List of people from Springfield, Illinois
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The following list includes notable people who were born or have lived in Springfield, Illinois. For a similar list organized alphabetically by last name, see the category page People from Springfield, Illinois.
- Adrian Belew, musician best known for solo career song "Oh Daddy" and work with King Crimson, Talking Heads, and Tom Tom Club; lived in Springfield during the 1980s[citation needed]
- Patricia Carey, an opera singer and Juilliard educated vocalist better known as the mother of Mariah Carey
- June Christy, cool jazz singer with The Stan Kenton Orchestra
- Morris Day, musician and actor best known for work with Morris Day and the Time and Purple Rain, born in Springfield
- Vachel Lindsay, poet, considered the father of modern singing poetry, wrote first book of film criticism, The Art of the Moving Picture, in 1915[1]
- Theodore Lorch, early 20th-century actor, widely seen in Three Stooges shorts, born in Springfield
- Sarah Danielle Madison, actress in Training Day, Jurassic Park III, 90210, 7th Heaven, Judging Amy
- Jay Manuel, reality show host, America's Next Top Model
- Bobby McFerrin, musician best known for song "Don't Worry, Be Happy", attended Sangamon State University (now UIS) in 1975,[2] son of opera baritone singer Bobby McFerrin Sr.
- Brendon Small, sitcom writer, producer, actor, and musician
- Louise Stanley, early 20th-century actress, born in Springfield
- Cecily Strong, cast member of Saturday Night Live, born in Springfield
- Bobby Watson, early 20th-century actor, born in Springfield
Business and institutional leadership
- Marsha J. Evans, CEO of American Red Cross and US Navy Admiral
- C.W. Post, businessman and founder of Postum Cereal Company
- Marjorie Merriweather Post, businesswoman, founder of General Foods Corporation, and leader in developing the frozen food market. One of her four marriages was to Edward Francis Hutton, founder of E.F. Hutton.
- Julius Rosenwald, President and Chairman of Sears, Roebuck and Co. and important philanthropist. Rosenwald was born in Springfield in 1862. He attended public schools and lived in Springfield until 1879. His philanthropy included establishing the Rosenwald Fund which was noted for donations to African American education and YMCAs. Rosenwald played a leading role in the creation of the Museum of Science and Industry.[3]
- Damola Adamolekun, CEO of Red Lobster Investor Holdings and former CEO of P.F. Chang's. (Adamolekun spent part of his youth in Springfield before his family relocated to Columbia, Maryland, and it was referenced in a segment of a June 25, 2025 broadcast of The Breakfast Club.[4])
Politics and law
- John Peter Altgeld, Governor of Illinois from 1893 to January 1897, best known for role in Haymarket Affair pardons, the Pullman Strike and 1896 Democratic National Convention[5]
- Stanley P. V. Arnold, Illinois state representative and newspaper editor[6]
- William W. Billson, Minnesota state senator and lawyer[7]
- Nikki Budzinski, U.S. representative, former Chief of Staff to the Director of the Office of Management and Budget and Senior Adviser to JB Pritzker's exploratory committee[8]
- Shelby M. Cullom, 17th Governor of Illinois
- Stephen Arnold Douglas, Register of Federal Land Office, Springfield, 1837–1840; Illinois Secretary of State, 1840–41, associate justice of Illinois Supreme Court, 1841–1843; U.S. Representative, 1843; U.S. Senator, 1847 until death June 3, 1861; Democratic Presidential Candidate, 1860[9]
- Dick Durbin (born 1944), U.S. Senator from Illinois (1997 - pres)[10]
- John Porter East (1931–1986), U.S. senator from North Carolina (1981–1986)[11]
- D. Logan Giffin (1890–1980). Illinois state legislator and lawyer.[12]
- Ulysses S. Grant (1822–1885), 18th President of the United States of America, stationed in Springfield at the outbreak of the American Civil War[13]
- John Hay, statesman, diplomat, author, journalist, and private secretary and assistant to Abraham Lincoln, grandfather of Ambassador John Hay Whitney[14]
- William H. Herndon, law partner and biographer of Abraham Lincoln[15]
- William Brown Ide (1796–1852), Vermont State Legislator, central figure in California's Bear Flag Revolt of 1846, named President of the Republic of California
- William Jayne, first governor of the Dakota Territory, personal friend of Abraham Lincoln[16]
- Otto Kerner, Jr., Governor of Illinois (1961 to 1968). Son-in-law of Anton Cermak, Kerner led the National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders, the Kerner Commission. He was convicted of corruption.
- John L. Lewis, president of the United Mine Workers of America (1920 to 1960)
- Abraham Lincoln, 16th President of the United States of America
- Mary Todd Lincoln, First Lady of the United States, wife of Abraham Lincoln, died in Springfield in 1882
- Robert Todd Lincoln, U.S. Secretary of War and son of Abraham Lincoln, born in Springfield
- David T. Littler, Illinois state legislator and lawyer
- Tracey Meares, Walton Hale Hamilton Professor of Law at Yale Law School and was appointed by President Barack Obama for the President's Task Force on 21st Century Policing
- Dana Perino, White House Press Secretary for the George W. Bush administration, reporter for WCIA and earned MA in Public Affairs Reporting from the University of Illinois Springfield (UIS)[17]
- Frank P. Sadler, Illinois state senator and lawyer, born in Springfield[18]
- Paul Simon, U.S. Senator and Presidential candidate, served in the Illinois State legislature from 1955 to 1968, served as Illinois Lt. Governor from 1969 to 1973, taught at Sangamon State University (now UIS) from 1973 to 1975[19] Father of Illinois Lt. Governor Sheila Simon.
- Adlai Stevenson, 31st Governor of Illinois, Democratic Party's nominee for president in 1952 and 1956
- Sharon Tyndale, Illinois Secretary of State
- Brand Whitlock, journalist, mayor of Toledo, Ohio, ambassador to Belgium, and author. Lived in Springfield from 1892 to January 1897 while serving as reporter for Chicago Herald and then working for Secretary of State during Gov. Altgeld's administration.[20]
Religion
- The Rt. Reverend Albert Arthur Chambers, seventh Bishop of Springfield
- Kevin Vann, bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange
Academics
- Nan Dieter-Conklin, radio astronomer
- Robert Fitzgerald, Harvard poetry professor
- William H. Luers, diplomat, Metropolitan Museum of Art president, Columbia University professor
- Seth Barnes Nicholson, astronomer
- Susan Nolen-Hoeksema, Yale psychology professor
- Raymond E. Zirkle (1902-1988), radiation chemist, a member of the Manhattan Project