List of people from Cairo, Illinois explained

The following list includes notable people who were born or have lived in Cairo, Illinois. For a similar list organized alphabetically by last name, see the category page People from Cairo, Illinois.

Academics

Name	Image	Birth	Death	Known for	Association	Reference
				Union army nurse in the US Civil War; professor of Women's Diseases at the Boston University; later became a doctor		^[1]
				Author and professor of creative writing at the University of Alabama	Born in Cairo

Business

Name	Image	Birth	Death	Known for	Association	Reference
				Banker, steamboat captain, owner of the Riverlore mansion, and businessman	Lived in and started several businesses in Cairo
				Riverboat captain, railroad executive, founder of the Hotel del Coronado	Started his own shipping business in Cairo

Media

Name	Image	Birth	Death	Known for	Association	Reference
				Stage, film, and television actor; first African-American actor to be hired for a contract role on a soap opera (The Brighter Day, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Sahara)	Born in Cairo
				An award-winning actor, singer, musician, and composer. Known for his Tony Award nominated Broadway performance as George Washington in Hamilton.	Graduated from Cairo High School in 1993.	^[2]

Military

Name	Image	Birth	Death	Known for	Association	Reference
				Rear admiral in National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps (NOAA Corps); second Director of the NOAA Corps	Born in Cairo
				Member of Gas Motor Unit No. 1, Women's Overseas Hospitals; died at American military hospital in Bordeaux, France, during World War I	Born in Cairo

Music

Name	Image	Birth	Death	Known for	Association	Reference
				inventor of the EchoSonic, a guitar amplifier with a built-in tape echo, and the Filter'Tron pickup, the first humbucker guitar pickup (used extensively on Gretsch guitars).
				Owner of Plan-It-X Records; musician in Ghost Mice		^[3]
				Musician, poet and painter	Born in Cairo	^[4]
				Record producer and recording executive	Born in Cairo
				Blues musician (harmonica)	Grew up in Cairo
				Blues musician	Grew up in Cairo
				Blues vocalist	Born in Cairo	^[5]

Politics

Name	Image	Birth	Death	Known for	Association	Reference
				US congressman for Illinois's 1st congressional district (1983–1993)	Born in Cairo
(aka Chuck Koen)				Civil rights activist; founded the Black Liberators
				US congressman for Illinois's 25th congressional district (1908–1913)	Two term mayor of Cairo; died in Cairo
				US congressman for Illinois's 19th congressional district (1877–1889)	Lived in Cairo
				Illinois state senator for Illinois 17th district (1993–2018)	Born in Cairo

Sports

Name	Image	Birth	Death	Known for	Association	Reference
				Pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies	Born in Cairo
				Pitcher for the Washington Senators	Born and died in Cairo
				Pitcher for seven Major League Baseball teams	Born in Cairo
				Infielder for the Cleveland Indians and Boston Red Sox	Born in Cairo
				Small forward for the Los Angeles Clippers and Washington Wizards, as well as four European teams	Born in Cairo
				Diving gold medalist at 1924 Summer Olympics	Born in Cairo
				College basketball coach for Oral Roberts University		^[6]

Notes and References

1. Fischer. Leroy H.. Cairo's Civil War Angel, Mary Jane Stafford.. Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society. 1961. 54.
2. News: Parker. Molly. FROM CAIRO TO BROADWAY Actor Christopher Jackson clings to his roots as his star rises. 20 December 2017. The Southern. Mar 8, 2016.
3. Smith, Aaron Lake. "Trying to Revitalize a Dying Small Town", TIME, February 15, 2010.
4. News: Kelley. Robin D. G.. Ted Joans, 1928-2003. The Village Voice. May 20, 2003.
5. [Sheldon Harris (music historian)|Harris, Sheldon]
6. https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=ebQfAAAAIBAJ&sjid=TdcEAAAAIBAJ&dq=ken%20trickey%20cairo-high&pg=1372%2C1900304 "Trickey returns 'home' to ORU for hoop revival"