#1Famous people · Plainfield
37 famous people were born in Plainfield, more of them musicians than in most towns
Bill Evans, the American jazz pianist, is the most widely known, written about in 51 languages. The largest group, 18, was born between 1920 and 1969. Over 218 years of births, the list goes from Daniel Drake (1785) to Brandon Jacobson (2003). Per head, the list is long: 6.7 for every 10,000 residents, where the typical town in New Jersey has 0.5.
Born here
37
notable people
Best known
Bill Evans
in 51 Wikipedia languages
First
1785
Daniel Drake
Youngest
2003
Brandon Jacobson
Most common field
Sports
9 people
Also called it home
2
notable residents
What stands out about Plainfield’s famous people
★ What stands out · Known for
What Plainfield is known for
The field furthest above the usual share is musicians, at 3.4 times.
The usual town: the share across everyone born in the towns gathered so far. Tap a field to see its people.
The best known
Born in Plainfield
Three names lead: Bill Evans (51 languages), Irving Penn (33) and Kenneth Ham (27).
#1
#2Writing & Arts
Irving Penn
1917–2009American photographer and photojournalist
33 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
#3Science & Medicine
Kenneth Ham
born 1964American astronaut and Captain in the United States Navy
27 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
Through the years
When Plainfield’s famous people were born
Births peak in the 1950s, with 8 people born in that decade.
SportsMusicWriting & ArtsPolitics & LawScience & MedicineFilm, TV & StageMilitaryNotable
Each dot is a person, stacked by the decade they were born.
Everyone
Everyone else born in Plainfield
The other 34 span the years 1785 to 2003.
No one matches both filters.
A chosen home
Also called Plainfield home
Born elsewhere, they lived here: 2 in all, led by Jerry Green.
The town’s pick
Town Square →Who’s the most famous person from Plainfield?
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Next door
Famous people from the towns next door
5 towns around it have someone on record.
From Wikidata and Wikipedia: people whose birthplace is Plainfield 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 (12)
- Bill Evans: Steve Schapiro, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Irving Penn: Harvey Shaman, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Kenneth Ham: NASA, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Mary McCormack: DannielleAsst, CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Jaren Jackson Jr.: Erik Drost, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Earl Clark: Mike, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Jay Williams: USAG- Humphreys, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Archibald Cox: Warren K. Leffler, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Thomas W. Osborn: Mathew Benjamin Brady / Levin Corbin Handy, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- John DiMaggio: Super Festivals, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Laura Prepon: Miguel Discart & Kiri Karma, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Matt Nagy: Adam Schultz, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons