Tennessee Famous People

Famous Americans: History and Biographies

Links to histories and biographies of the famous people of Tennessee. Many famous people of Tennessee have made significant contributions to the history of our nation and the state of Tennessee. These famous Americans, famous entertainers, famous players, famous scientist, famous singers, famous statesmen, famous women, heroes, great explorers, and others Tennessee famous Americans have all made Tennessee their home. This list includes Tennessee historical figures, celebrities and those individuals of Tennessee who have influenced the lives of others.

Famous People from Tennessee

• James Agee (1909 - 1955) Writer, poet; born in Knoxville.
• Davy Crockett (1786 - 1836) Davy Crockett was perhaps best known in Tennessee as a noted hunter and for his unique style of backwoods oratory. Crockett was born August 17, 1786 in what is now northeastern Tennessee. He didn't learn to read and write before he was eighteen, and about that time, he married and started a family of several children.
  
  He first became involved in politics as magistrate of his local community. By 1821, he was elected to the State Legislature, and was reelected to that position in 1823. From 1827 through 1833, Crockett served in the Congress of the United States. However, in his run for a fourth term in Congress, he was defeated by a narrow margin.
  
  Disgusted by that time with politics, Crockett bid farewell to Tennessee and headed for Texas in the fall of 1835. There he was well received and seemed to enjoy his new environment. Less than one month later, however, Crockett and a few of his fellow Tennesseans were among the 189 defenders that sacrificed their lives at The Battle of the Alamo in the interest on Texas independence.
• Lester Flatt (1914 - 1979) Bluegrass musician; born in Overton County.
• Aretha Franklin (1942 - ) The daughter of the Rev. C.L. Franklin, Aretha Franklin was born in Memphis, Tennessee on March 25, 1942. Both her parents were musical and sang gospel. As a teenager, she too sang gospel with her two sisters Carolyn and Erma. She made her first recordings as a gospel artist at the age of 14. In the late '60s, Franklin became one of the biggest international recording stars in all of pop. Many also saw Franklin as a symbol of Black America itself, reflecting the increased confidence and pride of African-Americans in the decade of the civil rights movements and other triumphs for he Black community. The chart statistics are impressive in and of themselves: ten Top Ten hits in a roughly 18-month span between early 1967 and late 1968, for instance, and a steady stream of solid mid-to-large-size hits for the next five years after that. Her success has earned her the nickname "Lady Soul" or "the Queen of Soul."
• Morgan Freeman (1937 - ) Famous actor who has appeared in movies such as Driving Miss Daisy, Lean on Me Amistad and others. Born in Memphis.
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al_Gore (1948 - ) 45th Vice president of the US; raised in Carthage.
• Benjamin L. Hooks (1925 - ) Executive director of the NAACP, attorney, and clergyman; born in Memphis.
• Dolly Parton (1946 - ) grew up as the fourth of 12 children on a rundown farm in Locust Ridge, Tenn., near the Smoky Mountains National Forest. While the young Parton was much-ridiculed for her poverty, she turned to music for comfort. After learning to play a guitar that was a gift from her uncle, she began making public music appearances. By the age of 12, she made her debut on a Knoxville television station, and by the age of 14, she had already landed a recording contract with Mercury, and was making appearances on the Grand Old Opry. Today she continues her music career, has starred in movies and on television, and has her own theme park Dolly Wood.
• Elvis Presley (1935 - 1977) One of the most famous singers of all time that helped develop rock and roll; moved to Memphis in 1948.
• Cybill Shepherd (1950 - ) Actress made famous from television's Moonlighting and Cybill; born in Memphis.
• Tina Turner (1939 - ) Singer. She won a Grammy award in 1972 and starred in the movie Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome; born in Brownsville.
• Alvin York (1887 - 1964) World War I hero; born in Pall Mall.

More Famous People of Tennessee

Find more more Tennessee famous people below. You may not even realize many of these famous people were born in Tennessee or notable associated with Tennessee, including actors, actresses, explorers, historical figures, inventors, musicians, novelists, professional athletes, important politicians, singers, sport stars and more.

• Eddy Arnold singer, Henderson
• Chet Atkins guitarist, Lutrell
• Hattie Caraway first elected woman senator, Bakerville
• Jack Garnet Carter miniature golf, Sweetwater
• Jack Curtis screenwriter, Stony Creek
• Sam Davis confederate scout, Smyrna
• Mark Dean inventor, Jefferson City
• David G. Farragut first American admiral, Knoxville
• Tennessee Ernie Ford singer, Bristol
• Abe Fortas jurist, Memphis
• Nikki Giovanni poet, Knoxville
• Red Grooms artist, Nashville
• Isaac Hayes composer, Covington
• Barbara Howar broadcaster, writer, Nashville
• Cordell Hull secretary of state, Overton Cty
• Estes Kefauver legislator, Madisonville
• Sandra Locke actress, Shelbyville
• Minnie Pearl singer, comedienne, Centerville
• Grantland Rice sportswriter, Murfreesboro
• Carl Rowan journalist, Ravenscraft
• Wilma Rudolph runner, St. Bethlehem
• Sequoia Cherokee scholar, educator
• Dinah Shore actress, singer, Winchester