Jane Rose (Waring) Roberts (1820 - 1914)

Born 1820 in Petersburg, Virginia, United States

Ancestors

Wife of Joseph Jenkins Roberts — married 1838 in Monrovia, Montserrado, Liberia

Died 9 Jan 1914 at about age 94 in London, England, United Kingdom

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Susan Cooper [send private message]

Biography

Jane (Waring) Roberts is a part of US Black heritage.

Jane was free-born in 1820 in Petersburg, Virginia. She was the daughter of Colston McGiven and Harriet Graves.

She emigrated to Liberia in 1824 on the ship Cyrus with her parents and siblings. ^[1]

She married Joseph Jenkins Roberts in 1838.^[2]

She had no children.

Jane accompanied her husband on other of his visits and was the recipient of great attention wherever she appeared. ^{[3] [4] [5]}

She was twice presented to Her Majesty Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom of England. The first meeting with Her Majesty occurred on the Queen’s royal yacht. At the conclusion of that visit to England, the President and Mrs. Roberts were returned to Liberia on the British warship Amazon. Jane R Robert's second appearance before the British queen was to present Martha Ricks. Martha Rick of Clay-Ashland was famous for her patchwork quilts. For 20 years she had worked on a quilt that depicted a quilt that showed a complete coffee tree all in green and yellow on white ground – its branches and leaves. and flowers at the root of the leaves and berries. With Jane R.'s help, Martha presented this quilt to Queen Victoria. ^[6]

As the wife of President Joseph Jenkins Roberts, she was the first First Lady of the Republic of Liberia from 1848 to 1856 and again from 1872 to 1876.^[7]

After her husband's death in 1876, Jane continued her father’s interest in the growth of Christianity in Liberia by donating to the church^[8]

In 1850 She visited New York City to raise funds for the establishment of a hospital near Monrovia for the sick and maimed of all nations. She donated land for the site, selecting a portion of her farm at Cape Mensurado. ^[9]

She was listed in the 1901 England Cenusus as living in Kensington, London District 22. She was listed as a boarder, a widow, aged 79, living by her own means, and born in Virginia USA. ^[10]

By 1906 she had moved to the home of John Archer the first colored man to become Mayor of Battersea, a district of London.^[11]

She is listed in the 1911 England Census. it lists her as 91 years old, a visitor to England, living in Battersea, London England. at 35 Brynmaer Road, Battersea Park, Battersea SW. her marital status is a widow. She was living with John Richard Archer (the first Black Mayor of a borough in London), age 38, and his wife Maggie Archer also age 38. ^[12][13]

She passed away in 1914.^[14]

She had wanted to be buried in Liberia, had changed her mind, and was duly buried in a plot purchased by the Archers - Grave number 252, class H, Block F, in Streatham Cemetery (also known as Wandsworth Cemetery) off Garratt Lane in Tooting, London.^{[15] [16]}

Sources

1. ↑ https://ccharity.com/contents/roll-emigrants-have-been-sent-colony-liberia-western-africa/emigrants-to-liberia-ship-lists/cyruscompany1824/
2. ↑ Huberich, H. (1947). The Political and Legislative History of Liberia. NY: Central Book Company. Vol. I and II
3. ↑ https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/160191:7483?ssrc=pt&tid=38699360&pid=19271716647
4. ↑ https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/7488/images/NYM237_54-0383?pId=1022856110
5. ↑ Ihttps://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/8745/images/MAM277_25-0410?pId=3778483
6. ↑ Brown.Hallie Q. (1988) Homespun Heroines and Other Women of Distinction. New York: Oxford University Press pp. 47-49
7. ↑ https://www.famousfix.com/list/burials-at-streatham-cemetery
8. ↑ Maryland Colonization Society Journal. Baltimore: Maryland. July, Vol. 6, No 13, page 200-201
9. ↑ "An Active Old Woman." The Chronicle Ind. Saturday, October 18, 1850.
10. ↑ https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/7814/images/LNDRG13_21_22-0457?pId=252316
11. ↑ Johnson Sir Harry (1906), Liberia. Two Volumes. https://www.google.com/books/edition/Liberia/1_URAAAAYAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=liberia+by+harry+johnston&printsec=frontcover
12. ↑ "England and Wales Census, 1911." Database. FamilySearch. http://FamilySearch.org: 21 December 2022. From "1911 England and Wales census." Database and images. findmypast. http://www.findmypast.com: n.d. Citing PRO RG 14. The National Archives of the UK, Kew, Surrey.
13. ↑ https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/2352/images/rg14_02151_0181_03?pId=3499725
14. ↑ St. Louis Post-Dispatch; Publication Date: 11 Jan 1914; Publication Place: St. Louis, Missouri, United States of America; URL: https://www.newspapers.com/image/139006040/?article=16eb183d-aebf-48d9-91b9-3d50b503b994&focus=0.16586412,0.47828263,0.27971065,0
15. ↑ The African President’s widow in London. Jeffery Green. @ www.jeffreygreen.co.uk/051-the-african-presidents-widow-in-london
16. ↑ https://www.famousfix.com/list/burials-at-streatham-cemetery

• "Family Tree," database, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org : modified 22 February 2023, 19:03), entry for Jane Rose Waring (PID https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/4:1:K16M-MHH ); contributed by various users.
• "Family Tree," database, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org : modified 06 April 2022, 04:05), entry for Jane Rose Waring (PID https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/4:1:K16M-MHH ); contributed by various users.
• https://ccharity.com/contents/roll-emigrants-have-been-sent-colony-liberia-western-africa/emigrants-to-liberia-ship-lists/cyruscompany1824/

Huberich, H. (1947). The Political and Legislative History of Liberia. NY: Central Book Company. Vol. I and II

https://www.famousfix.com/list/burials-at-streatham-cemetery