When James Alexander Brooke was born on 24 April 1894, in St. Louis, Missouri, United States, his father, James Alexander Brooke, was 30 and his mother, Mary Morgan Quinlan, was 22. He married Rosa Helen Martin before 1919, in California, United States. They were the parents of at least 4 sons and 1 daughter. He lived in Berkeley, Alameda, California, United States in 1920 and Lanikai, Oahu, Honolulu, Hawaii, United States in 1942. He registered for military service in 1919. He died on 17 July 1956, in Seattle, King, Washington, United States, at the age of 62, and was buried in Cypress Lawn Memorial Park, Colma, San Mateo, California, United States.