GROOME, Robert Hindes
Robert Hindes Groome was born at Framlingham, Suffolk on 18 January 1810 and baptised the following day, second son of Revd John Hindes Groome (16 June 1776-22 March 1845), rector of Earl Soham and Monks Soham, Suffolk, and his wife Mary Burcham (12 July 1785-2 December 1867), daughter of William Burcham of Cornhill, London, who married at St Mary Stoke, Ipswich on 24 March 1806. Robert was educated at Norwich School under Edward Valpy (1764-1832) and at the age of 18, admitted pensioner at Caius College, Cambridge, graduating B.A. in 1832, proceeding M.A. in 1836. Ordained deacon in 1833 to the Suffolk curacy of Tannington with Brundish and ordained priest 1834. During 1835-1838 he travelled through Germany as tutor to the son of Rafael Álvarez Montaneses, a Spanish financier. In 1839, Groome took the curacy of Corfe Castle, Dorset a town where he was also thd mayor 1839-1840 but in 1845, on the death of his father, succeeded to the vicarage of Monk Soham where over the next forty-four years he built the rectory, the village school and restored the church and was Archdeacon of Suffolk from 1869. A pupil of artist Henry Bright sometime between 1841-1855 and, being well read in the plays of Elizabethan dramatists, at Cambridge he became acquainted with William Bodham Donne (1807-1882), Edward Fitzgerald and William Hepworth Thompson (1810-1886), master of Trinity, who remained firm friends during their lives. He married at Swanage, Dorset on 1 February 1843 Mary Jackson (14 February 1815-20 December 1893), youngest daughter of Revd James Leonard Jackson, rector of Swanage, Dorset, and his wife Louisa Decima Hyde Wollaston, and had eight children including Francis Hindes Groome (1851-1902), author on gypsies. Robert Hindes Groome retired in July 1887 and died at Monks Soham rectory on 19 March 1889 and buried on 25 March. His wife lived a further four years at the Manor House, Pakenham, Suffolk before joining him in Monks Soham churchyard on 23 December 1893. For five years from 1861, he edited the 'Christian Advocate and Review' and encouraged and assisted his son Francis to edit a series of Suffolk Notes & Queries for the 'Ipswich Journal' 1887-88 writing most of the material between them.