Famous Rhode Islanders
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Edward Bannister |
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Ambrose Burnside Civil War general and West Point graduate. |
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George M. Cohan Singer, dancer, producer, actor, playwright, and composer - the only composer to receive the Congressional Medal of Honor. |
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Ann Smith Franklin The first female newspaper editor in the United States. |
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Nathanael Greene Revolutionary War general, second-in-command to George Washington. |
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Esek Hopkins First commander-in-chief of the Continental Navy. |
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Stephen Hopkins |
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Anne Hutchinson The first woman to establish a town in America; Portsmouth, Rhode Island. |
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Sissieretta Jones African American opera star used her voice to break barriers. |
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Napolean Lajoi The American League's first batting champion and an inductee in the Baseball Hall of Fame. |
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Oliver Hazard Perry Hero of the Battle of Lake Erie (1813). |
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Samuel Slater Father of the American textile industry |
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Gilbert Stuart Foremost painter of portraits of George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and James Monroe. |
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Roger Williams Clergyman, advocate of religious freedom, and founder of Rhode Island. |