Robert Ormston Backhouse (10 March 1854 - 10 April 1940) was a British archer who competed at the 1908 Summer Olympics in London. He and his wife, Sarah Dodgson, were also known for producing new varieties of daffodils and lilies.[1] He was born in Darlington, County Durham and died in Sutton St Nicholas, Herefordshire.[2]
Backhouse entered the double York round event in 1908, taking 13th place with 516 points. He also shot a round in the manner of the Continental style event but as a demonstration rather than in the actual competition. He scored 260 points, which would have given him a silver medal if his competition had been official. Backhouse received a Diploma of Merit for his effort in the Continental style.[3]
At their home, Sutton Court[4] in Herefordshire, he and his wife, Sarah, continued the botanical interests of his grandfather, William Backhouse (1779 - 1844), and father, William Backhouse (1807 - 1869), and spent much time in cultivating daffodils and lilies. His brothers, Charles and Henry, also raised daffodils, as did his son William Ormston Backhouse (1885 - 1962). The popular daffodil variety, Mrs. R. O. Backhouse, the first daffodil with a pink cup and white perianth, was among the ones they developed and named for her by her husband after she died in 1921.[1]