HI Cory
Sorry to come so late to your posts, but I am also researching the family of Thomas & Elizabeth Roberts, specifically for my ancestor, George Roberts, younger brother of William
Like his parents, George, who was born around 1852 misses at least two census and does not appear on any census until 1881. The link to his brother William is through George's oldest daughter, Selina, who is 6 on the 1881 census. However, her birth certificate shows her parents were actually William and Sarah, and was a twin to another daughter, Sophia, who died
Why Selina was handed over to her uncle and aunt we can only speculate - maybe Sarah was ill, maybe George's wife, also named Selina, had just lost a baby, who knows, but the link between William and George looks pretty concrete
George and Selina were married in 1872 in Wolverhampton. Thomas is shown as George's father - occupation Slater
George & Selina did go on to have several children, the first of which was not born until 1879, 7 years after their marriage which hints at a medical problem
I have a fairly complete record of the census records of Thomas and Elizabeth's family (where they appear) 1841-1911 which I will be glad to send to you
Regards
Phil