List of people from Massachusetts

This is a list of people from Massachusetts. It includes both notable people born in the Commonwealth, and other notable people who are from the Commonwealth.

This list might be incomplete and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by expanding it with reliably sourced entries.

Architects[edit]

Charles Bulfinch, architect
William LeBaron Jenney, architect
Samuel McIntire, architect
Josep Lluís Sert, Spanish architect; Dean of Harvard Graduate School of Design

Artists[edit]

Frank Weston Benson, painter
John Singleton Copley, painter
Thomas Dewing, painter
Charles Dana Gibson
Duff Goldman, cake artist
Nancy Graves (1939–1995), sculptor, painter, engraver and film director
Childe Hassam, painter
Winslow Homer, painter
Peter Laird, co-creator of the comic book Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Fitzhugh Lane, painter
Jack Levine, painter
Shawn McManus, comic book artist
Willard Metcalf, painter
Tony Millionaire, cartoonist, illustrator
Lilla Cabot Perry (1848–1933), impressionist
Ted Rall, political cartoonist
Robert Reid, painter
René Ricard, poet, art critic, painter
Norman Rockwell, artist
Paul Ryan, cartoonist
Albert Pinkham Ryder, painter
Mark Shasha, painter, author
Stass Shpanin, visual artist listed in Guinness Book of World Records as world's youngest professional artist
Edward Simmons, painter
Frank Stella, artist
Andrew Stevovich, artist
Edmund Charles Tarbell, painter
Abbott Handerson Thayer, painter
James Abbott McNeill Whistler, artist
N. C. Wyeth (1882–1945), artist

Sculptors[edit]

Cyrus Edwin Dallin (1861–1944), sculptor; Olympic archer; namesake of Cyrus E. Dallin Art Museum
Daniel Chester French (1850–1931), neoclassical sculptor

Athletes[edit]

Kim Adler, bowler
Harry Agganis, baseball player
Kiko Alonso, football player
Tony Amonte, hockey player
Prince Amukamara, football player
Jim Arvanitis, martial artist, MMA trainer
Paul Azinger, golfer, television commentator
Jerry Azumah, football player
Jeff Bagwell, baseball player
Tom Barrasso, hockey player
Dana Barros, basketball player
Shawn Bates, hockey player
David Bavaro, football player
Mark Bavaro, football player
Mark Bellhorn, baseball player
Joe Bellino, football player, Heisman Trophy winner
Jason Bere, baseball player
Mackenzy Bernadeau, football player
Travis Best, basketball player
David Blatt, Israeli-American basketball player and coach, most recently for the Cleveland Cavaliers
Ron Brace, football player
Andy Brickley, hockey player
Charles Brickley, football player and coach
Nick Buoniconti, football player
Joe Burns, baseball player
Chris Capuano, baseball pitcher
Mary Carew, sprinter, Olympic gold medalist
Michael Carter-Williams, basketball player
John Cena, professional wrestler
Jacques Cesaire, football player
Gosder Cherilus, football player
Jack Chesbro, Hall of Fame baseball player
Alex Cobb, baseball player
Mickey Cochrane, Hall of Fame baseball player
Chris Colabello, baseball player
Tim Collins, baseball player
Todd Collins, football player
Marc Colombo, football player
Tony Conigliaro, baseball player
Stephen Cooper, football player
Jim Craig, USA Olympic hockey player, 1980 Lake Placid
Honey Craven, equestrian
Candy Cummings, Hall of Fame baseball player
Ron Darling, baseball pitcher, television commentator
Vinny Del Negro, basketball player, head coach
Manny Delcarmen, baseball pitcher
Zak DeOssie, football player for New York Giants
Mike DeVito, football player for New York Jets
Art Ditmar, baseball pitcher
Oliver Drake, baseball pitcher
Rich Dubee, baseball coach
Matt Duffy, baseball player
Mike Eruzione, USA Olympic hockey player, 1980 Lake Placid
Patrick Ewing, Hall of Fame basketball player
Mark Fidrych, baseball pitcher, 1976 AL rookie of the year
Ray Fitzgerald, baseball player
Kenny Florian, UFC Fighter
Doug Flutie, NFL quarterback, CFL Hall of Famer, Heisman Trophy winner
Chris Gamble, football player
Breno Giacomini, football player
Mario Giannelli, football player
Peter Giunta, football coach
Tom Glavine, baseball pitcher
Brandon Gomes, baseball pitcher
Colin Grafton, figure skater
Tom Grieve, baseball player, sportscaster
Brent Grimes, football player
Josh Grispi, WEC fighter
Bill Guerin, hockey player
Marvin Hagler, champion boxer
Matt Hasselbeck, football player
Tim Hasselbeck, football player
Steven Hauschka, football player
Fran Healy, baseball player, announcer
Chris Herren, basketball player
Rich Hill, baseball pitcher
Erik Howard, football player
Emil Igwenagu, football player
James Ihedigbo, football player
Jarrett Jack, basketball player
Tim Keefe, 19th-century baseball pitcher
Nancy Kerrigan, Olympic figure skater
Joe Lauzon, UFC fighter
Peter Laviolette, hockey player, head coach
Erika Lawler, U.S Olympic women's hockey team
Michael Leach, tennis player
Dana LeVangie, baseball player, coach
Howie Long, Hall of Fame football player, sportscaster
Rocky Marciano, undefeated heavyweight boxer
Lou Merloni, baseball player
Alex Meyer, Olympic open water swimmer
Mike Milbury, hockey player and coach
Wayne Millner, Hall of Fame football player and coach
Joe Morris, football player
Nerlens Noel, basketball player
Ryan O'Rourke, baseball player
Kassim Osgood, football player
Jay Pandolfo, hockey player
Craig Patrick, hockey player
Carlos Peña, baseball player
Joe Philbin, football coach
Brian Piccolo, football player
Tom Poti, hockey player
John Quinlan, professional wrestler
Aly Raisman (born 1994), Olympic gymnast
Jeff Reardon, baseball player
Jerry Remy, baseball player, broadcaster
Jim Renner, golfer
Jorge Rivera, UFC fighter
Richard Rodgers, football player
Jeremy Roenick, hockey player
Annette Rogers, sprinter, Olympic gold medalist
Dan Ross, football player
David Sacco, hockey player
Joe Sacco, hockey player
Alicia Sacramone, Olympic gymnast
Anthony Sherman, NFL player
Simon Shnapir, Olympic medalist pairs skater
Jarrod Shoemaker, triathlete
Craig Smith, basketball player
Lofa Tatupu, football player
Keith Tkachuk, hockey player
Jordan Todman, football player
Mark van Eeghen, football player
Noah Vonleh, basketball player
Pete Walker, baseball pitcher, coach
Micky Ward, boxer
Turk Wendell, baseball pitcher
Jerry White, baseball player
Jermaine Wiggins, football player
Brian Wilson, baseball pitcher
Mark Wohlers, baseball pitcher
Wilbur Wood, baseball pitcher
Antoine Wright, basketball player
Paul Wylie, Olympic figure skater

Business[edit]

Sheldon Adelson, chief executive officer of Las Vegas Sands Corp.
Michael Bloomberg, founder of Bloomberg L.P.
Amar Bose, inventor
Edward Goodwin Burnham, industrialist, Connecticut state senator
Safra A. Catz, president of Oracle Corporation
John S. Chen, chief executive officer of BlackBerry Ltd.
Al Davis, former owner of the Oakland Raiders (deceased 2011)
Elias Hasket Derby, reportedly America's first millionaire
William C. Durant, founder of General Motors and Chevrolet
John Wesley Emerson, founder of the Emerson Electric Company
Aaron Feuerstein, inventor
Reed Hastings, chief executive officer of Netflix
Elias Howe, inventor of the sewing machine
Irwin M. Jacobs, co-founder and former chairman of Qualcomm
Howard Deering Johnson, founder of the Howard Johnson's chain
Leo Kahn, co-founder of Staples Inc.
Robert Kraft, owner of the New England Patriots
Jeffrey Lurie, owner of the Philadelphia Eagles
George Swinnerton Parker, founder of Parker Brothers games
Sumner Redstone, entertainment mogul
Henry Huttleston Rogers, industrialist
Jack Welch, chief executive officer of General Electric (1981–2001)
Eli Whitney, inventor of the cotton gin and interchangeable parts
Oliver Winchester, founder of the Winchester Repeating Arms Company
Robert Wolf, Chairman and CEO of UBS's Group Americas division

Crime[edit]

Entertainment[edit]

Comedians[edit]

Orny Adams, comedian, actor, Teen Wolf
Fred Allen, radio comedian
Anthony Barbieri, comedy writer and performer, Jimmy Kimmel Live!
Mike Birbiglia, comedian
Andrew Bowen, comedian, MADtv
Bo Burnham, comedian
Bill Burr, comedian, actor
Louis C.K., comedian, actor, director, Louie
Mario Cantone, comedian
Steve Carell, comedian, actor, The Office US
Robert Carlock, producer, writer, 30 Rock
Jessica Chaffin, comedian and actor, The Heat
Lenny Clarke, comedian and actor, Rescue Me
Dane Cook, comedian and actor; Retaliation, Harmful If Swallowed (Arlington)
Nate Corddry, comedian, actor, The Daily Show
Rob Corddry, comedian, actor, The Daily Show
Bill Cosby, comedian, actor, producer, The Cosby Show
Rob Delaney, comedian, writer
Jamie Denbo, comedienne, actress, Terriers
Nick DiPaolo, comedian
Rachel Dratch, comedienne, Saturday Night Live
John Ennis, comedian, actor, Mr. Show with Bob and David
Spike Feresten, comedy writer, television personality
Christian Finnegan, comedian, actor, Are We There Yet?
Gary Gulman, comedian
Pete Holmes, comedian, comedy writer, television personality, voice-over actor
Penn Jillette, comedian, illusionist, juggler, writer
Mindy Kaling, comedian, actress The Office US, The Mindy Project
Robert Kelly, comedian, actor, NYC 22
Jen Kirkman, comedian, actress, writer, SuperNews!
John Krasinski, comedian, actor The Office US
Denis Leary, comedian and actor
Jay Leno, comedian and talk show host
Jason Mantzoukas, comedian and writer, The League
Matt Mira, comedian, writer, and podcaster
Eugene Mirman, comedian and writer, Bob's Burgers
BJ Novak, comedian, actor, head writer of The Office US
Conan O'Brien, comedian and talk show host
Patrice O'Neal, comedian, writer
John Pinette, comedian, actor
Amy Poehler, comedian, actress, Parks and Recreation
Paula Poundstone, comedian
Joe Rogan, comedian, actor
Faith Salie, comedian, actress, radio host, Significant Others
Matt Selman, writer, producer, The Simpsons
Jenny Slate, comedian, actress, Saturday Night Live
Doug Stanhope, comedian
Steve Sweeney, comedian and actor
Jimmy Tingle, comedian and actor
Nancy Walls, comedian, actress
Steven Wright, comedian, actor (Burlington)

Television and film[edit]

Ben Affleck, Oscar-winning screenwriter, director and actor; Good Will Hunting, The Town, Argo (Cambridge)
Casey Affleck, actor
Jack Albertson, Academy Award-winning actor
Jane Alexander, Emmy and Tony Award-winning actress
Christopher Allport, actor
Shawn Andrews, actor
John Ashton, actor
Elizabeth Banks, actress
Susan Batson, actress, producer
Michael Beach, actor
Paul Benedict, actor
Traci Bingham, actress, model
Vail Bloom, actress
Verna Bloom, actress
Eric Bogosian, actor, playwright; Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Talk Radio (Woburn)
Ray Bolger, actor
Walter Brennan, Academy Award-winning actor
Paget Brewster, actress
Phil Brown, actor
Wally Brown, actor
Jere Burns, actor
Steve Carell, The Office, The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Anchorman (Acton)
Richard Carle, actor
Corey Carrier, actor
Max Casella, actor
Peggy Cass, actress, comedian
John Cena, WWE Champion (West Newbury)
Kevin Chapman, actor
Michael Chiklis, actor
Etan Cohen, screenwriter
Misha Collins, actor
Jennifer Coolidge, actress
Nate Corddry, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, Studio 60 (Weymouth)
Rob Corddry, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, (Weymouth)
Marcia Cross, Desperate Housewives (Marlborough)
Monique Gabriela Curnen, actress
Jane Curtin, actress
Matt Damon, Academy Award-winning screenwriter and actor; Good Will Hunting, The Bourne Identity, The Departed (Cambridge)
Bette Davis, actress
Geena Davis, Academy Award-winning actress; Thelma and Louise (Wareham)
Ken Doane, WWE Superstar (Worcester)
Ed Donovan, Monster, Acts of Mercy (South Boston)
Jeffrey Donovan, actor; Burn Notice (Amesbury)
Illeana Douglas, actress
Rachel Dratch, Saturday Night Live (Lexington)
Anne Dudek, actress
Olympia Dukakis, Academy Award-winning actress
Eliza Dushku, actress
Richard Dysart, actor
Lisa Edelstein, actress
Ben Edlund, producer, writer
Charles H. Eglee, Emmy Award-winning television producer and writer
Lee Eisenberg, producer, writer
John Enos III, actor
Kathryn Erbe, actress
Chris Evans, Fantastic Four (Sudbury)
Guy Ferland, film and television director
Betty Field, actress
Alison Folland, actress
Ben Foster, actor
Arlene Francis, actress
Samuel Fuller, director, screenwriter
Sabina Gadecki, model, actress
Christos Gage, screenwriter
Pamela Gidley, actress
Ray Girardin, actor
Paul Michael Glaser, actor, director
Nick Gomez, director
Ruth Gordon, actress
Sprague Grayden, actress
Ari Graynor, actress
Adam Green, actor, director, screenwriter
Lynnie Greene, actress, writer, producer
Clark Gregg, actor, screenwriter
Scott Grimes, actor
Paul Guilfoyle, actor
Anthony Michael Hall, actor
Pooch Hall, actor
Neil Hamilton, actor
Jane Hamsher, film producer
Ziad Hamzeh, director, writer, producer
Van Hansis, actor
Jay Harrington, actor
Jesse Heiman, actor
John Michael Higgins, actor
Nichole Hiltz, actress
Marin Hinkle, actress
Judith Hoag, actress
John Hodgman, The Daily Show, "I'm a PC" in Get a Mac (Brookline)
Hal Holbrook, actor
Ann Jillian, actress
Amy Jo Johnson, actress
Chris J. Johnson, actor
JoJo, actress, singer
Jennifer Jostyn, actress
Madeline Kahn, actress, singer
Mindy Kaling, Cambridge (The Office)
Ben Karlin, Needham (The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, The Colbert Report)
David E. Kelley, Emmy Award-winning writer and producer
Jean Louisa Kelly, actress
Arthur Kennedy, actor
John Krasinski, The Office (Newton)
Ben Kurland, The Artist (Newton)
Denis Leary, Rescue Me (Worcester)
Matt LeBlanc, Friends (Newton)
Rex Lee, actor
Jack Lemmon, Academy Award-winning actor
Jay Leno, The Tonight Show (Andover)
Joseph E. Levine, producer
Richard Libertini, actor
Alexander Mackendrick, director
Nora Marlowe, actor
Erica McDermott, actress
Neal McDonough, actor
Richard McGonagle, actor
Melinda McGraw, actress
Ed McMahon, The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, Star Search (Lowell)
Terrence E. McNally, actor
Julie McNiven, actress
Maria Menounos, Entertainment Tonight, Extra (Medford)
Jan Miner, actress
William Monahan, screenwriter
Agnes Moorehead, Emmy Award-winning actress
David Morse, actor
Robert Morse, actor, singer
Ebon Moss-Bachrach, actor
Bridget Moynahan, actress
Peter Murnik, actor
Donna Murphy, actress
Alexandra Neil, actress
Barry Newman, actor
Julianne Nicholson, actress
Leonard Nimoy, Star Trek, IMAX voiceover (Boston)
Alessandro Nivola, actor
Edward Norton, American History X, Fight Club (Boston)
B.J. Novak, The Office (Newton)
Conan O'Brien, Late Night with Conan O'Brien (Brookline)
Tricia O'Kelley, actress
Gretchen Palmer, actress
Benjamin John Parrillo, actor
Estelle Parsons, Academy Award-winning actress
Adrian Pasdar, actor
Elizabeth Perkins, actress
John Bennett Perry, actor
Matthew Perry, actor
Rebecca Pidgeon, actress
Joseph Pilato, actor
Maryann Plunkett, actress
Amy Poehler, Saturday Night Live, Parks and Recreation (Burlington)
Ellen Pompeo, Old School, Grey's Anatomy (Everett)
Robert Preston, actor
Alan Rachins, actor
Natalie Ramsey, actress
Joseph D. Reitman, actor
James Remar, actor
Patrick Renna, actor
Robert Richardson, Academy Award-winning cinematographer
Alex Rocco, actor
Eli Roth, director, screenwriter, actor; Hostel (Newton)
Harold Russell, Academy Award-winning actor
Kurt Russell, actor, Escape from New York (Springfield)
Damien Sandow, born Aaron Haddad, professional wrestler
Alex Schemmer, actor
Taylor Schilling, actress
Fred J. Scollay, actor
Tom Everett Scott, actor
John Slattery, actor
Hillary B. Smith, actress
Paul L. Smith, actor
Talisa Soto, actress
James Spader, Emmy Award-winning actor; The Blacklist, Boston Legal (Boston)
Andrew Stanton, director, screenwriter, producer
David Starzyk, actor
Skipp Sudduth, actor
Erik Per Sullivan, actor
Liam Kyle Sullivan, the "Kelly" Skits (Boston)
Julie Taymor, director
Casey Patrick Tebo, director
Robin Thomas, actor
Uma Thurman, actress, Pulp Fiction, Kill Bill (Amherst)
TJ Thyne, actor
Maura Tierney, actress
Nancy Travis, actress
Jonathan Tucker, actor
Paige Turco, actress
Anne Twomey, actress
Steven Tyler, actor, musician, TV personality (Lynn, Marshfield)
Steven Van Zandt, actor
Donnie Wahlberg, actor and musician
Mark Wahlberg, actor and former musician; Entourage, The Departed, Ted (Dorchester)
Nancy Walls, Saturday Night Live, The Office (Cohasset)
Barbara Walters, television journalist and personality (Boston)
Johnny Washbrook, child actor
Sam Waterston, actor
William A. Wellman, Academy Award-winning director
Lyle R. Wheeler, Academy Award-winning art director (Woburn)
Brian J. White, actor, dancer
Kristen Wilson, actress
Alicia Witt, actress (Worcester)
Kenny Wormald, dancer, actor
George Wyner, actor
Greg Yaitanes, director
Michael Yebba, actor, screenwriter
Rob Zombie, The Devil's Rejects (Haverhill)

Radio[edit]

Dean Barnett, occasional fill-in radio host for Hugh Hewitt
Liane Hansen, senior host of NPR's Weekend Edition Sunday
Ray and Tom Magliozzi, of Car Talk
Leslie Marshall, radio talk host
Henry Joseph Nasiff Jr., former Howard Stern Show regular
Ryen Russillo, sports radio host
Paul Sullivan, radio talk host

Hosts, sportscasters, and television personalities[edit]

Tom Bergeron, television personality and game show host
Michelle Bonner, ESPN SportsCenter and ESPNEWS anchor
Susie Castillo, MTV VJ and 2003 Miss USA
Liz Claman, anchor for Fox Business Network's Countdown to the Closing Bell
Bertha Coombs, general assignment reporter for CNBC
S. E. Cupp, conservative pundit and Crossfire panelist
Fred Cusick, play-by-play announcer for the Boston Bruins
Arwa Damon, video correspondent for CNN International and CNN based in Iraq
Damien Fahey, MTV VJ
Josh Gates, explorer and host of Destination Truth on Syfy network
John King, CNN chief national correspondent
Steve Kornacki, political commentator on MSNBC and host of Up
Josh Lewin, play-by-play announcer for the Texas Rangers
Maria Menounos, television presenter for Entertainment Tonight and Access Hollywood
Dave O'Brien, ESPN sportscaster
Lawrence O'Donnell, political commentator on MSNBC and host of The Last Word
Don Orsillo, play-by-play announcer for the Boston Red Sox
Gil Santos, WBZ, voice of the New England Patriots
John Sencio, host of Cash In The Attic for HGTV, an MTV VJ during 1990s, actor and musician
George Stephanopoulos, chief political correspondent for ABC News, co-anchor of Good Morning America
Lesley Visser, sportscaster, Boston Globe sportswriter, co-host of The NFL Today
Suzyn Waldman, sportscaster for WCBS-AM and color commentator for the New York Yankees
Mike Wallace, television personality and journalist, 60 Minutes correspondent
Barbara Walters, television personality and journalist, The View creator and co-host

Founders[edit]

John Adams, born in Braintree
Samuel Adams, born in Boston
Benjamin Franklin, born in Boston
John Hancock, born in Braintree
Pilgrims, the first settlers
Elizabeth Poole, foundress of Taunton, in 1637; the first woman to have founded a town in the Americas

Literature[edit]

Herbert Baxter Adams, educator, historian
Louisa May Alcott, author, Little Women (Concord)
Horatio Alger, Jr., author
Amelia Atwater-Rhodes, author, In the Forests of the Night, Demon in my View (Concord)
Mike Barnicle, journalist
Peter Beinart, journalist (Cambridge)
Edward Bellamy, author and socialist
James Bennet, editor-in-chief of The Atlantic
Elizabeth Bishop, poet (Worcester)
Anne Bradstreet, poet
William Cullen Bryant, poet
Augusten Burroughs, Running with Scissors (Amherst)
Robert Ellis Cahill, folklorist, author, some three dozen books on New England history and lore (Salem)
John Casey, author
Robert Cormier, author, columnist (Leominster)
Bernard Cornwell, created Richard Sharpe (Chatham)
E. E. Cummings, poet (Cambridge)
Stephen Daye, printer
Emily Dickinson, poet (Amherst)
E. J. Dionne, liberal op-ed columnist for The Washington Post (Boston)
W. E. B. Du Bois, author, editor, historian, The Souls of Black Folk (Great Barrington)
Andre Dubus III, author
Will Durant, writer, historian, philosopher (North Adams)
Gordon Edes, sports journalist
Dave Eggers, author
Ralph Waldo Emerson, poet, Nature, The Transcendentalist (Concord)
Dan Fitzpatrick, author (Fairhaven, Shelburne Falls)
Robert Frost, poet (Lawrence)
Linda Gaboriau, dramaturg and literary translator (Boston)
Nicholas Gage, writer and journalist (Worcester)
John Kenneth Galbraith, author, educator, and public official
Khalil Gibran, artist, poet, writer
George Gilder, author, intellectual (Tyringham)
Edward Gorey, author and illustrator
Nathaniel Hawthorne, author, The Scarlet Letter (Salem)
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr., poet and essayist (Cambridge)
Helen Maria Hunt Jackson, author
Sebastian Junger, author, journalist
Janice Kaplan, novelist, magazine editor
Jack Kerouac, author, On the Road (Lowell)
Ronald Kessler, journalist, author, In the President's Secret Service (Belmont)
Peter King, sportswriter, author
Jonathan Kozol, author, educator, activist
Stanley Kunitz, poet, Poet Laureate of the United States (Worcester)
Peter Laird, comic book creator of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
Timothy Leary, psychologist, author, Turn On, Tune In, Drop Out (Springfield)
Dennis Lehane, author
Mark Leibovich, journalist and author, The New Imperialists (Boston)
Henry Cabot Lodge, author and public official
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807–1882), author
James Russell Lowell, poet (Fireside Poets)
Michael Patrick MacDonald, author, activist, All Souls (South Boston)
William Manchester, author and biographer
Stephen McCauley, The Object of My Affection (Woburn)
Susan Minot, novelist, short story writer (Boston, Manchester)
Robin Moore, author, The Green Berets (Boston)
Marvin Olasky, author, editor-in-chief of WORLD Magazine
Charles Olson, poet (Worcester)
Thomas Paine, Common Sense
Robert B. Parker, author (Springfield)
Bliss Perry, literary critic, writer, editor (Williamstown)
Daniel Pipes, author, In the Path of God (Boston, Cambridge)
Sylvia Plath, poet, author, and essayist, The Bell Jar (Boston)
Edgar Allan Poe, author and poet, "The Raven", "The Fall of the House of Usher" (Boston)
Douglas Preston, author, The Book of the Dead (Cambridge)
John Rennie, editor-in-chief of Scientific American magazine
R.A. Salvatore, author (Leominster)
George Santayana, philosopher, essayist, poet, novelist, The Life of Reason (Boston)
Daniel Scott, author, Some of Us Have to Get Up in the Morning, Pay This Amount (Braintree)
Horace Scudder, man of letters, editor
Dr. Seuss, born Theodor Seuss Geisel, author, poet and illustrator (Springfield)
Anne Sexton, poet (Newton)
Mark Shasha, author
Dan Shaughnessy, sportswriter (Groton)
Kyle Smith, film critic, novelist, essayist
Jeff Stein, columnist
Michelle Tea, Rent Girl (Chelsea)
Henry David Thoreau, philosopher, author, Walden (Concord)
John Updike
Edith Wharton, author
John Greenleaf Whittier, poet and abolitionist
Thomas E. Woods, Jr., author, historian (North Andover)
Jane Yolen, author

Military[edit]

Maxfield, Jared P, Civil War Maxfield, Jared P., Private, res: Lowell, 21, clerk, enlistered and mustered Nov 22, 1861; commissioned 2d Lieutenant from 1st Sergeant Feb 14, 1863; mustered to date Apr 18, 1863;

Clarence Lionel Adcock, US Army, deputy to General Lucius D. Clay in 1946
George Bancroft, Secretary of the Navy and founder of the US Naval Academy
William Francis Buckley, US Army officer and CIA operative; died in 1985 while being tortured by the Islamist group Hezbollah
George W. Casey, Jr., US Army general and Chief of Staff of the United States Army
Christopher Cassidy, US Navy SEAL, NASA astronaut
Joseph Dunford, United States Marine Corps general, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under Barack Obama
John Wesley Emerson, Civil War commander
General John Galvin, retired US Army; former dean of The Fletcher School at Tufts University
Adolphus Greely, Polar explorer, US Army officer and recipient of the Medal of Honor
Cyprian Howe (1726–1806), colonel in the American Revolutionary War
Elmer J. Rogers, Jr. (1903–2002), United States Air Force lieutenant general

Music[edit]

Classical music[edit]

John Coolidge Adams (born 1947), composer (contemporary classical with strong roots in minimalism)
Samuel Adler, composer and conductor, lived and studied for a time in Massachusetts before moving to New York
Leroy Anderson (1908–1975), composer of short, light concert pieces
Leonard Bernstein, conductor, composer, author, music lecturer and pianist of Ukrainian Jewish descent
Sarah Caldwell (1924–2006), opera conductor, impresario and stage director of opera
Michael Gandolfi, composer of contemporary classical music
Serge Koussevitzky (Russian: Сергей Александрович Кусевицкий), born in Russia, composer and conductor Boston Symphony Orchestra; professor to Leonard Bernstein, Samuel Adler and Sarah Caldwell
Yo-yo Ma, cellist
Walter Piston (1894–1976), composer, music theorist and professor of Italian-American descent
Roger Sessions (Roger Huntington Sessions, 1896–1985), composer, critic and teacher
Randall Thompson (1899–1984), composer of choral works

Rock and other music[edit]

Akrobatik, rapper
Nuno Bettencourt, singer and guitarist of Extreme
Tracy Bonham, alternative rock musician
Bobby Brown, singer
Michael Burkett (also known as Fat Mike), singer, bassist of NOFX and owner of Fat Wreck Chords, born in Massachusetts
Neil Cicierega, singer and internet cult icon
Ray Conniff, easy-listening recording artist
Rich Cronin, singer, LFO
Danny Davis, country musician
Brad Delp (deceased), lead singer of former bands Boston, RTZ
Nicole Fiorentino, bass guitarist of The Smashing Pumpkins
John Flansburgh, half of They Might Be Giants
Stephen Foster, composer of folk and traditional music
Barry Goudreau, guitars, backing vocals for Boston, RTZ, Ernie and the Automatics
Norman Greenbaum, singer
Tom Hamilton, bassist for Aerosmith
Kay Hanley, singer (Letters to Cleo)
Sib Hashian, drums, percussion, backing vocals for Boston, RTZ, Ernie and the Automatics
Juliana Hatfield, guitarist, singer-songwriter
Pete Francis Heimbold, of Dispatch
JoJo, singer
Sonya Kitchell, singer-songwriter
Joey Kramer, drummer for Aerosmith
Jordan Knight, singer-songwriter
Phil Labonte, singer, All That Remains
Aaron Lewis, lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of Staind
John Linnell, one half of They Might Be Giants
Mary Lou Lord, singer, guitarist
Taj Mahal, blues musician
J Mascis, singer-songwriters, guitarist for Dinosaur Jr
Andrew McMahon, singer, pianist
Jo Dee Messina, country artist
Angie Miller, singer, songwriter
Mike Ness, guitarist, vocalist, songwriter for Social Distortion
Taecyeon Ok, actor, model, and member of South Korean pop group 2PM.
Joe Perry, guitarist, singer for Aerosmith, The Joe Perry Project
Linda Perry, singer-songwriter
Wanda Perry-Josephs, singer
Bobby "Boris" Pickett, singer ("Monster Mash")
Rachel Platten, singer-songwriter
Ruth Pointer, singer-songwriter of the Pointer Sisters
Jonathan Richman, singer-songwriter in The Modern Lovers
David Robinson, drummer, The Cars
Tom Scholz, musician, composer for the band Boston
Carly Simon, musician, singer, composer
Slaine, hip-hop MC
Spider One, singer
Billy Squier, rock musician
Donna Summer, singer-songwriter
James Taylor, singer-songwriter, instrumentalist
Meghan Trainor, singer-songwriter
Chad Stokes Urmston, of Dispatch
Brad Whitford, singer, guitarist for Aerosmith
Alan Wilson, guitarist and singer for the band Canned Heat
Rob Zombie, singer, director

Native people[edit]

King Philip (Metacomet), war chief of the Wampanoag
Crispus Attucks (see below)
Samoset
Tisquantum (better known as Squanto)
Caleb Cheeshahteaumuck, first Native American graduate of Harvard University
Passaconaway, Pennacook sachem originally lived in Essex County
Massasoit, chief of the Wampanoag in 1621
Squaw Sachem, female tribal chief, sold her tribe's land, site of Winchester, Massachusetts^[1]

People involved in the American Revolution[edit]

John Adams, revolutionary, later President
Samuel Adams, revolutionary
Crispus Attucks, first casualty of the war
John Glover, revolutionary general
John Hancock
James Otis
Robert Treat Paine
William Prescott
Paul Revere, revolutionary
Deborah Sampson, soldier
Artemus Ward, general, judge, statesman
Dr. Joseph Warren, revolutionary

Public office[edit]

See Governor of Massachusetts for a complete list of governors from 1620 to the present.

John Adams, 2nd U.S. president and 1st vice president
John Quincy Adams, 6th U.S. president
Joe Arpaio, sheriff of Maricopa County in Arizona
Michael Bloomberg, Mayor of New York City
James Bowdoin, colonial governor
Edward Brooke, U.S. Senator
Andrew Card, State Rep., U.S. Secretary of Transportation, White House Chief of Staff
Paul Cellucci, governor and U.S. Ambassador to Canada
Calvin Coolidge, mayor, state representative, senator and governor, 30th U.S. president
P.J. Crowley, Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs under President Obama
James Michael Curley, Mayor of Boston and Governor of Massachusetts
Susan Davis, U.S. representative of California
Paul Douglas, senator of Illinois (1949–1967)
Michael Dukakis, governor and 1988 Democratic nominee for president
Edward Everett, 15th Governor of the Commonwealth; U.S. Secretary of State; remembered for his two-hour speech at Gettysburg before Abraham Lincoln's two-minute one
Thomas Finneran, Speaker of the Massachusetts House of Representatives (1996–2004)
Richard Goodwin, speechwriter for John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, and Robert F. Kennedy; congressional investigator
John Hancock, Governor of Massachusetts and President of the Continental Congress
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., justice of the U.S. Supreme Court
Thomas Hutchinson, governor
Edward Kennedy, U.S. Senator
John F. Kennedy, U.S. Congressman, U.S. Senator, 35th U.S. president
Robert F. Kennedy, U.S. Attorney General and U.S. Senator (New York)
John Forbes Kerry, U.S. Senator, 2004 Democratic nominee for president, Secretary of State under President Obama
Harold Hongju Koh, Legal Adviser of the Department of State under President Obama
David Kris, Assistant Attorney General under President Obama
Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr., U.S. Senator, U.S. Ambassador, and 1960 Republican nominee for Vice-President
Ed Markey, Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives
Gina McCarthy, EPA Administrator under President Obama
Thomas Menino, longest-serving mayor of Boston
Ernest Moniz, U.S. Secretary of Energy under President Obama
Tip O'Neill, 55th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives (1977–1987)
Peter R. Orszag, Director of the Office of Management and Budget under President Obama
Frances Perkins, U.S. Secretary of Labor (1933–1945) and first woman appointed to the U.S. Cabinet
Orlando B. Potter, New York City congressman (1883–1885)
Mitt Romney, former governor (2003–2007), 2012 Republican nominee for U.S. president
Cass Sunstein, Administrator of the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs under President Obama
John E. Sununu, former Senator of New Hampshire
Jane Swift, first and only female governor of Massachusetts
John A. Volpe, U.S. Secretary of Transportation under President Nixon and Governor of Massachusetts

Religion[edit]

Francis Ellingwood Abbot, philosopher and theologian
Richard Alpert (Ram Dass), spiritual teacher
Russell Conwell, Baptist minister, orator, philanthropist, lawyer, and writer
Mary Baker Eddy, founder of Christian Science
Ralph Waldo Emerson, Unitarian and Transcendentalist
Louis Farrakhan, Nation of Islam leader
Edward Everett Hale, religious leader
John Harvard, clergyman and namesake of Harvard University
Bernard Francis Law, archbishop and cardinal
Emmanuel Lemelson, Greek Orthodox priest, investor and philanthropist
Cotton Mather, minister
Increase Mather, minister
Dwight Lyman Moody, evangelist
Edmund Sears, Unitarian parish minister who penned "It Came upon the Midnight Clear" in 1849
Samuel Webber, clergyman, mathematician, and academic

Science[edit]

Cyrus Alger, metallurgist, arms manufacturer and inventor
Ethan Allen, co-inventor of the single-action revolver
Jerome Apt, astronaut
Nima Arkani-Hamed, theoretical physicist
Elliot Aronson, psychologist
Charlotte Barnum, mathematician
Alexander Graham Bell, inventor
Luther Burbank, horticulturist
William Burt, inventor, surveyor, and millwright
Vannevar Bush, engineer, inventor and science administrator
Roderick Chisholm, philosopher
Michael Cohen, first doctor to diagnose Proteus syndrome
Morris Cohen, metallurgist
William D. Coolidge, physicist
William Healey Dall, naturalist, malacologist
Daniel Dennett, cognitive scientist and philosopher
Benjamin Franklin, scientist and public official
Robert Goddard, inventor
Temple Grandin, doctor of animal science and professor at Colorado State University
Frederick Hauck, NASA astronaut
Elias Howe, inventor
Dan Itse, chemical engineer and New Hampshire public official
Melvin Johnson, prominent firearms designer
Richard Karp, computer scientist, computational theorist
Alan Kay, computer scientist
Nathaniel S. Keith, manufacturer, chemist, inventor, and electrical engineer
Robert Lanza, medical doctor, scientist
Erasmus Darwin Leavitt, Jr., mechanical engineer
Henrietta Swan Leavitt, astronomer
Gilbert N. Lewis, physical chemist, discovered covalent bonds
Richard Lindzen, atmospheric physicist
Arthur Little, chemist and chemical engineer
Percival Lowell, astronomer
John McCarthy, computer scientist, cognitive scientist
Albert Abraham Michelson, physicist, first American to receive the Nobel Prize in science
Samuel Finley Breese Morse, inventor and artist
William T.G. Morton, dentist and physician
Richard Muther, industrial engineer
Lloyd Ohlin, sociologist and criminologist
Jacob Perkins, inventor, mechanical engineer and physicist
Gregory Pincus, scientist, developed birth-control pill
Albert Sacco, chemical engineer and Payload Specialist for NASA
John Henry Schwarz, theoretical physicist
Andrew Strominger, theoretical physicist
Benjamin Thompson, physicist and inventor
Edward Thorndike, psychologist
Janice E. Voss, engineer, NASA astronaut
Worcester Warner, mechanical engineer, astronomer
Samuel Wellman, inventor of the crucible steel furnace
Daniel Wesson, firearms designer
Charles Abiathar White, geologist, paleontologist
Frank C. Whitmore, chemist
Eli Whitney, inventor
Kenneth G. Wilson, theoretical physicist
John Winthrop, mathematician, physicist, astronomer
Robert Wood, physicist, inventor
Sewall Wright, geneticist

Others[edit]

Susan B. Anthony, reformist
F. Lee Bailey, attorney
Harvey Ball, inventor of the smiley face
David Bossie, president of conservative political action committee Citizens United
Nathaniel Bowditch, mathematician
Stephanie Cutter, Democratic Party operative
Donald Davidson, philosopher
Becky DelosSantos, Playboy Playmate of the Month, April 1994
Dan Duquette, General Manager of the Baltimore Orioles
Elizabeth Fox-Genovese, feminist historian
Elizabeth Freeman, slave in Sheffield; sued for and won freedom on basis of state constitution, 1781
William Lloyd Garrison, abolitionist
Charles Garry, civil rights attorney
Isaac Greenwood, mathematician
Kevin Hassett, economist, specializing in macroeconomics and tax policy
Abbie Hoffman, political activist, member of the Chicago Seven
Shawnae Jebbia, Miss USA 1998
Connie Mack, manager of the Philadelphia Athletics
Horace Mann, educationist and abolitionist
Grover Norquist, president of advocacy group Americans for Tax Reform
Charles Sanders Peirce, logician, mathematician, philosopher, and scientist
Carroll Quigley, historian and theorist of the evolution of civilizations
Nathaniel Raymond, human-rights investigator and anti-torture advocate
Ed Rollins, Republican campaign consultant and advisor
Lothrop Stoddard, political scientist, historian, journalist, anthropologist, eugenicist
Charles Pomeroy Stone, soldier, explorer, and engineer
Quock Walker, slave in Worcester County; won freedom on basis of state constitution, 1781
Capt. Marty Welch, schooner captain

Famous politicians and other residents[edit]

Abigail Adams, advocate for women's rights and against slavery; second First Lady; wife of John Adams; mother of John Quincy Adams
John Adams, 1st Vice President of the U.S., 2nd President of the U.S., 1800 Federalist presidential nominee
John Quincy Adams, Congressman, Senator, 6th President of the U.S.
Samuel Adams, patriot in the American Revolutionary War
Clara Barton, founder of the American Red Cross^[2]
James "Whitey" Bulger, leader of The Winter Hill Gang awaiting trial*William Bulger, former President of the Massachusetts State Senate and former president of the University of Massachusetts
George H. W. Bush, 43rd Vice President of the U.S., 41st President of the U.S.
Paul Cellucci, Governor and United States Ambassador to Canada
Calvin Coolidge, 29th Vice President of the U.S., 30th President of the U.S.
James Michael Curley, Governor, Congressman, Mayor of Boston
Michael Dukakis, Governor, 1988 Democratic presidential nominee
Mark Foley, disgraced U.S. Congressmanl born in Newton
Abby Kelley Foster, suffragist and abolitionist
Margaret Fuller, feminist
Elbridge Gerry, Congressman, Governor, 5th Vice President of the U.S., namesake of gerrymandering
John Hancock, Governor, President of the Continental Congress
Abbie Hoffman, political activist and founder of the Yippies
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., Supreme Court Justice
Edward M. Kennedy, U.S. Senator, 1980 Democratic presidential candidate
John F. Kennedy, U.S. Senator, 35th President of the U.S.
Robert F. Kennedy, U.S. Senator (representing New York), 1968 Democratic presidential candidate
John F. Kerry, incumbent U.S. Secretary of State, U.S. Senator, 2004 Democratic presidential nominee
Henry Cabot Lodge, U.S. Senator, led the Senate opposition to the League of Nations
Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr., U.S. Senator, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N., 1960 Republican vice presidential candidate
Barry McCaffrey, four-star Army General, Drug Czar
John W. McCormack, Speaker of the United States House of Representatives
Tip O'Neill, Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives
Paul Revere, Patriot in the American Revolution
Theodore Sedgwick, President pro tempore of the Senate, Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives
Lucy Stone, suffragist and abolitionist
Paul Tsongas, U.S. Senator, 1992 Democratic presidential candidate
Henry Wilson, U.S. Senator, 18th Vice President of the U.S.

Inventors[edit]

Alexander Graham Bell, telephone (Salem)
Sir Tim Berners-Lee, Internet; MIT professor (Lexington)
Rachel Fuller Brown, antibiotics (Springfield )
Robert Goddard, "father of modern rocketry" (Worcester)
Charles Goodyear, vulcanized rubber (Woburn)
Sylvester Graham, graham cracker (Northampton)
Elias Howe, sewing machine (Spencer)
Samuel Morse, Morse code (Charlestown)
Benjamin Thompson, Rumford fireplace, thermal underwear (Woburn)
An Wang, inventor, computer engineer, co-founder of Wang Laboratories
Eli Whitney, cotton gin (Westborough)

References[edit]

^ http://www.winchestermass.org/sachemp3.html
^ "The Story of My Childhood". World Digital Library. 1907. Retrieved October 9, 2013.

[1] ttp://www.winchestermass.org/sachemp3.html

[WDL-2] "The Story of My Childhood". World Digital Library. 1907. Retrieved October 9, 2013.

[1]

[2]