Cossgrove (also spelled Cosgrove[1] and Crosgrove[2] on official documents) took Baden-Powell's ideas back to New Zealand with him and began similar programmes in Christchurch.

[12] It is known that the Cossgroves had a daughter, Muriel, who asked for a girl's equivalent to Scouts, which led to the foundation of GirlGuiding in New Zealand.

[2] Cossgrove died on 9 September 1920 of stomach cancer and received one of the largest military funerals ever held in Canterbury.

These took the format of a Natural History Column entitled: "Notes for the Young" followed by various plants and birds described in a fashion suitable for children.

[17] They were dispatched to South Africa soon after arrival in London, despite the lack of basic supplies such as rifles, revolvers, ammunition, picks, shovels, axes, water buckets and bandoleers.

[16] Cossgrove served in Cape Colony, Orange Free State and Transvaal in both 1901 and 1902 as a volunteer serviceman after receiving a second commission as part of the 10th New Zealand Contingent (South Island Regiment), of which he was the Captain and Paymaster.