1866 Born in Bolton
1881 Lot Roberts, 50, Medical Botanist, lived in Little Bolton, with Elizabeth Roberts 51, Lilian Roberts 19, Thomas Roberts 15, telegraph messenger, Violet Roberts 10[1]
1891 Elizabeth Roberts 60, lived in Great Bolton with Thomas Roberts 25, grocer and patent medicine manufacturer, employer, Violet Roberts 19[2]
1894 Thomas Roberts patented "Improvements in Apparatus for Filling Bottles with Liquids."
1901 Thomas Roberts 35, patent medicine manufacturer, working at home, lived in Bolton with Sarah A Roberts 32[3]
1901 Thomas Roberts of Bolton patented " Improvements in Means or Apparatus for use in Filling Bottles, Jars, Cans, Canisters or the like with Liquid or Semi-liquid Substances. "
1903 Thomas Roberts patented "Improvements in Machines or Mechanism for use in Filling Bottles, Jars, or like Receptacles with Liquid or Semi-liquid Substances. "
and several later patents on the same lines.
1911 Patent medicine manufacturer[4]
1911 Gained patent on "Improvements in Apparatus for Taking Samples of Powdered and Liquid Substances"; several more followed on similar subjects.
1937 Estate and will of Thomas Roberts, of Cleveland, Junction Road, Bolton , Lancashire , formerly of 14 Deane Road, Bolton le Moors , manufacturing chemist founder and former head of Roberts Croupline Ltd . and Roberts Patent Filling Machine Co[5]