Robert William Service is remembered as one of the best poets and writers because he wrote some of the most well-known works in literature. Since he was young, he had a strong desire to read and write, which helped him get where he is today. In his early years, reading Robert Browning, Lord Alfred Tennyson, and John Keats’s works gave him ideas for his own writing. Later, Rudyard Kipling and Robert Louis Stevenson’s works influenced much of his style. Even though he had many jobs and lived as a cowboy, he still wanted to write. Instead, the passion grew and grew until it led to the publication of his first book, “Songs of a Sourdough.” Service’s reputation as a poet grew by miles because of how well the book was received. After that, Service wrote a series of very well-liked books that were based on the legends and stories of men and their lives. He even made a big difference in the world of thriller novels by writing books that did very well.
Early years and childhood
Robert Service had ten children, and Robert William Service was the oldest. He was born in Preston, Lancashire, England. His father was born in Kilwinning, Scotland, and worked as a banker.
When Service was five years old, he moved to Kilwinning, Scotland, to live with his grandfather and two aunts who were never married. On his sixth birthday, he wrote what was basically a grace for the first time.
When he was nine years old, his parents moved to Glasglow, which is in Scotland. He did well in school and went to some of the best schools in Glasglow. He finished high school at Hillhead High School in Glasgow.
During his school years, he became interested in books and poetry, which stayed with him for the rest of his life.
Reading gave him a taste of fun and adventure and made him want to go out and see the world to satisfy his wants and questions.
He had a lot of different jobs. At first, he worked at a shipping office that closed soon after. Later, he followed his dad to a Commercial Bank of Scotland branch in the suburbs.
Since he didn’t have a lot of work to do at the bank, he often took the time to read Robert Browning, Lord Alfred Tennyson, and John Keats. He also started writing for money, and his verses were reportedly being sold by that time.
Because he loved poetry and wanted to learn more about it, he quickly got a spot in an English Literature class at the University of Glasgow. Even though he was the smartest student in the class, his professors didn’t like how brave and bold he was. Because of this, he dropped out of college after a year.
Robert Service’s Career
In 1895, he set sail for Western Canada to become a cowboy. He had wanted to learn more about himself and find out who he really was for a long time. On his trip to Montreal, he only had a suitcase with clothes, a letter of recommendation from a bank, and some savings.
He took a train from Montreal to Vancouver Island when he got there. There, he made his dream of becoming a cowboy come true. For the experience, we had to work on the ranch and meet a lot of interesting people.
He traveled from California to British Columbia on his way to North America. During the whole trip, he worked at different jobs.
He worked as a store clerk in Cowichan Bay, British Columbia, in 1899. By July 1900, six of his poems were published in the Victoria Daily Colonist because he loved writing them.
When people liked the poems he had printed, it made him want to write more. Over the next two years, the Colonist published more of his works, such as “Music in the Bush” and “The Little Old Log Cabin.”
In 1903, he got a job at the Canadian Bank of Commerce thanks to a letter of recommendation from the Commercial Bank of Scotland. He started working at the bank branch in Victoria, British Columbia.
He worked at a bank and was moved to a branch in Kamloops, which is in the middle of British Columbia. In 1904, he was sent to the Whitehorse branch in the Yukon, which was a new town at the time.
Even though he worked at a bank, he kept writing poetry. He wrote the poems “The Shooting of Dan McGrew” and “The Cremation of Sam McGee” during this time. ’
By that time, he had written enough poems to make a book of them. He got together all of his works and sent them to his father in Toronto.
Songs of a Sourdough was the name of a collection of his works that became a huge hit. The galley proofs sold 1700 copies of the book before it was even published, and the book was also in high demand. Even before it came out, the book had already been printed seven times.
Because “Songs of a Sourdough” was such a big hit, it was printed in New York, Philadelphia, and London. He made $100,000 from the book.
By 1908, he had worked at the bank for three years, which gave him the right to a three-month paid vacation. This was a common practice for bank workers in the Yukon.
When he went back to work, he was sent to Dawson, where he met people who had lived through the Gold Rush. He spent a lot of time just listening to what the men had to say. He used these memories to write his second book, “Ballads of a Cheechako,” which came out in 1908. It was a huge hit, just like its predecessor.
In 1909, he gave his official notice to leave the bank. From then on, he started writing “The Trail of ’98,” which was his first book. A New York publisher put out the book, and it became a best seller right away.
He traveled to Paris, the French Riviera, and Hollywood after the success of his books gave him a lot of money. In 1912, he went back to Dawson City to write “Rhymes of a Rolling Stone,” his third book of poetry.
After he left Dawson City in 1912, he worked for the Toronto Star as a correspondent. He moved to Paris the next year. Even though he couldn’t join the army because he had varicose veins, he worked as a war correspondent, a stretcher-bearer, and an ambulance driver.
In 1916, he wrote a poem called “Rhymes of a Red Cross Man.” It was meant to honor the men who died in World War I. “Ballads of a Bohemian,” his next work, came out five years later.
He wrote thrillers like “The Poisoned Paradise,” “A Romance of Monte Carlo,” and “The Roughneck: A Tale of Tahiti” in the years that followed. In the 1930s, a book called “Ballad of Lenin’s Tomb” came out.
During World War II, he and his family moved to California. In the movie “The Spoilers,” which came out in 1942, he played himself along with Marlene Dietrich, John Wayne, and Randolph Scott. Between 1949 and 1955, he put out six books of poetry. He also wrote an autobiography called “Ploughman of the Moon” and “Harper of Heaven.”
Awards & Achievements
He got three medals for his work and efforts during the war: the 1914-1915 Star, the British War Medal, and the Victory Medal.
Personal History and Legacies
While he was living in Yukon, he met Constance MacLean at a dance in Duncan, British Columbia. But MacLean was looking for a partner who was smart and had money, so she didn’t pay attention to how he felt.
When he did well in school, he promised Constance MacLean again that he loved her. Even though it is said that she agreed to get engaged to him, not much is known about what happened between them that led to her marrying Leroy Grant.
After that, in 1913, he married a French woman named Germaine Bourgeois. The couple lived in the French region of Brittany in Lancieux, Côtes-d’Armor.
On September 11, 1958, he took his last breath. At the time, he was 84 years old.
Several schools, colleges, pubs, and streets are named after him. Also, in 1976, the Canadian postal service made a stamp in his honor to honor his work.
Estimated Net worth
Robert is one of the wealthiest poets and is on the list of the most well-known poets. Based on what we found on Wikipedia, Forbes, and Business Insider, Robert W. Service has a net worth of about $1.5 million.
Trivia
This famous poet and author of the book “Songs of Sourdough” is known as the “Bard of Yukon.”