#1Famous people · Decatur
Scientists and doctors stand out among the 61 famous people born in Decatur
Most widely known is Alison Krauss, the American musician, with articles in 44 languages. Ivan Fuqua, the track and field athlete from America, comes second, with Nan Martin third. Born in 1878, Ira Waddell Clokey is the first name on record, and Isabelle Stadden, born in 2002, the most recent. Half or more of the towns in Illinois have no one on record, but this one has 8.7 for every 10,000 residents.
Born here
61
notable people
Best known
Alison Krauss
in 44 Wikipedia languages
First
1878
Ira Waddell Clokey
Youngest
2002
Isabelle Stadden
Most common field
Sports
25 people
What stands out about Decatur’s famous people
A town of scientists and doctors7 of the 61 people born here are scientists and doctors, 1.9× the usual share.Still making namesSince 1950, 30 of them have been born here, the latest in 2002.Known worldwideRead in 44 languages, Alison Krauss is known far beyond the town.61 notable peopleMore than most towns: 61 notable people were born in Decatur.
★ What stands out · Known for
What Decatur is known for
No other field is as far above the usual share as scientists and doctors, at 1.9 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 Decatur’s famous people were born
More of them were born in the 1970s than in any other ten years, 8 in all.
SportsWriting & ArtsFilm, TV & StageScience & MedicineMusicPolitics & LawNotable
Each dot is a person, stacked by the decade they were born.
The best known
Born in Decatur
Counted by languages, Alison Krauss is ahead of Ivan Fuqua and Nan Martin: 44, 19 and 19.
#1IF#2
#3Everyone
Everyone else born in Decatur
58 more, best known first.
John Doe
born 1954American singer, songwriter, actor, poet, guitarist and bass player
MusicWikipedia ↗
Emitt Rhodes
1950–2020American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and recording engineer
MusicWikipedia ↗
John A. Dossey
1944–2024United States academic, Ph.D. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign 1971
Science & MedicineWikipedia ↗
No one matches both filters.
The town’s pick
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Next door
Famous people from the towns next door
Around it, Mount Zion has the most people on record, 2 of them.
From Wikidata and Wikipedia: people whose birthplace is Decatur 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 (9)
- Alison Krauss: Original photo by Forrest L. Smith, III. Cropped by Sven Manguard at en.wikipedia, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Nan Martin: CBS Television, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Helen Ferguson: Studio of Nelson Evans, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- John Doe: zollo (Paul Zollo), CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Brian Culbertson: angela n. Washington, D.C., CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Luke Harangody: David Grau Llinares, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Edwin B. Willis: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Drew Blickensderfer: Zach Catanzareti, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Cecil Garriott: Unkknown, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons