#145 famous people were born in Pontarlier from 1597 to 2003
The best known is the French biathlete Lou Jeanmonnot, with articles in 27 languages. Behind the leader come Vincent Defrasne and Florence Baverel. Between 1914 and 1969, 18 were born, the most of any period. Pontarlier ranks 3rd of the 117 towns in Doubs with anyone listed.
What stands out about Pontarlier’s famous people
When Pontarlier’s famous people were born
The 1960s alone account for 9 of the births charted here.
Each dot is a person, stacked by the decade they were born.
Born in Pontarlier
Ranked by languages covered: Lou Jeanmonnot with 27, then Vincent Defrasne with 25 and Florence Baverel with 21.
#1
#2What Pontarlier is known for
Pontarlier has 1.3× the usual share of leaders.
The usual town: the share across everyone listed in French towns. Tap a field to see its people.
Everyone else born in Pontarlier
42 more names, born between 1597 and 2003.




Charles Antoine Morand
1771–1835General of the French army during the French Revolutionary Wars and Napoleonic Wars (1771-1835)










Charles-Albert Reichen
1907–1992Writer, teacher, lecturer, editor and translator (1907-1992)

Jean-Marie Thiébaud
born 1944French doctor and genealogist (born 1944)

Étienne François Philippe Demesmay
1772–1853French politician (1772-1853)
No one matches both filters.
Questions about famous people from Pontarlier
Who is the most famous person from Pontarlier?
Lou Jeanmonnot (French biathlete) is the best known by our measure: 27 Wikipedia and sister-site articles in different languages. Next come Vincent Defrasne and Florence Baverel.
How many famous people were born in Pontarlier?
45 people born in Pontarlier have a French Wikipedia article that confirms the town as their birthplace (and an English one that agrees, when there is one). Wikidata places 70 people here; the rest aren’t listed because an article names somewhere else or no town, or a check couldn’t be completed.
What is Pontarlier known for?
Among its famous people, leaders: 14 of the 45. That is 31% of the town’s list, against 24% across French towns.
Who is the earliest-born famous person from Pontarlier?
Jean-Jacques Fauche de Domprel, born in 1597. The youngest on the list was born in 2003.
Who counts as from Pontarlier?
People whose Wikidata birthplace is Pontarlier itself, matched by its INSEE code (a commune merged into it counts when the dates allow), whose French Wikipedia article agrees, and their English article too when they have one. A hospital or neighbourhood recorded without its commune isn’t matched. People who only lived here, adult performers and people known mainly for crimes aren’t listed.
Why is someone missing?
Their Wikidata birthplace may be a hospital, a neighbourhood or a wider area, another commune, or missing, or their articles may not name a birthplace. We only list people the sources agree on; editing Wikidata or Wikipedia changes this page at the next refresh.
From Wikidata (CC0: birthplaces, descriptions, years, occupations, how many Wikipedia and sister-site articles cover each person) and French and English Wikipedia (each person’s articles confirm the birthplace; linked, not quoted). Birthplaces are matched to the commune by INSEE code and its history of mergers (INSEE COG 2026). Ranked by the number of articles. Fields are read from Wikidata’s description and occupations. “The usual town”: everyone listed across French towns. Portraits: each person’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the license below (our copy, resized).
Photo credits (18)
- Lou Jeanmonnot: Pavel Hrdlička (Czech Wikipedia user Packa ), CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Vincent Defrasne: Jarle Vines Jarvin, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Célia Aymonier: Cephas, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- François Braud: Granada, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Anouk Faivre-Picon: Zian Cordier, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Charles Antoine Morand: Unknown author Unknown author, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Hélène Louvart: Vera de Kok, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Philippe Grenier: Unknown author Unknown author, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Michaël Isabey: User:Arnaud 25, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Marine Dupuis: Dacoucou, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Boris Boillon: Touhami_Abdouli_&_Boris_Boillon.jpg : Ministère des Affaires Etrangères Tunisien derivative work: Jack Rabbit Slim's, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- René Carré-Bonvalet: René Carré-Bonvalet (1875-1953)., CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Auguste Demesmay: Ludovic Péron, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Pierre Bichet: Atelierbichet, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Éric Liegeon: TrisHR, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Charles-Albert Reichen: Portulan, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Jean-Marie Thiébaud: PLOCHAD, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Serge Filippini: Brvbrv, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Contains public sector information under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab): INSEE, DGFiP, the Interior Ministry’s statistics service (SSMSI), the Ministry of Education (DEPP), the Health Ministry’s statistics service (DREES) and the Housing Ministry (Carte des loyers). Commune boundaries: IGN Admin Express.