Walter was the son of Tennessee Confederate veteran James Knox "Polk" Yates and Elizabeth Catherine "Kate" Aston.

On April 8, 1908, in Kingston, Tennessee, Walter married Lillie Vitatoe, the daughter of David and Mary Vitatoe. They had three children: James, Joe, and Ethel. In February of 1917, when Walter was away, baby Ethel fell into the fireplace, Lillie pulled her out, and they both died of terrible burns from the fire. I believe the house burned down as well. Ethel's death certificate says "Burns. Caught in building."

On July 14, 1919, Walter married Cordie Johnson, the daughter of Jim and Martha Johnson of Paint Rock, Tennessee. Together they had ten more children, one who died in infancy. While in Tennessee, Walter worked for the Roane Iron Works in Rockwood as a steam shovel manager. At least one of Cordie's brothers worked there, as well.

Sometime after 1925 they moved to St. Charles, Lee County, Virginia, where they continued to add to and raise their family. They possibly left Rockwood because of the mine explosion at Roane Iron Coal Mine in October of 1926, the second in two years, where many lives were lost. In Virginia, Walter worked in the coal mines at Benedict.

In 1942, when Walter registered for the draft for WWII, his card said he was 6'2", 176 lbs, with blue eyes, brown hair, and a ruddy complexion. My dad (born in 1942) remembered him always walking with a cane. He always had a pistol in his pocket.

Walter died at home at age 59. His death certificate says "Hypertension Arteriosclerosis, Heart disease", but then it also says cerebral hemorrhage, his 5th in 5 years.

He is buried on a hillside, under a tree, in the Cecil Fry Cemetery in Pennington Gap. His daughter, Lucille Hall, kept his grave tended and decorated until her death in 2005.