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Famous people · Huntsville

Jimmy Wales and 37 more famous people were born in Huntsville

237 languages have an article about the co-founder of Wikipedia Jimmy Wales. With 8 performers, the list holds 2.3 times the share found across U.S. towns. The largest group, 19, was born between 1920 and 1969. The list comes to 1.7 for every 10,000 residents, below the 3 of the typical town in Alabama.

#2 best knownDebby RyanMusic · born 1993
+34more
Born here
38
notable people
Best known
Jimmy Wales
in 237 Wikipedia languages
First
1812
Percy Walker
Youngest
2003
Nick Dunlap
Most common field
Sports
14 people
Also called it home
5
notable residents

What stands out about Huntsville’s famous people

★ What stands out · The best known

Born in Huntsville

Ranked by languages covered: Jimmy Wales with 237, then Debby Ryan with 63 and Tallulah Bankhead with 53.

JW#1
Business

Jimmy Wales

born 1966

Co-founder of Wikipedia

237 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
Debby Ryan#2
Music

Debby Ryan

born 1993

American singer and actress

63 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
Tallulah Bankhead#3
Film, TV & Stage

Tallulah Bankhead

1902–1968

American actress

53 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
Through the years

When Huntsville’s famous people were born

More were born in the 1960s than in any other decade: 9.

A new nationMills & railroadsThe American centuryToday18001850190019502000Tallulah Bankhead
SportsFilm, TV & StagePolitics & LawMusicBusinessScience & MedicineMilitaryNotable

Each dot is a person, stacked by the decade they were born.

Known for

What Huntsville is known for

Set against the usual town, performers come out 2.3 times as common.

The usual town: the share across everyone born in the towns gathered so far. Tap a field to see its people.

Everyone

Everyone else born in Huntsville

Here are 35 more, born from 1812 to 2003.

Michael E. Brown

Michael E. Brown

born 1965

American planetary astronomer

Science & MedicineWikipedia ↗
FD

Felicia Day

born 1979

American actress

Film, TV & StageWikipedia ↗
Kim Dickens

Kim Dickens

born 1965

American actress

Film, TV & StageWikipedia ↗
Reg E. Cathey

Reg E. Cathey

1958–2018

American actor

Film, TV & StageWikipedia ↗
Terri Sewell

Terri Sewell

born 1965

American politician

Politics & LawWikipedia ↗
Margaret Hoelzer

Margaret Hoelzer

born 1983

American swimmer, Olympic silver medalist, world champion, former world record-holder

JuVaughn Harrison

JuVaughn Harrison

born 1999

American high jumper and long jumper

David Howard Thornton

David Howard Thornton

born 1979

American actor

Film, TV & StageWikipedia ↗
LeRoy Pope Walker

LeRoy Pope Walker

1817–1884

Confederate Army general

Viola Allen

Viola Allen

1867–1948

American actress

Film, TV & StageWikipedia ↗
Bryan Shelton

Bryan Shelton

born 1965

American tennis coach and former player

JoAnn H. Morgan

JoAnn H. Morgan

born 1940

American aerospace engineer

Science & MedicineWikipedia ↗
Bobby Eaton

Bobby Eaton

1958–2021

American professional wrestler

John Hunt Morgan

John Hunt Morgan

1825–1864

Confederate Army general

Paula Poundstone

Paula Poundstone

born 1959

American stand-up comedian

Film, TV & StageWikipedia ↗
Jeremiah Clemens

Jeremiah Clemens

1814–1865

U.S. Senator, novelist

Politics & LawWikipedia ↗
WS

Walter Sharpe

born 1986

American basketball player

BM

Bo Matthews

born 1951

American football player

BC

Bobby Cattage

born 1958

American basketball player

A chosen home

Also called Huntsville home

5 notable people born elsewhere made the town home, Wernher von Braun the best known.

Wernher von Braun

Wernher von Braun

1912–1977

German and later American aerospace engineer and space architect

Science & MedicineWikipedia ↗
VS

Vladimir Solovyov

born 1963

Russian television presenter

Film, TV & StageWikipedia ↗
Barbara Askins

Barbara Askins

born 1939

American chemist

Science & MedicineWikipedia ↗
James G. Birney

James G. Birney

1792–1857

American politician and Kentucky native

Politics & LawWikipedia ↗
LR

Ludwig Roth

1909–1967

German rocket scientist

Science & MedicineWikipedia ↗
The town’s pick

Who’s the most famous person from Huntsville?

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Next door

Famous people from the towns next door

Decatur leads the towns around it, with 50 names.

From Wikidata and Wikipedia: people whose birthplace is Huntsville and whose English Wikipedia article agrees, ranked by how many Wikipedia languages cover each person. People known mainly for crimes, and adult performers, aren’t listed. “The usual town” = everyone born in the towns gathered so far.

Photo credits (23)