Reuben Foster, the first Mayor of the city of Waterville, was born in Bethel, Maine in 1833 and graduated from Waterville (Colby) College in 1855.
Following graduation, he spent one year as the Principal of Vanceboro Academy before studying law and being admitted to the bar in 1858.
From that time on he practiced law in Waterville until his death on October 12, 1898.
Foster was a painstaking lawyer who spent a considerable amount of his time buying and selling real estate until he had accumulated rather substantial holdings.
Foster was elected to the Maine House of Representatives serving in 1866, 1867 and 1870 until he moved up to the Senate in 1871.
Reuben Foster was among that handful of Maine politicians who served as both Speaker of the House and President of the Senate, following the man in whose office he read the law before being admitted to the bar, J.H. Drummond of Portland, as Speaker in 1870 and serving as presiding officer of the upper body in 1872.