Definition of Joseph jenkins roberts

Roberts, born a free man of American ancestry, was raised in Norfolk, Virginia, United States. He moved to Petersburg, Virginia where he worked in his family's boating business.

In 1829 his family moved to Liberia and established a trading store in Monrovia. In 1839, Roberts became Liberia's lieutenant governor and afterwards, its governor (1841–1848). He is known as the father of Liberia and helped Liberia win its independence in 1847.