Famous North Carolinians
These are just a few of the famous people who were either born in North Carolina or spent some important time in North Carolina.
Clay Aiken, singer
Maya Angelou, poet and novelist
Fantasia Barrino, singer
Ezell Blair Jr., aka Jibreel Khazan, one of the Greensboro 4 civil rights activists
William Blount, signer of U.S. Constitution
David Brinkley, TV journalist
Curtis Brown, astronaut
Bud Carson, football coach
Levi Coffin, underground railroad proponent
John Coltrane, jazz musician
Howard Cosell, TV sports commentator
Virginia Dare, first child born of English parents in the New World
Stephen Davis, football player
Jake Delhomme, football player
Cecil B. DeMille, movie producer
Adolph Dial, historian and politician
Elizabeth Dole, U.S. senator and political leader
Aubrey Dollar, actress
Charlie Duke, astronaut
Dale Earnhardt Jr., race car driver
Dale Earnhardt Sr., race car driver
Kerry Earnhardt, race car driver
Teresa Earnhardt, race car manager
Clyde Edgerton, novelist
John Edwards, U.S. senator and vice presidential candidate
The Embers, rock group
Sam Ervin, U.S. senator
Roberta Flack, singer
Ben Folds Five, rock group
DeShaun Foster, football player
John Fox, football coach
John Hope Franklin, historian
Henry Frye, first African-American chief justice of North Carolina Supreme Court
Chris Gamble, football player
Ava Gardner, actress
Kaye Gibbons, novelist
Billy Graham, religious leader
Jake Green, actor
Andy Griffith, singer and actor
Jordan Gross, football player
Jerome Gundrum, aka Dr. Root Beer, root beer maker
Jesse Helms, U.S. senator
Jim “Catfish” Hunter, baseball player
Andrew Jackson, U.S. president
Wes Jackson, plant geneticist
Andrew Johnson, U.S. president
Brad Johnson, football player
Marion Jones, track star
Michael Jordan, basketball player
Charlie “Choo-Choo” Justice, football player
Jack Kasay, football player
Charles Kuralt, TV journalist
Meadowlark Lemon, basketball player
Sugar Ray Leonard, boxer
Leonard Little, football player
Ken Lucas, football player
Dolley Madison, U.S. first lady
Franklin McCain, one of the Greensboro 4 civil rights activists
Marlon McCree, football player
Daniel McFadden, Nobel Prize-winning economist
Joseph McNeil, one of the Greensboro 4 civil rights activists
John Merrick, founder of North Carolina Mutual Insurance
Mike Minter, football player
Jeff Mitchell, football player
Thelonious Monk, jazz pianist
Dan Morgan, football player
Armand Morin, Internet marketing expert
Muhsin Muhammad, football player
Edward R. Murrow, TV journalist
Maureen Orcutt, golfer
Benny Parsons, NASCAR driver
Julius Peppers, football player
Gaylord Perry, baseball player
Kyle Petty, race car driver
Lee Petty, race car driver
Richard Petty, race car driver
James K. Polk, U.S. president
William Sydney Porter, aka O. Henry, short story writer
Jaime Pressly, actress
Ricky Proehl, football player
Sam Ragan, journalist and North Carolina poet laureate
Conrad Reed, discovered first gold nugget in the U.S.
Jerry Richardson, football owner
Mark Richardson, football team president
David Richmond, one of the Greensboro 4 civil rights activists
Marcus Robinson, football player
Charlie Rose, TV journalist
Mike Rucker, football player
Terry Sanford, North Carolina governor and U.S. senator
Todd Sauerbrun, football player
Earl Scruggs, blue grass musician
Arthur Smith, country music musician and composer
Michael Smith, astronaut
Steve Smith, football player
Richard Dobbs Spaight, signer of U.S. Constitution and North Carolina governor
Squirrel Nut Zippers, rock group
Todd Steussie, football player
Bruce Stewart, author
James Taylor, singer and songwriter
Bob Timberlake, painter
Doc Watson, folk music musician
Chris Weinke, football player
Hugh Williamson, signer of U.S. Constitution
Thomas Wolfe, novelist
Other famous North Carolinians: http://www.secretary.state.nc.us.
