musician, composer, b. near Manchester, N.H. Showing an early interest in music, he studied for three years in Boston, and then traveled extensively through the East as a concert singer. After the loss of his voice, he turned to composing, and in 1859 moved to Wisconsin, settling in Racine and later in Elkhorn. Webster composed music for ballads, hymns, patriotic drama, and a cantata, and, in all, published fully 1,000 songs. Among his most popular compositions were "Lorena" (1857), sung by both Confederate and Union forces during the Civil War, and "In the Sweet Bye and Bye" (1868). A. C. Beckwith, Hist. of Walworth Co. (2 vols., Indianapolis, 1912); Wis. Mag. Hist., 37.

The Wisconsin Historical Society has manuscripts related to this topic. See the catalog description of the Joseph Philbrick Webster for details.

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[Source: Dictionary of Wisconsin biography]