Francis Randall Hugo Drake entered the Royal Navy as assistant clerk in 1896 and three years later was promoted to assistant paymaster. During the Boer War, he served in HMS Pelorus, and in 1905 was appointed clerk to the flag secretary in HMS Drake . Retiring from the Navy in 1908, he joined the British National Expedition, 1910-1913 (leader Robert Falcon Scott), as expedition secretary and meteorologist in Terra Nova .
After the expedition, he re-enlisted in the Royal Navy as staff paymaster, serving in various ships during the First World War. He retired as paymaster commander from the Navy in 1928 and died in 1936.
From the guide to the Francis Drake collection, 1910-1913, (Scott Polar Research Institute, University of Cambridge)