U.S. Revenue–Marine service
On November 22, 1819, President Monroe appointed him captain in the
United States Revenue Marine, which position he held until his death. Secretary of the Treasury
William H. Crawford appointed him to his rank because of his "ability, intelligence, and zeal...and above all in consideration of the gallantry [he had] displayed during the late war." He was located in
Baltimore, Maryland, from 1819 to 1830, in
New Bern, North Carolina, for a few months, then on to
Norfolk, Virginia, from late 1830 to 1842. In 1842 he was stationed in
Wilmington, Delaware, and a year later he was sent to New York. After that Captain Webster did short duty back in Baltimore, then on to
Newport, Rhode Island;
New Orleans, Louisiana; and back to New York. On May 19, 1846, he was appointed as
commodore of the Revenue-Marine Atlantic Squadron, a fleet of eight Revenue-Marine cutters to cooperate with the U.S. Army and Navy in their operations on the Rio Grande, and against the city of
Vera Cruz in the War with Mexico. He chose as his flagship In December 1846, Webster contracted a fever and was sent home to recover. Then he served in
San Francisco, California, from July 1851 to August 1856. He later had command of in Baltimore. During his service, he lost his left thumb in an encounter with pirates at
Old Point Comfort. Webster served until 1865 when he was retired with full pay by special order of the Treasury Department as a reward for exceptional service. It was in San Francisco that Webster “had under my control on board , seventeen Japanese,” who had been plucked from the sea by those aboard the American freighter
Auckland. He befriended one of them, Joseph Heco, and recognized his potential to help with Perry's efforts to open Japan. “One of the members is a boy about 16 years. He is very intelligent and the best-conditioned youth I ever saw.” ==Personal life==