Mrs. Desiree Mary Leake
Desiree Mary Leake, née Image, was born on May 25, 1860, in Barbados to Charlotte and John George Image. Her father, a captain in the Royal Scots Fusiliers, received the French Legion of Honour for his service in the Crimean War. Leake had one sister, Adelaide Gertrude Image. In 1893, she married Percy Dewe Leake, a chartered accountant and author.
Leake joined the Society of Women Journalists in September 1910 and was a member until her death in 1937. She published a book of literary criticism, The Ethics of Browning Poems (1897). Her journalism appeared in periodicals such as the Monthly Packet, Nineteenth Century, Artist and Christian Science Monitor. She also worked as an editor for W. T. Stead’s Penny Popular Novels series.
Leake was a member of the Writers’ Club and for many years served on the committee that organized the annual Women Writers’ Dinner.
Leake died on January 31, 1937, at age 76.
References:
“England and Wales Census, 1921.” Ancestry, 1997-2026. http://www.ancestry.com.
“England & Wales, National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations), 1858-1995.” Ancestry, 1997-2026. http://www.ancestry.com.
“London, England, Church of England Marriages and Banns, 1754-1941.” Ancestry, 1997-2026. http://www.ancestry.com.
Untitled Item, The Woman Journalist, February-March 1937, p. 1.
“UK and Ireland, Outward Passenger Lists, 1890-1960.” Ancestry, 1997-2026. http://www.ancestry.com.
“UK, Royal Hospital Chelsea Admission Books, Registers and Papers, 1702-1980.” Ancestry, 1997-2026. http://www.ancestry.com.
“Visitation of England and Wales.” Ancestry, 1997-2026. http://www.ancestry.com.