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At the Circulating Library

A Database of Victorian Fiction, 1837–1901

A Database of Victorian Fiction, 1837–1901

Author: Octavius Rooke

Author: Octavius Rooke (1827–1881)

Biography: Octavius Cobb Rooke was born in 1827 in Bath, the son of Capt. Frederick William Rooke, R.N. He entered the army and served with the 3rd Foot rising to the rank of captain before retiring. In 1852, he married Augusta Harriet Pyrke, the daughter of Duncombe Pyrke of Deane Hall. The couple had no children. Rooke wrote several works, including a poem in honor of a royal wedding, travel books about the Channel Islands, two plays (published but not produced), and one novel Heir to Two Fortunes (1877). By any account, he did not attain much fame from his pen. He died in 1881 on the Isle of Wight.

Author Tags:

References: British Census (1871, 1881); Burke

Fiction Titles:

  1. Heir to Two Fortunes: A Novel.  3 vol.  London: Remington, 1877.