For years Jarvis Yates had strong desire to be his own boss and own a farm. He had heard countless stories about how North America had large swaths of land for the taking and at the age of 48 he emigrated with his family (5 sons and 1 daughter) in 1845, travelling across the Atlantic from Hanley England to New York. The trip took 30 days and cost $25 per person and Jarvis’ mother, Elizabeth Yates, was the oldest person on board at the age of 78. From New York the Yates family travelled to Niagara and then onto the Hamilton area where Jarvis met a man named Baldwin who had a farm for sale. It was also here that the Yates family met up with William, the oldest son of Jarvis, who had came to North America in 1843.

Jarvis purchased 100 acres of heavily wooded land from Baldwin, located on Lot 19, Concessions 11 and 12 in Burford Township. There was a log cabin in the middle of the land, approximately 10 miles from the nearest neighbour and even further away from the nearest church or post office. Jarvis named his farm “Hatchley Place” after a farm that had been owned by his ancestors in England about 400 years prior and this naming marked the beginning of the village of Hatchley. The first winter at the farm was a severe one. Of the 3 cows, 2 calves, and 2 colts that were included with the purchase of the farm, one cow was the only animal to survive the winter but the Yates family would persevere.