Rhode Island African American Data   EDWARD MITCHELL BANNISTER This gifted artist was not a citizen of Newport, but a frequent visitor. He was related by marriage to some of Newport's older families. Bannister was born in St. Andrews, N. B. in November, 1828, and died in Providence, January 9th, 1901. As a child he early showed signs of interest in art. Moving to Providence, he eventually opened a studio. His work attracted favorable attention. He became one of the founders of the Providence Art Club. He painted more than one hundred (100) pictures, some still to be seen in several Newport homes. His picture, "Under the Oaks," a scene on the William Goddard Farm, took first prize in Philadelphia at the Centennial Exposition in 76. It later sold for $1,500.   Source: Negroes of Rhode Island, by Charles A. Battle, 1932 - Transcribed by C. Anthony