Dora Esther Yates was born in Liverpool on 26 November 1879, the youngest child of a large Jewish family. She began her education at Dr T Lund's private school, in Croxteth Road, Liverpool, here as an avid reader, her curiosity in Gypsies and folk-lore emerged.

In 1896, at the age of sixteen, Dora enrolled as an Honours Student at Liverpool University College. During her undergraduate career Dora incorporated many social activities into her academic studies, holding the posts of Honorary Treasurer of the Student's Guild, Vice-President of the Women's Debating Society and Secretary of the Women's Athletic Society. In 1899, she was awarded her Bachelor of Arts by Victoria University, Manchester, when she gained a first class degree in English, Latin, German and Anglo-Saxon.

In 1900, she became the first Jewish woman to be awarded an M.A. degree by an English University. This degree in English Language and Literature including Gothic, Anglo--Saxon and Middle English, again showed her linguistic and philologic capabilities. These talents had shown themselves in childhood when by the age of four, Dora was able to read both Hebrew and English. She became fluent in speaking and writing German and French, which she put to use in her work with the Gypsy Lore Society and eventually, under the direction of John Sampson, became a master of Romani in all its main dialects.

After graduating from the then, Liverpool University College, Dora taught English, for a period of six years, in schools around Liverpool. She spent short periods at Hermann House School, Rock Ferry, Sandholm School, Waterloo, and South Liverpool High School for Girls, situated in Alexandra Drive. In 1906 Dora returned to the University, to serve it continuously until her retirement in 1945.

Her first post, in 1906, was as Tutor in English Literature, then in 1909 she gave up this post in the English Department to become a Class Libraries' Assistant in the Faculty of Arts. In 1937 Dora Yates became Class Librarian and later Supervisor of the 23 Class Libraries, a position held until 1945. >From 1938 Dora also held the positions of Curator of Special Collections (then housed in the Harold Cohen Library) and Honorary Lecturer in Bibliography. When the 3000 volume Scott Macfie Collection of Gypsy Literature was donated to Special Collections in 1935, Dora compiled a catalogue of the material, which is still in use today. Eventually after Dora's official retirement in 1945, she was appointed Honorary Curator of the Scott Macfie Collection of books on Gypsy Lore. In 1963 Dora was awarded the Honorary Doctorate of Literature (Litt.D), in recognition of her services to the University and her academic achievement.

On 12 January 1974, Dora Esther Yates, in her ninety-fifth year, died peacefully at her home in Wavertree. During her lifetime she had continued her own studies in Gypsy Lore and become internationally known as a Romany scholar, while also working for the Gypsy Lore Society, both as a member since 1907 and an Officer for over 40 years.