James Henry Roper
James Henry Roper  (1835 - 1883) was an educator, state senator and school founder in Florida. He moved to Gainesville in 1856. He represented Alachua County in the Florida Senate. He built Gainesville Academy in 1858. A few years later he offered it as a new site for East Florida Seminary and served as the school’s principal after its move. Gainesville competed with Lake City, home of Florida Agricultural College, for the newly organized University of Florida. Gainesville’s Roper Park is named for him. References

1835 births
1883 deaths
People from Gainesville, Florida
Founders of American schools and colleges
Florida state senators
19th-century American educators
Schoolteachers from Florida
19th-century American politicians
American school principals