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Famous people · Sparta

14 famous people were born in Sparta, more of them leaders than in most towns

James W. Throckmorton, the American politician, is the most widely known, written about in 10 languages. 5 of them were born in the early republic, more than in any other period. From Joseph H. Defrees in 1812 to Ethan Roberts in 1997, the births cover 185 years. Per head, the list is long: 28.3 for every 10,000 residents, where the typical town in Tennessee has 2.9.

#1 best knownJames W. ThrockmortonPolitics & Law · 1825–1894
+10more
Born here
14
notable people
Best known
James W. Throckmorton
in 10 Wikipedia languages
First
1812
Joseph H. Defrees
Youngest
1997
Ethan Roberts
Most common field
Sports
7 people

What stands out about Sparta’s famous people

★ What stands out · Known for

What Sparta is known for

Set against the usual town, leaders come out 1.7 times as common.

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 Sparta

Two of the three are leaders.

James W. Throckmorton#1
Politics & Law

James W. Throckmorton

1825–1894

American politician

10 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
Foster V. Brown#2
Politics & Law

Foster V. Brown

1852–1937

American politician

6 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
George Gibbs Dibrell#3
Military

George Gibbs Dibrell

1822–1888

Confederate Army general

6 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
Through the years

When Sparta’s famous people were born

Count by decade and the 1820s come out on top, with 2 births.

A new nationMills & railroadsThe American centuryToday18001850190019502000Tom RogersFoster V. BrownJames W. Throckmorton
SportsPolitics & LawMilitaryFilm, TV & Stage

Each dot is a person, stacked by the decade they were born.

Everyone

Everyone else born in Sparta

Still to come: 11 more, from 1812 to 1997.

RB

Robert Broyles

1933–2011

American actor

Film, TV & StageWikipedia ↗
John C. Floyd

John C. Floyd

1858–1930

American politician

Politics & LawWikipedia ↗
Joseph H. Defrees

Joseph H. Defrees

1812–1885

American politician

Politics & LawWikipedia ↗
DF

Dale Farley

1949–2019

American football player

ER

Ethan Roberts

born 1997

American baseball player

KH

Kellie Harper

born 1977

American basketball player-coach

BJ

Bill Johnson

1936–2020

American football player

Lefty Stewart

Lefty Stewart

1900–1974

American baseball player

FA

Frank G. Anderson

1891–1985

American football player and coach

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From Wikidata and Wikipedia: people whose birthplace is Sparta 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 (8)