Edwin Augustus Harleston: A Pioneer of Black Portraiture Edwin Augustus Harleston (March 14, 1882 – May 10, 1931) stands as a remarkable figure in American art history—a testament to artistic ambition coupled with unwavering commitment to racial justice. Born in Charleston, South Carolina, to Louisa Moultrie Harleston and Edwin Gaillard Harleston, a prosperous former coastal schooner captain who owned the Harleston Funeral Home, his early life was shaped by familial heritage rooted in free people of color—a lineage tracing back several generations—and paternal influence from a white planter.…