Yukon Poems of Robert W. Service

by Robert W. Service

Five of Robert W. Service's classic poems of the Yukon Gold Rush of 1898: The Shooting of Dan McGrew; The Law of the Yukon; The Cremation of Sam McGee; Te Spell of the Yukon; The Song of the Wage-Slave.

Genres: Poetry

26 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1967

About the author

This author is the the British-Canadian writer of Yukon poetry. For the British historian of modern Russia, see Robert Service.

Robert William Service was born into a Scottish family while they were living in Preston, England. He was schooled in Scotland, attending Hillhead High School in Glasgow. He moved to Canada at the age of 21 when he gave up his job working in a Glasgow bank, and traveled to Vancouver Island, British Columbia with his Buffalo Bill outfit and dreams of becoming a cowboy.

He drifted around western North America, taking and quitting a series of jobs. Hired by the Canadian Bank of Commerce, he worked in a number of its branches before being posted to the branch in Whitehorse (not Dawson) in the Yukon Territory in 1904, six years after the Klondike Gold Rush. Inspired by the vast beauty of the Yukon wilderness, Service began writing poetry about the things he saw.

Conversations with locals led him to write about things he hadn't seen, many of which hadn't actually happened, as well. He did not set foot in Dawson City until 1908, arriving in the Klondike ten years after the Gold Rush, but his renown as a writer was already established.

For more information, please see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_W._Service.

Reviews

[Adrienne Blaine · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Gold Rush was a terrible experience for most except for the Levi Strausses and the Trumps (yes that Trump) of this world. These poems capture that darkness while still romanticizing the overall boom and bust. The Alaskan Yukon land is often compared to a cruel mother or mistress who both wants you to be a man and take what’s yours (yikes) but also to fear and respect her. If you’re curious about the mythos of the Gold Rush or the American Dream as Manifest Destiny out in the West, this is propaganda prime for examining.

It’s also worth reading about Robert W. Service and his cosplaying as a frontiersman in his youth and later, once he became famous as a writer, going out in blue collar costumes at night and wearing finery during the day. The man even acted in Hollywood films with Marlene Dietrich. All good to know.

[Emily Kidd]

I purchased this booklet on our Alaskan cruise after our tour guide in Skagway recited "The Cremation of Sam McGee" as he drove our bus into Canada.

[Helen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book includes a nice biography of Robert Service. It then has five of his best poems about the Yukon. I loved them all! Recommended for lovers of poetry, history, or the Frozen North.