Roberts was born in Nantglyn, Denbighshire, Wales.
The family emigrated to the United States in 1839, and settled in Constableville, New York.
Then he became a carpenter and builder of oil tanks; and later a farmer and builder of canal boats, in Boonville.
He was Supervisor of the Town of Boonville in 1874 and 1875; a member of the New York State Assembly (Oneida Co., 4th D.) in 1878; President of the Village of Boonville in 1880; and a member of the New York State Senate (22nd D.) in 1882 and 1883.
He was accidentally killed on September 3, 1888, at his boatyard in Boonville, New York, when a wooden block fell on him and broke his neck.