Lámh Láidir an Uachtar
The O'Brien Family
Descendants of Brian Boru, High King of Ireland
From County Clare to Brooklyn to Caldwell — and Beyond
Miles Murtha O'Brien & Lillian Josephine Robertson
Married January 28, 1928 — Our Lady of Lourdes Church, Brooklyn
The O'Brien Family, circa 1946–1947.
Back: Jeanne, Barbara, Lillian Marie. Center: Miles holding a twin, Helen Grace, Lillian holding a twin.
The only photograph of the complete family with Helen Grace.
Six children. Three states. Two military officers. Nineteen grandchildren. And one more they took in — Lillian's youngest brother Joseph Jay, orphaned at four and raised as their own. This is the family that Miles the carpenter and Lillian the orphan built together — from a Brooklyn walk-up to a life in Caldwell, New Jersey, and from there across the country.
The Children
Select a family to explore their photos, records, and stories
Lillian Marie
1928 – 1995
Married Severino J. Ambrosio
Old Bridge & Parlin, New Jersey
Jeanne Marie
1930 – 1993
Married John L. Garrison
Longwood, Florida
Barbara Ann
1935 – 2022
Married Thomas K. Hamall
Atlanta & Peachtree City, Georgia
In Memoriam
Helen Grace
1940 – 1948
Forever eight years old
Named for her aunt Helen Gladys Robertson
Miles Murtha Jr.
1946 –
Identical Twin · Colonel, USAF (Ret.)
Warner Robins, Georgia
Michael Joseph
1946 –
Identical Twin · Lt. Colonel, USAF (Ret.)
Married Jacqueline Petras
Warner Robins, Georgia
Want the Full Story?
The O'Brien family saga — from Famine Ireland through four orphans, a hidden fortune, a U.S. Congressman, and a DNA reunion 150 years later — is told in the Hidden Bonds documentary biography series. The Robertson family story — Lillian's Scottish and Irish roots from Perthshire to Brooklyn — is told in Scattered Stones.