Ana Roque de Duprey

Ana Roqué de Duprey, also known as "Flor del Valle" (Flower of the Valley) for her work in botany, (April 18, 1853 – October 5, 1933, ) was an educator, scientist, suffragist, and one of the founders of the University of Puerto Rico. She studied botany, astronomy, geology, and meteorology with Agustín Stahl and contributed to these disciplines with her own studies and publications. Roqué also founded the first woman's suffrage organizations in Puerto Rico in 1917.

Early years Roqué (birth name: Ana Roqué Geigel) was born in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico on April 18, 1853. Roqué's mother, who was a teacher, taught her to write by the age of three.

First Puerto Rican woman to become a member of the Public Library In 1872, she married Luis Duprey, a well-to-do landowner who was involved in politics. At the time of their marriage, Duprey was a slaveowner, and one of Roqué's conditions to marriage was that she be able to educate the slaves. She developed an interest in the politics of Puerto Rico. With Duprey, she had five children. Three survived to adulthood: Luis Enrique, Borinquen, and America.

The family moved to the capital of San Juan, where she became the first woman to be permitted into the Puerto Rican Athenaeum and the first woman to become a member of the Public Library. During her spare time, she composed music. In 1880 her husband died, leaving her with young children to care for.

Author and publisher In 1884, Roqué was offered a teacher's position in Arecibo, which she accepted. She also enrolled at the Provincial Institute where she studied philosophy and science and earned her bachelor's degree. In 1899, Roque was appointed as the director of the Normal School of San Juan.

In 1898, Roqué founded La Mujer, the first "women's only" magazine in Puerto Rico. She also wrote articles for the following newspapers: El Buscapie, El Imparcial and El Mundo. She founded other women's publications and some of general interest: La Evolucion (1902), La Mujer del Siglo XX in (1907), Album Puertorriqueño (1918) and Heraldo de la Mujer (1920).

In addition to articles, Roqué wrote several books, both fiction and non-fiction. They include the following: Sara, La Obrera and Luz y Sombra. Her book Puerto Rican Flora received acclaim and an award from the Fourth Century Christian Civilization Organization.

In the early 1900s, Roqué began work on the study Botánica Antillana, a study of Caribbean flora in which she documented over 6,000 species of plants with color illustrations as well as medicinal and agricultural properties. In 1923 she published results from her astronomical observations in El Cielo de Puerto Rico'

Death Ana Roque de Duprey died on October 4, 1933 in Río Piedras, Puerto Rico at the age of 80. She was buried at Cementerio Villa Nevárez in Río Piedras, Puerto Rico.

Legacy and honors In 1932, the University of Puerto Rico awarded Roque an honorary doctorate degree. She was also named honorary president of the Puerto Rican Liberal Party.

In 1933, Ana Roqué Géigel de Duprey died in Río Piedras, and a memorial has been done to honor her life. A high school in Humacao, Puerto Rico and a street in San Juan are named for her. An elementary school in Chicago, Illinois, which has a large Puerto Rican population, is named after her.

Roque was posthumously named an honoree of the National Women's History Alliance in 2020.

A recording about Ana Roqué de Duprey was recorded by former President Obama's administration, as a part of an effort to recognize "The Untold History of Women in Science and Technology".