Sarah Jane Cooper was a British marmalade

Marmalade

Marmalade is a fruit preserve made from the juice and peel of citrus fruits, boiled with sugar and water. The benchmark citrus fruit for marmalade production in Britain is the "Seville orange" from Spain, Citrus aurantium var...

 maker and wife of Frank Cooper (1844–1927).

Sarah Cooper was born Sarah Jane Gill in Beoley

Beoley

Beoley is a village and civil parish just north of Redditch in the Bromsgrove District of Worcestershire, and adjoins Warwickshire to the east. The 2001 census recorded a parish population of 945, most of whom live at Holt End...

, Worcestershire

Worcestershire

Worcestershire is a non-metropolitan county, established in antiquity, located in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire" NUTS 2 region...

 in 1848. In 1872 she got married in Clifton, Bristol

Clifton, Bristol

Clifton is a suburb of the City of Bristol in England, and the name of both one of the city's thirty-five council wards. The Clifton ward also includes the areas of Cliftonwood and Hotwells...

 to Frank Cooper of Oxford

Oxford

The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...

 and they made their home at 31 Kingston Road, Oxford

Kingston Road, Oxford

Kingston Road is a road in Oxford, England. It continues north from Walton Street, at the junction with Walton Well Road to the west and St Bernard's Road to the east, running parallel with and to the west of Woodstock Road. Kingston Road is the main road in Walton Manor. At the northern end, there...

.

In 1867 Frank had inherited the family grocer

Grocer

A grocer is a bulk seller of food. Beginning as early as the 14th century, a grocer was a dealer in comestible dry goods such as spices, pepper, sugar, and cocoa, tea and coffee...

y shop at 84 High Street, Oxford

High Street, Oxford

The High Street in Oxford, England runs between Carfax, generally recognized as the centre of the city, and Magdalen Bridge to the east. Locally the street is often known as The High. It forms a gentle curve and is the subject of many prints, paintings, photographs, etc...

. In 1874 Frank expanded the business into 83 High Street next door, and the Coopers gave up their house in Kingston Road to live over the shop. Sarah, then aged 24, made 76 pounds (34.5 kg) of marmalade to her own recipe. The marmalade became a regular product of Frank Cooper's business, being made behind the shop until 1903 when he moved production to a new purpose-built factory at 27 Park End Street

Park End Street

Park End Street is a street in central Oxford, England, to the west of the centre of the city, close to the railway station at its western end.-Location:...

.

Frank Cooper's business was taken over in 1964 and production left Oxford in 1967. However, its marmalades and jams remain in production as a brand of Premier Foods

Premier Foods

Premier Foods plc is a British food manufacturer headquartered in St Albans, Hertfordshire. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index.-History:...

, which continues to call its leading Frank Cooper's product "Oxford" Marmalade. Since 2001, 84 High Street has been marked by an Oxfordshire Blue Plaque commemorating Sarah Cooper's achievement.

Sources and further reading