12/05/2025
When you walk into Webb’s Pharmacy in downtown Rochester, chances are owner Harry Webb will greet you with a warm smile. For nearly 40 years, he has been a trusted pharmacist, small-business owner, and neighbor, continuing a pharmacy legacy rooted in Rochester for more than 160 years.
Webb’s Pharmacy is the longest continuously operating business in Fulton County. Its downtown roots date back to the 1860s, and Webb is proud to uphold that history.
“We survive by being service-oriented, not product-oriented,” he said. “We have product, but it’s the service that gets people in the door.”
Webb didn’t inherit a pharmacy - he built a life around one. He grew up in Monticello and graduated from Purdue University in 1982, entering a field already shifting toward large corporate chains.
“I went to pharmacy school hoping to own my own store someday,” he said. “Even back then, it wasn’t common. Chains were growing like gangbusters. But I wanted a personal connection with patients.”
After starting with the independent Ribordy Drugstore chain, Webb moved to Rochester in 1985. “We felt welcomed right from the start,” he said. “Growing up in Monticello, I spent a lot of time on Lake Freeman, so Lake Manitou attracted me. I wanted to live near or on the water.”
Since then, Webb has expanded the business. He purchased the Akron location in 1995 and opened a North Manchester store in 2018. With three pharmacies and a new pharmacist on staff, Webb now focuses more on managing operations than filling prescriptions.
“It’s freed me up to focus on processing and developing the businesses,” he said.
Pharmacies face increasing challenges, Webb notes. “Prices are going through the roof, and pharmacies are squeezed by benefit managers. It’s put a lot of places out of business.” Despite the pressure, Webb remains committed to service.
Webb’s offers prescriptions, home medical equipment, mobility and bath safety items, CPAP and oxygen services, nutritional supplement classes, cholesterol and blood pressure screenings, diabetes education and a cheerful gift shop.
“It’s amazing when people come in - even weekly visitors - and say it’s their first time here,” he said with a laugh. Webb stays motivated by focusing on the positive.
“There’s always something bad happening, so I try to keep my attention on the positives,” he said. One of his favorite quotes captures his outlook: “Rather than love, than money, than faith, than fame, than fairness, give me truth.”
He appreciates small-town life. “The best thing about living in small towns is people are nice and trying to make things better in the community,” he said.
Webb’s advice for staying healthy is simple: “Exercise your mind and body. Try to get some activity every day. Challenge your brain - it’s like any other muscle and needs exercise.”
Grateful for decades of community support, Webb encourages anyone who hasn’t visited Webb’s Pharmacy to stop by. “Rochester has truly become home,” he said. “I just try to make the place better than when you found it.”
With deep roots, steady leadership and a heart for service, Harry Webb continues to uphold a legacy that has shaped downtown Rochester for more than 160 years.
By Lori Carr, STaff Writer.
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