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This is a list of famous and notable people who were born or lived in Mississippi.
[edit] Activists and advocates
- Curtis Conway "C.C." Bryant, African American civil rights leader, (Tylertown)
- James Chaney, African American civil rights worker, (Meridian)
- Vernon Dahmer, African American civil rights leader, (Hattiesburg)
- Charles Evers, African American civil rights leader, (Decatur)
- Medgar Evers, African American civil rights leader, (Decatur)
- Myrlie Evers, African American civil rights leader, (Vicksburg)
- Clarence LaVaughn "C.L." Franklin, African American civil rights leader, Baptist minister, Father of Aretha Franklin, (Shelby)
- Dianna Freelon-Foster, African American civil rights activist, Member of the Mississippi Civil Rights Education Commission, (Grenada)
- Fannie Lou Hamer, American voting rights activist, Civil rights leader, (Ruleville)
- Clyde Kennard, (Hattiesburg)
- James Meredith, First African-American student at the University of Mississippi, (Kosciusko)
- Anne Moody, (Centreville)
- Jody Renaldo, LGBT civil rights activist, founder Equality Mississippi, (Pearl)
- Ida B. Wells-Barnett, African American civil rights activist, Women's rights activist, (Holly Springs)
[edit] Actors/Actresses
- Mary Alice, (Indianola)
- Dana Andrews, (Covington County)
- Jimmy Boyd, (McComb)
- Lacey Chabert, (Purvis)
- Jason Dottley, actor in Sordid Lives stage production and Logo television series, (Florence)
- John Dye, (Amory)
- Morgan Freeman, (Greenwood)
- Allie Grant, (Tupelo)
- Gary Grubbs, (Amory)
- Lynn Hamilton, (Yazoo City)
- Beth Henley, (Jackson)
- Jim Henson, creator of The Muppets, (Leland)
- Anthony Herrera, (Wiggins)
- Eddie Hodges, (Hattiesburg)
- Don Jeffcoat, (Gulfport)
- James Earl Jones, (Arkabutla)
- Simbi Khali, (Jackson)
- Diane Ladd, (Meridian)
- Daniel Curtis Lee, (Clinton)
- Tom Lester, (Jackson)
- Shane McRae, (Starkville)
- Gerald McRaney, (Collins)
- Mary Ann Mobley, (Brandon)
- Parker Posey, (Laurel)
- Purvis Jon, (Laurel)
- Evelyn Preer, (Vicksburg)
- Thalmus Rasulala, (Arkabutla)
- Beah Richards, (Vicksburg)
- Eric Roberts, (Biloxi)
- Stella Stevens, (Yazoo City)
- James Michael Tyler, (Winona)
- Ray Walston, (Laurel)
- Sela Ward, (Meridian)
- James Wheaton, (Meridian)
- Oprah Winfrey, (Kosciusko)
[edit] Artists
- Rick Anderson, painter, children's book illustrator, (Clinton)
- Walter Inglis Anderson, painter, (Ocean Springs)
- Earl W. Bascom, painter and sculptor, (Columbia)
- Nadine Bascom, sculptor
- Howard Bingham, photographer, (Jackson)
- Bruce Brady, bronze sculptor, (Brookhaven)
- Terry Cherry, painter, Musician, (Porterville)
- William Dunlap, painter, (Webster County native)
- William Hollingsworth, Jr., painter, (Jackson)
- Alex Loeb, painter, (Meridian)
- George Ohr, potter, (Biloxi)
- Chase Quarterman, painter (Jackson)[1]
- Kim Sessums, bronze sculptor and painter, (Brookhaven)
- Floyd Shaman, sculptor, (Cleveland)
- Eudora Welty, primarily a writer but also known for her photography, (Jackson)
- Wyatt Waters, painter, (Clinton)[2]
[edit] Athletes and sports-related people
- Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf, (Gulfport)
- Lance Alworth, (Brookhaven)
- Lem Barney, (Gulfport)
- Earl W. Bascom, rodeo pioneer and champion, co-produced first rodeo in Columbia, Mississippi in 1935, designed and built Mississippi's first permanent rodeo arena and grandstands in 1936
- Texas Rose Bascom, rodeo trick rider and trick roper, toured world with Bob Hope as "World's Greatest Female Trick Roper", (Columbia)
- Weldon Bascom, rodeo pioneer and champion, co-produced first rodeo in Columbia, Mississippi
- Cool Papa Bell, (Starkville)
- Jonathan Bender, (Picayune)
- Ruthie Bolton, (Lucedale)
- Ralph Boston, (Laurel)
- Dennis Ray "Oil Can" Boyd, (Meridian)
- Jeff Brantley, former major-league pitcher, current ESPN analyst, played baseball at Mississippi State University, (Starkville)
- Terrell Buckley, (Pascagoula)
- Ellis Burks, (Vicksburg)
- Cooper Carlisle, (Greenville)
- Lee Calhoun, winner of two Olympic gold metals, (Laurel)
- Van Chancellor, (Louisville)
- Rod Coleman, (Vicksburg)
- Reggie Collier, (D'Iberville)
- Charlie Conerly, (Clarksdale)
- Joe Courtney, (Jackson)
- Erick Dampier, (New Hebron)
- Rod Davis, Carolina Panthers, (Gulfport)
- Dizzy Dean, (Wiggins)
- Ted DiBiase, former professional wrestler, (Clinton)
- Jim Dunaway, (Columbia)
- Marcus Dupree, (Philadelphia)
- Ronald Dupree, (Biloxi)
- Monta Ellis, (Jackson)
- Brett Favre, quarterback for the Green Bay Packers, (Kiln)
- David "Boo" Ferriss, pitcher for the Boston Red Sox, (Shaw)
- Tim Floyd, (Hattiesburg)
- Jim Gallagher, Jr., professional golfer, (Greenwood)
- Leslie Frazier, defensive coordinator for the Minnesota vikings (Columbus)
- Charles Gavin, (Laurel)
- Gerald Glass, professional basketball player, (Greenwood)
- Lancaster Gordon, (Jackson)
- Hugh Green, football, (Natchez)
- Litterial Green, (Pascagoula)
- Louis Green, (Vicksburg)
- L. C. Greenwood, (Canton)
- Cedric Griffin, football, (Natchez)
- Justin Griffith, (Magee)
- Bobby Hamilton, (Columbia)
- Othella Harrington, professional basketball player, (Jackson)
- Charlie Hayes, (Hattiesburg)
- Joe Horn, receiver for the Atlanta Falcons, (Tupelo)
- Lindsey Hunter, professional basketball player, (Utica)
- Al Jefferson, (Monticello)
- Matt Lawton, (Gulfport)
- Nook Logan, baseball, (Natchez)
- Ken Lucas, Carolina Panthers, (Cleveland)
- Kris Mangum, Carolina Panthers, (Magee)
- Archie Manning, (Drew)
- Danny Manning, (Hattiesburg)
- Justin Mapp, (Brandon)
- Shane Matthews, (Pascagoula)
- Deuce McAllister, (Morton)
- Antonio McDyess, (Quitman)
- Derrick McKey, former professional basketball player, (Meridian)
- Steve McNair, quarterback for the Tennessee Titans, (Mount Olive)
- Eric Moulds, (Lucedale)
- Steve Newsome, (Columbia)
- Jerious Norwood, (Jackson)
- Roy Oswalt, (Weir)
- Joe Owens, (Columbia)
- Claude Passeau, former major-league pitcher, (Lucedale)
- Eddie Payton, (Columbia)
- Walter Payton, (Columbia)
- Clinton Portis, (Laurel)
- Armintie Price, (Myrtle)
- Justin Reed, (Jackson)
- Jerry Rice, (Starkville)
- James Robinson, (Jackson)
- Billy Shaw, (Natchez)
- Chris Shivers, professional bull rider, (Natchez)
- Eugene Short, (Hattiesburg)
- Purvis Short, (Hattiesburg)
- Jackie Slater, (Jackson)
- Calvin Smith, (Bolton)
- Jimmy Lee Smith, (Jackson)
- Lake Speed, (Jackson)
- Savante Stringfellow, (Jackson)
- Fred Thomas, cornerback for the New Orleans Saints, (Bruce)
- Willie Totten, (Leflore County)
- Jermaine Van Buren, (Laurel)
- Margaret Wade, (Cleveland)
- Harry Walker, former professional baseball player, (Pascagoula)
- Wesley Walls, (Batesville)
- Tom Walters, safety for the Washington Redskins, (Petal)
- Herb Washington, sprinter and a successful owner of McDonald's franchises, (Belzoni)
- Clarence Weatherspoon, (Crawford)
- Skeeter Webb, professional baseball player, (Meridian)
- Frank White, professional baseball player, (Greenville)
- Sammy Winder, (Madison)
- Floyd Womack, Seattle Seahawks, (Cleveland)
- Dmitri Young, (Vicksburg)
- Walter Young, professional baseball player, (Hattiesburg)
[edit] Broadcast media personalities
- Red Barber, sportscaster, (Columbus)
- Robin Roberts, (Pass Christian)
- Doug Russell, sportscaster, (Jackson)
- Tavis Smiley, (Gulfport)
- Shepard Smith, newscaster, (Holly Springs)
- Oprah Winfrey, talk show hostess, (Kosciusko)
[edit] Comedians
[edit] Educators
[edit] Entrepreneurs/Business leaders
- Jim Barksdale, founder of Netscape, (Jackson)
- Fred Carl, Jr., founder of Viking Range Corporation, (Greenwood)
- James Breckenridge Speed, industrial pioneer
- Toxey Haas, founder Mossy Oak Brand camouflage, (West Point)
- Sam Haskell, former worldwide head of television for the William Morris Agency, (Amory)
- Ken Lewis, Chairman, CEO, and President of Bank of America Corporation, (Meridian)
- Hartley Peavey, founder of Peavey Electronics, (Starkville)
- Robert "Bob" Pittman, founder MTV, former CEO and COO AOL, (Jackson)
- J. H. Rush, founder of Rush's Infirmary, the first private hospital in Meridian, Mississippi, (De Kalb)
- Fred Smith, founder and CEO of FedEx, (Marks)
- Larry A. Thompson, television producer, (Clarksdale)
[edit] Filmmakers
[edit] Historians
[edit] Inventors
[edit] Jurists and lawyers
- William Wirt Adams, (Jackson)
- Rhesa H. Barksdale, (Jackson)
- Bobby DeLaughter, (Jackson)
- Gerald Chatham, lawyer, lead prosecutor in the Emmett Till case [3], (Hernando)
- Felix Huston, lawyer, (Natchez)
- Thomas Rodney, (Natchez)
- Richard "Dick" Scruggs, attorney, (Pascagoula)
[edit] Military figures
[edit] Musicians and performers
- 3 Doors Down, band, (Escatawpa)
- Tommy Aldridge, drummer for Ozzy Osbourne and Whitesnake. (Pearl)
- Afroman, (Hattiesburg)
- Steve Azar, (Greenville)
- Glen Ballard, (Natchez)
- David Banner, rapper/producer, (Jackson)
- Lance Bass, member of pop group 'N Sync, born in Laurel, raised in Clinton
- Eddie Boyd, blues musician, (Clarksdale)
- Bobby Bradford, (Cleveland)
- Cory Branan, (Southhaven)
- Brandy, (McComb)
- Big Bill Broonzy, (Scott County)
- Eddie "Bongo" Brown, percussionist, (Clarksdale)
- Jimmy Buffett, (Pascagoula)
- R. L. Burnside, (Harmontown)
- G. C. Cameron, (Jackson)
- Odia Coates, (Vicksburg)
- Hank Cochran, (Isola)
- David L. Cook, (Pascagoula)
- Sam Cooke, (Clarksdale)
- The Cook Family Singers, (Pascagoula)
- James Cotton, (Tunica)
- Arthur Crudup, (Forest)
- George Cummings, (Meridian)
- Olu Dara, jazz musician, (Natchez)
- Paul Davis, singer, (Meridian)
- Al Denson, (Starkville)
- Bo Diddley, (McComb)
- Willie Dixon, (Vicksburg)
- Nate Dogg, (Clarksdale)
- Shelly Fairchild, (Clinton)
- Joe Fisher, blues musician, (Yazoo City)
- Steve Forbert, (Meridian)
- C. L. Franklin, (Sunflower County)
- Bobbie Gentry, (Greenwood)
- Mickey Gilley, (Natchez)
- Glen Graham, (Columbus)
- Caroline Herring, bluegrass musician, (Canton)[4]
- Michael Henderson, (Yazoo City)
- Faith Hill, country/pop singer, (Jackson)
- John Lee Hooker, (Clarksdale)
- Big Walter Horton, (Horn Lake)
- Son House, (Riverton)
- Guy Hovis, (Tupelo)
- John Joe Humphreys, blues musician, (Yazoo City)
- Mississippi John Hurt, (Teoc)
- Clifton Hyde, Hattiesburg
- Vasti Jackson, (McComb)
- Elmore James, (Richland)
- Skip James, (Bentonia)
- Jai Johanny "Jaimoe" Johanson, drummer in The Allman Brothers Band, (Ocean Springs)
- Big Jack Johnson, blues musician, (Clarksdale)
- Robert Johnson, (Hazlehurst)
- Junior Kimbrough, (Hudsonville)
- Albert King, (Indianola)
- B. B. King, (Itta Bena)
- Fern Kinney, rhythm & blues and disco music entertainer, (Jackson)
- Sonny Landreth, (Canton)
- Chris LeDoux, (Biloxi)
- Tommy McClennan, (Yazoo City)
- George McConnell, guitarist, (Vicksburg)
- Kansas Joe McCoy, (Raymond)
- Papa Charlie McCoy, (Jackson)
- Fred McDowell, (Como)
- C. H. "Tally" McGraw, (Yazoo City)
- Little Milton, (Inverness)
- Mississippi Mass Choir, (Jackson)
- Patrice Moncell, (Meridian)
- Dorothy Moore, gospel singer, (Jackson)
- Charlie Musselwhite, (Kosciusko)
- Danny Myrick, (Pascagoula)
- North Mississippi Allstars, band, (Hernando)
- Brandy Norwood, (McComb)
- Alexander O'Neal, (Natchez)
- Paul Ott, (McComb)
- Junior Parker, (Clarksdale)
- Michael Passons, gospel singer, (Yazoo City)
- Charley Patton, (Edwards)
- Elvis Presley, (Tupelo)
- Leontyne Price, opera singer, (Laurel)
- Charley Pride, (Sledge)
- Newt Rayburn, (Oxford)
- Jimmy Reed, (Dunleith)
- Del Rendon, (Starkville)
- LeAnn Rimes, (Pearl)
- Jimmie Rodgers, (Meridian)
- Jimmy Rogers, blues musician, (Ruleville)
- David Ruffin, former lead singer of The Temptations, (Whynot)
- Jimmy Ruffin, singer, (Collinsville)
- Bobby Rush, (Jackson)
- Otis Rush, blues musician, (Philadelphia)
- Magic Sam, (Grenada)
- Jumpin' Gene Simmons, rockabilly singer, (Tupelo)
- Brad Smith, bass player for Blind Melon, (West Point)
- Otis Spann, blues musician, (Jackson)
- Britney Spears, (McComb)
- Pops Staples, lead singer of The Staple Singers, (Winona)
- Rogers Stevens, (West Point)
- Lisa Stewart, (Louisville)
- William Grant Still, (Woodville)
- Word Strickland, (Gulfport)
- Marty Stuart, (Philadelphia)
- Ty Tabor, (Pearl)
- Eddie Taylor, (Benoit)
- Hound Dog Taylor, (Natchez)
- Jean Terrell, (Belzoni)
- Rufus Thomas, (Cayce)
- Ike Turner, (Clarksdale)
- Conway Twitty, (Friars Point)
- Muddy Waters, (Rolling Fork)
- Bukka White, (Houston)
- Carson Whitsett, keyboardist and songwriter, (Jackson)
- Tim Whitsett, band leader and publisher, (Jackson)
- Webb Wilder, (Hattiesburg)
- Big Joe Williams, (Crawford)
- Sonny Boy Williamson II, (Glendora)
- Al Wilson, singer and drummer, (Meridian)
- Cassandra Wilson, jazz singer and songwriter, (Jackson)
- Mary Wilson, (Greenville)
- Howlin' Wolf, (West Point)
- Tammy Wynette, (Tupelo)
- Lester Young, (Woodville)
- Patrick McClary, lead singer and guitarist for Southern rock band Daybreakdown (Jackson)
- Cary Hudson, lead singer and guitarist for alt-country band Blue Mountain (Sumrall)
- Daybreakdown, Southern rock band (Oxford)
- Mayhem String Band, bluegrass band (Oxford)
- Kudzu Kings, band (Oxford)
- Beanland, jam band (Oxford)
- Puerto Rican Rum Drunks, band (Starkville)
- Blind Melon, (Starkville)
[edit] Physicians
- Blair E. Batson, chairman of pediatrics at the University of Mississippi Medical Center and namesake of the Blair E. Batson Children's Hospital, (Jackson)
- Thomas Gandy, Natchez physician and photography collector, (Natchez)
- Arthur Guyton, wrote the Textbook of Medical Physiology
- John Hall, continues to work on Textbook of Medical Physiology
- James Hardy, surgeon performed the first successful cadaveric lung transplant, (Jackson)
- T. R. M. Howard, former chief surgeon at the Taborian Hospital and Friendship Clinic, (Mound Bayou)
- Thomas E. Levy, physician, attorney, author, (Biloxi)
[edit] Politicians
- Robert H. Adams, (Natchez)
- Haley Barbour, (Yazoo City)
- Ethelbert Barksdale, (Jackson)
- William Barksdale, (Jackson)
- Ross Barnett, (Standing Pine)
- Marion Barry, (Itta Bena)
- Theodore Bilbo, (Poplarville)
- Hale Boggs, (Long Beach)
- Blanche Bruce, Mississippi Senator
- Thomas Jefferson Busby, proponent of the Natchez Trace Parkway, (Houston)
- Ezekiel S. Candler, Jr., (Corinth)
- Joseph W. Chalmers, (Holly Springs)
- Jacqueline Y. Collins (McComb), Illinois state senator
- John Francis Hamtramck Claiborne, (Natchez)
- Thad Cochran, (Pontotoc)
- James P. Coleman, (Ackerman)
- George Dale, former insurance commissioner
- Jefferson Davis, US Senator and President of the Confederate States of America, (Warren County)
- James Eastland, (Sunflower)
- Alphonso Michael Espy, (Yazoo City)
- Dianna Freelon-Foster, (Grenada)
- Kirk Fordice, (Vicksburg) and other cities
- Evelyn Gandy, (Hattiesburg)
- James Z. George, (Carrollton)
- Charles H. Griffin, (Utica)
- Pat Harrison, (Crystal Springs)
- Patrick Henry, (Brandon)
- Thomas C. Hindman, (Ripley)
- Jon Hinson, (Tylertown)
- David Holmes, first Governor of Mississippi
- Benjamin G. Humphreys, (Claiborne County)
- Benjamin G. Humphreys II, (Claiborne County)
- William Y. Humphreys, (Greenville)
- Paul B. Johnson, Sr., (Hattiesburg)
- Paul B. Johnson, Jr., (Hattiesburg)
- Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar (II), US Senator and US Supreme Court Justice, (Oxford)
- Elmer Litchfield, former sheriff of East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana, (Meridian)
- Trent Lott, Sr., (Grenada)
- John R. Lynch, first African-American Speaker of the Mississippi House of Representatives, (Natchez)
- Ray Mabus, governor, (Starkville)
- Hernando Money, (Carrollton)
- "Sonny" Montgomery, (Meridian)
- Mike Moore, Attorney General, (Pascagoula)
- Ronnie Musgrove, (Tocowa)
- Charles W. Pickering, (Jones County)
- Chip Pickering, (Laurel)
- John E. Rankin, (Itawamba County)
- Hiram Rhodes Revels, first African-American US Senator
- Larry Speakes, (Cleveland)
- John Stennis, (De Kalb)
- Gene Taylor, (Bay St. Louis)
- Bennie Thompson, (Bolton)
- Amy Tuck, (Maben)
- James Vardaman, (Yalobusha County)
- Jamie L. Whitten, (Cascilla)
- Roger Wicker, (Pontotoc)
- William Winter, (Grenada)
- Fielding L. Wright, (Rolling Fork)
- Dan Camp, (Starkville)
[edit] Writers
- Earl W. Bascom, (Columbia)
- Lerone Bennett, Jr., editor of Ebony magazine, (Clarksdale)
- Bruce Brady, writer, editor of Outdoor Life, (Brookhaven)
- Charlie Braxton, writer, hip hop journalist, scholar, poet and author (McComb)
- Larry Brown, (Oxford)
- Jill Conner Browne, author, Sweet Potato Queen, (Tupelo)
- R. Scott Brunner
- Hodding Carter, II, editor, journalist, (Greenville)
- Craig Claiborne, (Sunflower)
- William Faulkner, (New Albany)
- Bill Fitzhugh, (Jackson)
- Vic Fleming, (Jackson)
- Shelby Foote, historian, novelist, (Greenville)
- Richard Ford, (Jackson)
- John Grisham, (Southaven)
- Carolyn Haines, (Lucedale)
- Barry Hannah, (Clinton)
- Thomas Harris, (Rich)
- Martin Hegwood, (Canton)
- Beth Henley, (Hattiesburg)
- Greg Iles, (Natchez)
- Greg Keyes, (Meridian)
- Donna Ladd, investigative journalist, (Philadelphia)
- Muna Lee, (Raymond)
- Justin Mapp, (Brandon)
- Anne Moody, (Centreville)
- Willie Morris, (Jackson)
- Lewis Nordan, (Forest)
- Walker Percy, (Greenville)
- William Alexander Percy, (Greenville)
- William Raspberry, (Okolona)
- Kevin Sessums, (Forest, Mississippi)
- Carolyn Vance Smith, (Natchez, Mississippi)
- Donna Tartt, author, (Greenwood)
- Mildred Taylor, (Jackson)
- Natasha Trethewey, 2007 Pulitzer Prize winner for Poetry, (Gulfport)
- Eudora Welty, (Jackson)
- Tim Whitsett, music business, (Jackson)
- Tennessee Williams, (Columbus)
- Richard Nathaniel Wright, (Roxie)
- Al Young, (Ocean Springs)
- Stark Young, (Como)
[edit] Others
- Susan Akin, Miss America 1986, (Meridian)
- Fred Haise, former NASA astronaut, (Biloxi)
- Lypsinka, drag performer and model, (Hazlehurst)
- Lynda Lee Mead, Miss America 1960, (Natchez)
- Mary Ann Mobley, Miss America 1959, (Brandon)
- Cheryl Prewitt, Miss America 1980, (Ackerman)
- Felder Rushing, Horticulturist, gardening book author, radio and TV host, (Indianola, Jackson) [5]
- Amy Wesson, Fashion model, (Tupelo)
