The History of the Yakima Valley, Washington, Comprising Yakima, Kittitas and Benton Counties, The S.J. Clarke Publishing Co., 1919, Volume II, page 364 BENJAMIN A. BANNISTER. Benjamin A, Bannister, who has spent practically his entire life in the Yakima valley, has been successfully engaged in business as a druggist of Wapato since the fall of 1908, conducting the only establishment of the kind in the town. His birth occurred in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, in 1881, his parents being Frederick and Bessie (Forness) Bannister, who made their way westward to Washington in 1883 and took up their abode at Ellensburg, in Kittitas county, where the father devoted his time and energies to farming for many years. They both passed away there. Benjamin A. Bannister, who was but two years of age when brought to this state by his parents, acquired his education in the public schools of Ellensburg and Roslyn, Washington, the family home having been established at the latter place in 1889. In preparation for his chosen life work he took up the study of pharmacy under the direction of a physician and was subsequently employed as a drug clerk for a few years. In the fall of 1908 he carte to Wapato, purchased the bankrupt stock of F. D. Ralyan and has here remained in business as a druggist throughout the intervening decade, conducting the only store of the kind in the town. His establishment, thirty by sixty-five feet is most modern in its appointments and he carries a large stock of drugs and druggists' sundries to meet the demands of his many patrons. On the 6th of July, 1904, Mr. Bannister was united in marriage to Miss Marguerite Hodgson, of Roslyn, Washington. He gives his political allegiance to the republican party and is an interested and active member of the Wapato Commercial Club. Fraternally he is identified with the Masons, belonging to Lodge No. 171 in Wapato, while he is likewise connected with the lodge of the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks in Yakima and with Lodge No. 182 of the Knights of Pythias. As stated, he has been a resident of the Yakima valley throughout almost his entire life and has been an interested witness of its growth and development as the years have gone by, while his own efforts have contributed not only to his personal prosperity but to the upbuilding of the community as well. ******************************** Submitted to the Washington Bios Project in December 2007 by Jeffrey L. Elmer. Submitter has no additional information about the subject of this article.