Joseph S. Ibbotson was born in Richfield Springs, New York, on June 17, 1907, to Joseph D. Ibbotson and Hedwig Tappe. [1] His father was a Presbyterian minister, librarian, and professor at Hamilton College in Clinton, New York. [2] He had two older brothers and one older sister. Joseph's German mother was a pianist who passed away when he was six. [2] Joseph spent part of his childhood with his mother's family in Wernigerode Am Harz, Germany. He attended Phillips Andover Academy in Brookline, MA, Hamilton College, Columbia University, and the University of Chicago. [2]

Ibbotson first worked as a New York Public Library reference librarian. He then served as an assistant professor and librarian at Colby College in Waterville, ME. Later he was an associate professor at the National College of Education while pursuing post-graduate studies at the University of Chicago. [2] Joseph served as the Library Director for the Rosenberg Library in Galveston, Texas, from 1936-1949, Fort Worth Library from 1949-1953, and Tacoma Public Library from 1953 until his retirement in 1971. The Tacoma Library Board named him Librarian Emeritus. [2] Joseph was the founder and first president of the Texas Library Association and he was a rotary member in both Texas and Washington. During his retirement, he became a WSU master gardener. [2]

Joseph married his first wife, Anna Mills, in 1930 and they remained married until her passing in 1980. He married Jaroslava Vojtech in 1988. He had two children. Ibbotson died on May 12, 1990. [3]