 The Ropner family is of German descent.The Ropner Baronetcy, of Preston Hall, in the parish of Stockton-on-Tees, in the County Palatine of Durham, and of Skutterskelfe Hall, in the parish of Hutton Rudby, in the North Riding of the County of York, was created in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom on 20 August 1904 for Robert Ropner.He was a steamship owner and steamship builder and also represented Stockton-on-Tees in the House of Commons as a Conservative.