The town of Longview, Texas was founded in 1870, when O. H. Methvin deeded to the Southern Pacific Railroad one hundred acres of land. A surveyor, laying out the town from Methvin's homesite on Rock Hill, observed the exceedingly long view of the surrounding area and thus, the name of Longview was determined. Situated in the beautiful piney woods of East Texas, Longview's population in the 1990 was listed as 70, 311.

A Longview Male and Female Institute was established and began classes on September 7, 1874, with tuition ranging from $2.00 to $3.00 per month. Outside of a few private schools such as this, Longview had no educational institutions until 1880, when a frame structure was erected at the intersection of Green and Tyler Streets. This school, as well as all other schools of this period, was supported partly by tuition, and partly by state funds for all grades except high school grades where pupils had to pay. By 1885 Longview had outgrown this building and a large frame building was erected on the southeast corner of Green and College Streets.

The earliest board minutes on file for Longview Public Schools begin with the year 1903. The Longview Independent School District was created by a special act of the 31st. Texas Legislature in March 1909. The district contained 1,300 students drawn from a population of about 8,000 according the Longview Chamber of Commerce. The original field notes of the district show that it embraced approximately sixteen square miles. In 1910 Longview District had 1,250 pupils and seventeen teachers with a school tax of twenty-five cents on $100 valuation.

On September 2, 1927, the Longview Independent School District executed a deed with Mary and G. H. Lasater purchasing property in the vicinity, again, of Green and College Streets. This property was for the erection of a brick building to house Longview High School, replacing the frame structure built in 1884.

In 1930, when oil was discovered in East Texas, school enrollment increased form 1,970 to 4,400 in a two year period. No oil had been discovered within the Longview School District. The East Texas oil field stopped just short of the school boundary lines. A financial crisis, due to the fact that the district was operating on a limited tax base with a state per capita payment of $17 per student, was intensified.

The main building housing Foster Middle School today was begun in 1927 and completed in 1929 and represented an investment of $130,000. At that time it was Longview Senior High School. The dedication read, "to the cause of education" and time has certainly proven this to be true as it has been in use continuously as a school since its construction.

The architect for this project was Elmer J. Withers of Fort Worth, Texas. The builder was the Christy-Dolph Construction Company of Dallas, Texas. Located on 6.3 acres on the corner of College and Green Streets, the original building contained sixteen classrooms, a homemaking room, library, clinic, office and auditorium. It was built of multi-colored brick, wood frame windows, and a red clay tile roof. It was used four years as a high school, then converted to a junior high school when a new high school was built on East Whaley Street in 1932.

The north wing of the building was used for elementary classes in the Fall of 1936 until the new South Ward Elementary School was completed.

The school building was also a center of community activity, having been used as a polling place and a temporary place of worship for various churches. The auditorium was used for Civic Music concerts, "Lion's Jollies", band concerts, and civic productions in the 1930's and 1940's.

Today this is the main building in a middle school complex serving seven hundred fifty students in grades six through eight. This complex consists of a separate annex built in 1946, a library built in 1974, and a band hall with attached gymnasium. In 1987, the building that housed Nicholson Memorial Library reverted to the Longview Independent School District when a new Longview Public Library was built in downtown Longview. This new addition to Foster's complex is now being used as additional classrooms and computer labs.

From 1932 to 1957, this school was known only as Longview Junior High since it was the only junior high school in town. When population growth required another junior high school to be built in the north part of the city in 1957, Longview Junior High School was renamed Henry L. Foster Junior High School after a former educator and superintendent of schools. In 1976, with the relocation of the ninth grade to the newly constructed Longview High School and the transfer of the sixth grade to elementary campuses from junior high campuses, the name was changed to Henry L. Foster Middle School.

The uniquely significant role this historical educational facility has played, is playing, and will play in the future, in the lives of thousands of past, present, and future students, stands as a continuous monument to education. 

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