#1Nashville’s famous people span 174 years: 5 births from 1809 to 1983
Roy Cooper, the American attorney and politician, is the most widely known, written about in 30 languages. Second and third on the list are Harold Dunbar Cooley and Archibald Hunter Arrington. Per head, the list is long: 8.7 for every 10,000 residents, where the typical town in North Carolina has 1.8. The list’s best known name, Roy Cooper, dates from 1957.
What stands out about Nashville’s famous people
When Nashville’s famous people were born
The 1950s alone account for 1 of the births charted here.
Each dot is a person, stacked by the decade they were born.
Born in Nashville
The three best known are all leaders.
#1
#2Archibald Hunter Arrington
1809–1872American politician
What Nashville is known for
Leaders stand out most, at 2.9 times the usual share.
The usual town: the share across everyone born in the towns gathered so far. Tap a field to see its people.
Everyone else born in Nashville
Still to come: 2 more, from 1925 to 1983.
No one matches both filters.
Who’s the most famous person from Nashville?
Pick one and say why. Your answer becomes a post in Town Square.
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From Wikidata and Wikipedia: people whose birthplace is Nashville 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 (2)
- Roy Cooper: NCDOTcommunications, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Harold Dunbar Cooley: US Government Printing Office, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons