#1Famous people · Roanoke
Of the 9 famous people born in Roanoke, an unusual share are athletes
At the top of the list is the American football linebacker Reuben Foster, covered in 7 languages. The next two names are Bradley Bozeman and Stanley O'Neal. Between 1920 and 1969, 5 were born, the most of any period. 2 of them were born since 1970.
Born here
9
notable people
Best known
Reuben Foster
in 7 Wikipedia languages
First
1870
William Henry Holtzclaw
Youngest
1994
Bradley Bozeman
Most common field
Sports
5 people
What stands out about Roanoke’s famous people
★ What stands out · Known for
What Roanoke is known for
The field furthest above the usual share is athletes, at 1.6 times.
The usual town: the share across everyone born in the towns gathered so far. Tap a field to see its people.
Through the years
When Roanoke’s famous people were born
No decade has more births than the 1990s, at 2.
SportsWriting & ArtsBusinessNotable
Each dot is a person, stacked by the decade they were born.
The best known
Born in Roanoke
Two of the three are athletes.
#1
#2SO#3
Everyone
Everyone else born in Roanoke
6 more names, born between 1870 and 1956.
No one matches both filters.
The town’s pick
Town Square →Who’s the most famous person from Roanoke?
Pick one and say why. Your answer becomes a post in Town Square.
Your pick
No picks yet
Be the first to say who Roanoke’s most famous person is.
Or tell us
From Wikidata and Wikipedia: people whose birthplace is Roanoke 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 (5)
- Reuben Foster: All-Pro Reels, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Bradley Bozeman: All-Pro Reels, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Ruth Laxson: BurnAway, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- George Eddy: Alliance Internationale, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- William Henry Holtzclaw: William Henry Holtzclaw from his book Black Man's Burden digitzed by NYPL, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons