Walter Kempster (1841-1918) was born in London, England, and died in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. During the Civil War, he served in the 12th New York Volunteer Infantry and in the 10th New York Cavalry, rising to the rank of 1st lieutenant. He obtained his medical degree from Long Island College Hospital (1864). In 1867, he was appointed as assistant physician at the State Lunatic Asylum in Utica, New York, serving until 1873. He then moved to Wisconsin to serve as superintendent of the Northern Hospital for the Insane at Oshkosh, serving until 1884. At Oshkosh he continued his research on brain tissue and also studied the effects of various drugs on the insane. In 1884, he moved to Milwaukee, where he continued to operate a private practice. He was a nationally known expert on mental disorders and was a witness for the prosecution in the trial of Charles J. Guiteau, who assassinated President James A. Garfield. From 1894-1898, he served as Milwaukee health commissioner, and while living in Milwaukee, taught at the Wisconsin College of Physicians and Surgeons. There is no record of Kempster studying with Mary Baker Eddy or uniting with the Church of Christ (Scientist).

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