FAMOUS MINNESOTANS
Minnesota has been the home of some very famous people! The list below shows some
of the important people who have graced our land whether they were born here, as most were, or spent the majority
of their time in our great State.
Charles Bender (1883 - 1954) The first pitcher in baseball to win six World Series
games; born in Crow Wing County.
Patty Berg (1918 - ) One of the greatest female golfers ever, founded the U.S. Ladies’ Professional Golfers’ Association;
born in Minneapolis.
William O. Douglass (1898 - 1980) The Longest-serving U.S. Supreme Court Justice; born in Maine.
Bob Dylan (1941 - ) Songwriter and singer whose songs of protest made him a hero to the civil-rights and student
movements of the 1960s; born in Hibbing
F. Scott Fitzgerald - b. September 24, 1896; d. February 21, 1940, Author Born in
St. Paul
Sinclair Lewis - b. 1885; d. 1951, Author
Francis Gumm [Judy Garland] - b. 1922; d. 1969, Actress. Born in Grand Rapids
F. Scott Fitzgerald (1896 - 1940) Author famous for his characters and sense of style as in The Great Gatsby; born
in St. Paul.
Jean Paul Getty - b. 1892; d. 1976 - Oil Barron, Business Owner. Richest Man in the World When he Died. Born in
Minneapolis
Hubert H. Humphrey (1911 - 1978), U. S. senator and vice president of the U. S. (1965 - 1969); Democratic candidate
for president, 1968; Minnesota Senator.
Garrison Keillor (1942 - ) Author and host of "A Prairie Home Companion"; born in Anoka.
Sinclair Lewis (1885 - 1951) The first American to win the Nobel Prize for literature, he wrote of small town life
such as Main Street; born in Sauk Centre.
Charles A. Lindbergh Jr. - b. February 4, 1902; d. August 26, 1974, Aviator, Inventor
John Madden (1936 - ) Emmy Award winning sport analyst and commentator and former coach of the Oakland Raiders;
born in Austin.
Roger Maris (1934 - 1985) Baseball player that while playing for the Yankees made history hitting 61 home runs
in a single season; born in Hibbing.
Charles H. Mayo (1865 - 1939) and William J. Mayo (1861 - 1939) Physicians who founded the Mayo Clinic in Rochester.
Eugene McCarthy (1916 - ) U.S. Senator from Minnesota. Professor, author, and poet; born in Watkins.
Walter Frederick Mondale (1928 - ) 42d vice-president of the United States (1977 - 1980); Democratic candidate
for president of the United States in 1984.
John S. Pillsbury (1827 - 1901) A leader in flour milling, he helped found the family company in Minneapolis in
1872; three-time Republican governor of Minnesota (1876 - 1882).
Charles Schulz (1922 - 2000) Cartoonist that created the comic strip Peanuts about Charlie Brown; born in Minneapolis.
Richard W. Sears (1863 - 1914) Founder of the Sears, Roebuck and Company; born in Stewartville.
DeWitt Wallace (1889 - 1981) Founder of the Reader’s Digest magazine; born in St. Paul.
Laura Ingalls Wilder - b. February 7, 1867; d. February 10, 1957, Author, Pioneer
More Famous People of Minnesota
LaVerne, Maxene, and Patti Andrews - singers, Minneapolis
Warren E. Burger - jurist, Saint Paul
William Demarest - actor, Saint Paul
James Earle Fraser - sculptor, Winona
Duane Hanson - sculptor, Alexandria
Jessica Lange - actress, Cloquet
Edward Lowe - inventor, Saint Paul
Cornell MacNeil - baritone, Minneapolis
E. G. Marshall - actor, Owatonna
Charles Horace Mayo surgeon, Rochester
Kate Millett - feminist, Saint Paul
Prince Rogers Nelson - singer, Minneapolis
Westbrook Pegler - columnist, Minneapolis
Jane Russell - actress, Bemidji
Winona Ryder - actress, Winona
Harrison E. Salisbury - journalist, Minneapolis
Kevin Sorbo - actor, Mound
Maurice H. Stans - secretary of commerce, Shakopee
Harold Edward Stassen - government official, Saint Paul
Michael Todd - producer, Minneapolis
Jesse Ventura - politician, entertainer, Minneapolis