#1Of the 12 famous people born in Sparta, an unusual share are leaders
Deke Slayton, the American astronaut, is the most widely known, written about in 40 languages. Second place goes to the American historian Doane Robinson, third to Edgar Stillman Kelley. 5 of them were born between 1920 and 1969, more than in any other period. For every 10,000 residents the town has 12.1, while at least half the towns in Wisconsin list nobody born there.
What stands out about Sparta’s famous people
What Sparta is known for
Sparta has 1.6× the usual share of leaders.
The usual town: the share across everyone born in the towns gathered so far. Tap a field to see its people.
Born in Sparta
Three names lead: Deke Slayton (40 languages), Doane Robinson (9) and Edgar Stillman Kelley (9).
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#3Edgar Stillman Kelley
1857–1944American composer, conductor, teacher, and writer on music
When Sparta’s famous people were born
The 1920s top the chart, with 2 births in the decade.
Each dot is a person, stacked by the decade they were born.
Everyone else born in Sparta
Still to come: 9 more, from 1869 to 1979.


Roy Willard Ranum
1898–1990American politician – Minnesota -Senate 1943-46 (District 54)
No one matches both filters.
Who’s the most famous person from Sparta?
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 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 (5)
- Deke Slayton: NASA, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Doane Robinson: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Edgar Stillman Kelley: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- William Hawley Atwell: St. Louis Globe-Democrat, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Tim Schendel: I, the copyright holder of this work, hereby publish it under the following license:, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons