The article below is an excerpt from Riders of the Bicycle Corps blog.

 

Eddie H. Boos – reporter

 Edward “Eddie” Hugo Boos was nineteen years old when he rode with the Corps. He worked as a reporter for the Missoulian and sent detailed stories of the trip not only to Missoula but all over the United States. He says that he rode a Sterling bicycle.

In 1896-97 he was enrolled at the University of Montana at Missoula.

Edward Hugo Boos was born 1 April 1877 in Illinois

1880 US Federal Census Lewis and Clark, Helena
In this record Edward is 3 and has a 1 year old sister named Charlotte. According to this census Eddie and his sister were both born in Illinois. His father, George E., is 28 and is a book binder. His mother, Dorthea, is 27 and “keep(s) house”. No street address is given. George E. was born in Wisconsin and his wife in Kentucky. Both of their fathers were Prussian as well as George E.’s mother. Dorthea’s mother was from Baden.

Daily Independent, Helena, Sunday May 2, 1880
Mr. George E. Boos has purchased the Herald book bindery, of which, since its introduction here, he has been foreman. Mr. Boos has rented, and will occupy rooms in Dr. Frary’s building, on Broadway, where he will conduct the book binding business in the future. He is a first class binder and a gentleman of excellent business qualifications. All business in his line which may be entrusted to him will receive prompt and careful attention at reasonable charges. The enterprise in which he has engaged is one that should receive encouragement, and we wish him success.

Daily Independent, Helena, Wednesday December 22, 1880
Mrs. Geo. E. Boos, an experienced instructress in the German and English languages, contemplates establishing at an early date, a Kindergarten school for children from 7 to 8 years of age, provided sufficient encouragement is given to justify such a step. We hope the school may be established.

Daily Independent, Helena, Tuesday January 25, 1881

German Class for Girls and Boys
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The hours for the German studies are Tuesdays and Thursday at 3:30 o’clock p.m. and Saturdays at 9 a.m.
The Kindergarden will open Tuesday, February 2d at 9 a.m. Parents will please have the little folks ready.

MRS. DORA BOOS

1900 US Federal Census – Hell Gate, Missoula, Montana

Eddie is a 23-year old boarding at a house or apartment on Higgins Avenue owned by William Murphy (a grocery merchant). There are ten roomers (including two clothing merchants, a grocery clerk, druggist, lawyer, dentist and a day laborer) as well as a nephew, two daughters and a wife living at the residence. Boos’ occupation is listed as journalist.

1910 US Federal Census – Missoula Ward 3, Missoula Montana
Edward is married to Annie E. (3 years) and living at 400 Daly Avenue in Missoula. Boos is 34 and his wife is 38. In this record Boos’ birthplace has switched to Kentucky. The birthplace of his mother and father is also listed as Kentucky. The birthplace of Annie E. is Canadian English. Boos is the advertising manager at a “Department Store” [I believe this is the Missoula Mercantile – owned by Annie’s dad].

1918 World War I Registration Card
Boos birthday is given as April 1, 1877. His workplace is the Missoula Mercantile Co. Boos is 41 and still living at 400 Daly Ave. in Missoula. [This record is difficult to read]

1920 US Federal Census – Missoula District 154, Missoula, Montana
Boos and his wife are still living at 400 Daly Ave. in Missoula. They have a boarder named Lucille Lyda [very difficult to read], a 25 year old whose relationship is listed as “Launderer”. This census indicates Annie immigrated to the United States in 1890 and was naturalized in 1900. Once again, Eddie’s birthplace is listed as Kentucky. Boo’s occupation is listed as an advertising manager. His wife is a boarding keeper and Lucille is a “university instructor”

1930 US Federal Census – Missoula District 8, Missoula, Montana
Eddie, 54, and Annie, 61, are living at 400 Daly Avenue in Missoula. Eddie’s birthplace is back to Illinois while Annie’s is “Canada English”. Their house is valued at $12,000, fairly high compared to most of the neighboring homes. Boos’ occupation is listed as “Advertiser” at a “Dep’t Store”

In a chapter titled Putting the Army on Wheels, in the book Buffalo Soldiers of the West, Charles M. Dollar claims, “He [Lt. Moss] chose Edward H. Boos, an experienced twenty-three-year-old cyclist from Missoula whose father was publisher of the Daily Missoulian…”

apparently there was a falling out….

“Peter Towey, late city editor of the Missoulian, Tuesday commenced an action in the district court at Missoula against George E. Boos and Henry O. Collins, members of the Missoula Co-operative Printing Company. In his complaint he alleges a misappropriation of the funds of the concern, asks for an accounting, a dissolution of the co-partnership and the appointment of a receiver. S.G. Murray appears as plaintiff’s attorney…”

– The Citizens Call [Philipsburg, Granite County, Montana] September 15, 1897

1896 R.L Polk and Co’s Helena City Directory 1896
Boos George E., moved to Missoula, Mont.
[George E. is consistently listed in the Helena directory throughout the 1880s and 90s]

The Helena Daily Independent, Sunday Morning, May 5, 1929

Episcopalians Meet Next Sunday….

“…Individual offerings from all over the state, many outside states and even far distant countries are being received by the Silver anniversary offering treasurer, Mr. Edward H. Boos, Missoula, Montana, and it is the hope of the committee in charge that when complete the amount will aggregate $25,000….”

Click here for a nice biography on Boos

The Helena Daily Independent, pg. 1, Monday, Sept. 27, 1937

EDWARD H. BOOS OF MISSOULA IS DEAD
———————-

Missoula, Sept. 26 –(AP) –Edward H. Boos, 60, advertising manager of the Missoula Mercantile company since 1899, died at his home here today after a long illness.
He came to Montana from Kentucky with his parents, Mr. and Mrs. George E. Boos, in 1888. The family first resided at Helena, where the elder Boos was publisher of the Missoulian during the Helena-Anaconda State Capital struggle.

The Helena Daily Independent, Sunday, March 20, 1938

BOOS COLLECTION OF INDIAN RELICS GIVEN TO UNIVERSITY
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State University, Missoula, March 19 — (Special)– A gift of 31 valuable Indian relics and 175 books from the collection of the late Edward H. Boos, until his death advertising manager of the Missoula Mercantile company, has been catalogued and arranged as the Edward H. Boos memorial collection in the treasure room in the journalism building at the university.
Mr. Boos during his life-time was always vitally interested in the welfare of the university. He attended school here in 1895 and 1896.
President George Finlay Simmons has accepted the valuable collection with the “deep thanks of the university.” The Indian relics include several bows, arrows, pipes, Indian suitcases, belts, pouches, ornamental bands of various kinds, and bags and necklaces as well as several pictures. Many of the pictures were taken by Mr. Boos. All of the Indian relics are from Mr. Boos’ collection, which he gathered over a period of many years.
The collection of volumes includes copies of the Sentinel, university year book, many of them early ones. The other books range in subject from biography and language to advertising and encyclopedia.
President Simmons said that the Boos collection “makes an important addition to our own collection of Indian relics. We are very grateful to Mrs. Boos for permitting us to have the collection which meant a great deal to Mr. Boos and which has now been made accessible to large numers of people in this state who are interested in Indian culture. The books will be a very welcome addition to our library.”

Missoula City Cemetery website
Edward Hugo Boos Age: 60 Date of Death: 9/26/1937 Grave: 6 Lot: 15 Block: 025
Boos Annie Hammond Age: 79 Date of Death: 8/15/1943 Grave: 5 Lot: 15 Block: 025 Inter#: 07582

The biographical note below is an excerpt from Guide to the Edward H. Boos Photographs collection held at the University of Montana Mansfield Library.

 Biographical Note

Edward Boos was born in Kentucky on April 1, 1877. His family moved to Helena, Montana, while he was in grade school. He attended the University of Montana at Missoula in 1896 but did not complete a degree. In that same year Boos began working as a freelance correspondent for several newspapers in the Missoula area. During the summer of 1897 Boos accompanied the U.S. Army 25th Infantry Bicycle Corps on its experimental overland trip from Fort Missoula to St. Louis, Missouri. The company traversed 1,900 miles over difficult terrain and through taxing weather conditions in an attempt prove bicycles could replace horses for troop transport and reconnaissance. Boos submitted accounts of the expedition as they traveled. His accounts were prepared for the Daily Missoulian, but some were also published by newspapers along the route and a few were subsequently reprinted by national and international newspapers.

After the Bicycle Corps expedition Boos continued to produce photographs for western Montana newspapers. Sometime around 1900 he purchased his own camera and began photographing people and landscapes in the Missoula and Flathead valleys. Boos was particularly interested in recording life among the Kootenai, Salish and Pend’Oreille families of the Flathead Reservation as the 20th century began. He conducted a series of photographic portrait sessions at various sites across the reservation, mostly completed between spring and fall of 1905. According to a 1935 newspaper story, many of these portraits were developed at night under a canvas cover so the photographer could share the portraits directly with his subjects. Throughout the time period Boos continued to photograph landscapes and events in the Missoula and Flathead Lake areas.

In 1906 Boos accepted an advertising manager position with the Missoula Mercantile Company and married Annie Hammond, cousin of MMC co-owner Andrew Hammond. Edward Boos ended his newspaper work but continued to periodically take photographs. Boos remained with the Missoula Mercantile Company for the next thirty-one years. In September 1935 an “Indian Jubilee” celebration was held in St. Ignatius, Montana. This event was the first public exhibition and print sale of Boos’ Flathead Reservation portraits. Edward H. Boos died of a heart attack on September 26, 1937.

Content Description

This collection includes 305 glass plate and modern film negatives and prints created by Edward H. Boos between 1900 and 1908. This photographic collection constitutes one of the most extensive and detailed visual records of the Missoula, Mission, and Flathead valleys at the beginning of the 20th Century.

Boos’ Flathead Reservation portraits document particularly insightful details regarding the lifestyle, possessions, and landscapes of tribal members just prior to the 1910 Allotment Act–an action that opened vast portions of the reservation to non-tribal settlement. Some photographs were not inscribed with captions prior to donation to the K. Ross Toole Archives and several others were inscribed with only cursory identifiers. However, most photographs were inscribed with various combinations of the subjects’ tribal name (in phonetic transcription), loose English translation, and Flathead Agency register names. In several instances Boos photographed the same individuals over a number of years. Among these individuals, mostly young males, several were given new tribal names within the span of Boos’ portrait series (evidenced by changes in the captions attached to each photograph).

In contrast to the Salish, Kootenai, and Pend’Oreille photographs, Boos’ Flathead, Mission, and Missoula valleys series is a mix of broad landscape images, community events, and portraits. This series primarily contains photographs of the Flathead and Missoula valleys; however, it also includes a few photographs from the Mission valley as well as one from near Frenchtown, MT, looking east towards Missoula. The landscape photographs in this series offer a significant record of topography and general vegetative matrices during the early stages of community expansion into the foothills of the Missoula and Flathead valleys. The series also records some common leisure activities among western Montanans at the turn of the 20th Century, as well as glimpses of Missoula community events. The Victoria, B.C. series contains photographs from an undated vacation.