William Barclay Foster (1779–1855) was the father of Stephen Foster and a notable businessman in his time. He was one of the most prosperous merchants of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He was a Pennsylvania state legislator and served three terms. He was also elected mayor of Allegheny City twice in his lifetime. He has been identified as a "patriot", a "lover of home" and an "outstanding servant to his community, state and government".
Founder of Lawrenceville, PA, Politician, and father of Stephen Collins Foster
Stephen Collins Foster, known as "the father of American music", was an American composer known primarily for his parlour and minstrel music during the Romantic period. He wrote more than 200 songs, including "Oh! Susanna", "Hard Times Come Again No More", "Camptown Races", "Old Folks at Home", "My Old Kentucky Home", "Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair", "Old Black Joe", and "Beautiful Dreamer", and many of his compositions remain popular today.
Foster circa 1860
Foster's parents, Eliza Tomlinson Foster and William Barclay Foster
House in Hoboken, New Jersey where Foster is believed to have written "Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair" in 1854
A Pittsburgh Press illustration of the original headstone on Stephen Foster's grave