CFHS code : AG522
Parish : St Andrew the Great
Inscription : In Loving Memory of WILLIAM ROBERT ROPER b Aug 5 1845 d May 11 1904 also of REBECCA KNIGHT widow of the above b Jan 6 1845 d Oct 6 1923 also of REBECCA MAUD ROPER daughter of the above d Sep 23 1934 aged 67 open book In Loving Memory of FLORENCE MABEL ROPER d 16th March 1944 aged 63 also GEORGE ROPER d 27th Oct 1948 aged 75
Monument : Headstone/Kerb stones/Open Book (double grave)
Above information from Cambridge Family History Society Survey
Lat Lon : 52.203055, 0.13708297 – click here for location
Monument
This headstone with kerbstones and open book on the east side, located in the northern section of the parish of Andrew the Great, is midway between the west path and the centre circle. 10 rows west along the east west path from the centre circle, and 13 monuments north. The inscription of metal letters is still legible. Some kerbs are covered by grass.
Inscription
headstone
‘In Loving Memory of WILLIAM ROBERT ROPER
Born Aug 5 1845. Died May 11 1904.’
Also of REBECCA KNIGHT widow of the above
Born Jan 6 1845. Died Oct 6 1923.’
“At Rest”
‘Also of REBECCA MAUD ROPER daughter of the above
Died Sep 23 1934 aged 67 years.’
open book
‘In Loving Memory of FLORENCE MABEL ROPER died 16th March 1944 aged 63 years
Also GEORGE ROPER died 27th Oct 1948 aged 75 years’
Relationship: Husband, wife, daughter, son and daughter in law
Dr.William Robert Roper (5 August 1845 – 11 May 1904)
William was born in Rickinghall, near Diss and was the son of Dr Robert and Blanche Roper. He grew up in King’s Lynn (1851) but his father had moved to work in Cambridge by 1861 and the family lived at 12 Causeway. He went up to St. John’s College, Cambridge in January 1865 and was awarded a B.A. in 1868 and an M.A. in 1871. He trained to be a doctor and studied at St. Mary’s Hospital, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Trinity College Dublin, returning to Cambridge where he practised from 1879 onwards. He was baptised as an adult in Heacham, Norfolk on 18 April 1868, but by then had already married Rebecca Johnson in 1866. The couple had at least four children: Rebecca Maud (1867-1934), William Robert (1870-), Lucy Amy (1872-) and Dr. George (1873-1948). They lived at 22 Brunswick Place (1871) and Camden Place (at least 1881 onwards). William served as medical officer of the 5th district, Chesterton Union, medical officer for the Great Northern Railway at Cambridge and surgeon to the Ancient Order of Foresters. He was said to have been a Freemason, and member fo the Cambridge Medical Society. He died at home aged 58 years ‘from an attack of internal haemorrhage’. Newspapers reported that ‘although sufficiently serious to cause anxiety to his friends, a fatal termination was not anticipated. On Wednesday he suddenly became worse, and death occurred in the evening’. His obituary said he ‘took a considerable interest in the Friendly Societies. He does not appear to have found the time or inclination to take any active part in public work in the town, but a Conservative in politics, he was yet a broad-minded man and formed generous views on social and other questions.
Rebecca Knight Roper (née Johnson) (6 January 1845 – 6 October 1923)
Rebecca was the daughter of William and Rebecca (née Knight) Johnson and was born in London. She was baptised at St. Paul’s Church, Hammersmith on 6 February 1845. Her father was a coachmaker who had died by the time she was 6 years old, and Rebecca grew up with her mother and older step siblings in Kensington. She married William Roper when she was 21 years old and after his death lived with her son George and daughter in law Florence at 5 Regent Street. By 1911 Rebecca was completely blind and died at Regent Street aged 78 years.
Rebecca Maud Roper (1866 – 23 September 1934)
Rebecca was the eldest child of William and Rebecca Roper. In 1901 she was teaching at Welland Hall College, Spalding before moving to the role of assistant mistress of a Ladies School in Downham Market (1911). She died at 28 City Road, Norwich aged 67 years old.
Florence Mabel Roper (née Hawkes) (13 February 1880 – 16 March 1944)
Florence was born in Ely, the daughter of William and Caroline (née Scott) Hawkes. Her father was a coal and timber merchant and she married Dr. George Roper at Holy Trinity Church, Ely on 21 October 1908. The wedding was reported in the Cambridge Independent Press under the heading of ‘Fashionable wedding at Ely’. Florence ‘was gowned in white crepe de chine, with white satin train, and wore a wreath of orange blossoms and veil. She carried a bouquet of choice flowers’. Her two sisters acted as bridesmaids and wore the gold bracelets which the bridegroom had given them. The reception was held at the Hawkes family house, ‘where the reception was numerously attended. A large number of costly presents were received’. George was a general practioner and the couple lived at 5 Regent Terrace (1911) and 58 Lensfield Road (1939). They had at least four children: Mary Mabel Knight (1909-1991), Dr. William George (1912-1997), Rev. Lewis Hawkes (1918-1978) and Richard Antony Lionel (1921-). Florence died at home aged 63 years.
Dr. George Roper (9 February 1873 – 27 February 1948)
George went to the Perse School and then to Cambridge University in 1890. He was not attached to a particular college and was awarded a B.A. in 1893 and an M.A. in 1910. He studied to become a doctor at University College Hospital and practised in Cambridge. He was a G.P. and served as Medical Officer to both the 5th District Chesterton Union and 1st District Cambridge Union. He was frequently called upon to perform post-mortem examinations and give evidence at inquests. For example, in February 1908 he gave evidence in the sudden death of Mrs Sarah Rooke of 3 Kettle’s Yard. George had seen her a fortnight before and treated her for bronchitis. The postmortem examination found ‘death was due to heart failure, brought on by acute dilation of the stomach, caused through eating a hearty meal of indigestible food’. He was chairman of the Cambridge and County Liberal Club (1920) and died at Lensfield Road aged 75 years old.
Sources:
Ancestry
Newspaper archives
by Claire Martinsen
[If you have any information about this family, please contact us at Friendsofmillroadcemetery@gmail.com]