James Rufus Charles Boosé (1859 – 19 April 1936) was the librarian, secretary, and finally, travelling commissioner, of the

Royal Colonial Institute The Royal Commonwealth Society (RCS) is a non-governmental organisation with a mission to promote the value of the Commonwealth and the values upon which it is based. The Society upholds the values of the Commonwealth Charter, promoting confli ...

. He prepared a catalogue of the institute's library as part of its mission to promote British colonialism. He was a captain and honorary major in the 1st Middlesex (Victoria and St George's) Rifles.

Early life and family

James Boosé was born in London or WindsorJames R Boose England and Wales Census, 1901.
Family Search. Retrieved 1 January 2017. in 1859. His mother was Fanny J. Boosé. He married Ada A.James R Boose England and Wales Census, 1891.
Family Search. Retrieved 1 January 2017. at St. George Hanover Square, London, in 1884. They had children Ernest J.H. Boosé, Lila G. Boosé, V. Gladys Boosé, and Esme A. Boosé. His wife Ada died in 1911.

Career

Boosé was first librarian, then secretary, and finally, travelling commissioner of the

(now the Royal Commonwealth Society). The development of the Institute's library played an important part in its mission to promote British colonialism and as librarian, Boosé was naturally instrumental in its structuring and expansion.Palmer, Beth, " 'A journey around the bookshelves': Reading in the Royal Colonial Institute" in His catalogue of the library was published in 1895 with a supplement in 1901. In 1899, with Joseph Frank Alderhoven, he was executor of the will of West Indian merchant

C. Washington Eves Charles Washington Augero Eves, Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George, CMG, (13 September 1838 – 20 April 1899) was a British merchant prominent in the trade between London and the West Indies, and a promoter of the products of Jam ...

(died 1899).''The Times'', 25 April 1899, p. 12. All three were members of the Royal Colonial Institute. He was commissioned into the 6th Middlesex (St George's) corps as a second lieutenant in 1890. In 1897, he was presented at court as an officer of the 1st Middlesex (Victoria and St George's) Rifles. In 1904, he was a captain and honorary major in that corps. He received the Volunteer Officers' Decoration and in 1916 was appointed companion of the

Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, George III, King George III. ...

Death

Boosé died on 19 April 1936 at St Andrews Road, Epsom,

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

, New Zealand. He was survived by his second wife, Louisa. He was cremated and his ashes scattered. Probate was granted in London on an estate of £319.1936 Probate Calendar.
gov.uk Retrieved 30 December 2016.

Selected publications

*
Titles of publications relating to the British colonies, their government, etc., in connection with imperial policy &c.
'

Imperial Federation League The Imperial Federation League was a 19th-century organisation which aimed to promote the reorganisation of the British Empire into an Imperial Federation, similarly to the way the majority of British North America confederated into the Dominion ...

, London, 1889. * ''The Constitution of Colonial Public Libraries''. Simpkin, Marshall & Co., London, 1894. *
Catalogue of the Library of the Royal Colonial Institute
'. Royal Colonial Institute, London, 1895. *
First Supplementary Catalogue of the Library of the Royal Colonial Institute
'' Royal Colonial Institute, London, 1901. *''Memory serving: Being reminiscences of fifty years of the Royal Colonial Institute''. Selwyn & Blount, London, 1928.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boosé, James 1859 births 1936 deaths Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Librarians from London