of Commerce. Other owners included such “movers and shakers” as Timothy Regan [blog, November 14], Tom Davis [blog, January 2], and Robert Noble [blog, October 19].

Six years later, after a broad reorganization, Yates became President of the bank. Then, in 1909, the firm was merged into the Idaho Trust & Savings Bank. The new company took over the former Bank of Commerce building, while Yates became owner of the structure the Idaho Trust had occupied. He was also named a Director of the “new” bank. The “Yates Building” became a prime business location in downtown Boise.

A year after the merger, Captain Yates saw an opportunity and broke ground for a new hotel just a block from the train depot at Front and Tenth streets. The “Hotel Bristol” – named for the Captain’s home town – formally opened in February 1911. The four-story structure contained around a hundred guest rooms, plus several lounges and sample rooms (spaces where salesmen could display their wares to business customers). It remained a prime location for rail travelers until a new train depot was built on the Boise Bench in 1925.

Hotel Bristol. Vintage postcard.

Yates also took an active role in the political activities of his new home. Starting in 1899, he served two years on the Boise City Council. In 1901, he was elected for a term in the Idaho House of Representatives. He became a member of the state Senate in 1911. During that term, he was chairman of the Committee on Banks and Banking.

For his terms in the House and Senate, Yates was a member of the Republican Party. However, in 1912 he ran for the office of State Treasurer on the Progressive or “Bull Moose” Party ticket. That attempt was not successful. Still, besides tending to his many business interests, Yates took a leading role in efforts to strengthen the Progressive Party in Idaho.

Captain John Yates survived a series of minor heart attacks in early 1914 but finally suffered a fatal one in March.
                                                                                 

References: [French], [Hawley]

“[John Yates News],” Whig & Courier, Bangor, Maine; Globe, Boston, Massachusetts; Idaho Statesman, Boise (October 1873 – March 1914).

Ben Ysursa, Idaho Blue Book, 2003-2004, The Caxton Printers, Caldwell, Idaho (2003).