The Foster family members were residents of Ann Arbor and Lansing, Michigan. Theodore R. Foster was the first United States Senator from Vermont. The family later moved to Ann Arbor, then Scio Township in Washtenaw County, Michigan. One of the sons Theodore Foster was editor of an abolition newspaper. In 1856, this Theodore Foster moved to Lansing, Michigan when he was appointed superintendent of the Boys' Vocational School. Two of his sons served in the Civil War, Charles T. Foster who was killed in 1862, and Seymour Foster who served in Company B, Second United States Sharpshooters. After the war, Seymour Foster returned to Lansing, became interested in real estate and Republican Party politics. He was elected city clerk then city treasurer. In 1893, he was elected a member of the legislature. He served as Lansing postmaster from 1889 to 1893 and from 1897 to 1914. His wife was Mary Woodward. Their son was Theodore G. Foster, a Lansing realtor, but who as a hobbyist became interested in local history and the genealogy of his family.
The Foster family line merged with the Pattengill line in 1912 with the marriage of Theodore G. Foster and Margaret Irene Pattengill. Margaret Irene Pattengill was the daughter of Henry R. Pattengill. His wife was Elizabeth Sharpsteen.
Vincent R. Pattengill, son of Henry R. Pattengill, was also a Lansing realtor in partnership with his brother-in-law Theodore G. Foster.
From the guide to the Pattengill Family papers, 1767-1963, (Bentley Historical Library, University of Michigan)
