List of people from Kansas explained

The following are notable people who were either born, raised, or have lived for a significant period of time in the American state of Kansas.

Academics and Nobel Prize laureates

• Milton S. Eisenhower (1899–1985), university president; Abilene
• Wendell Johnson (1906–1965), psychologist and speech pathologist, author of The Monster Study; Roxbury
• Jack S. Kilby (1923–2005), Nobel Prize winner in Physics; Great Bend
• Solon Toothaker Kimball (1909–1982), anthropologist; Manhattan
• Stanford Lehmberg (1931–2012), historian; McPherson
• Norman Malcolm (1911–1990), philosopher; Selden
• Deane Waldo Malott (1898–1996), president of Cornell University; Abilene
• Abby Lillian Marlatt (1869–1943), home economics; Manhattan
• Eric K. Meyer (born 1953), journalism professor and Pulitzer Prize nominee; Marion
• M. Lee Pelton (born 1950), president of Willamette University; Wichita
• John Brooks Slaughter (1934–2023), college president and first African-American director of the National Science Foundation; Topeka
• Vernon L. Smith (born 1927), Nobel Memorial Prize winner in Economics; Wichita
• Earl Wilbur Sutherland Jr. (1915–1974), 1971 Nobel Prize winner in Physiology and Medicine; Burlingame
• Donald Worster (born 1941), historian; Lawrence

Arts and literature

Artists

• Nina E. Allender (1873–1957), artist and women's suffrage cartoonist; Auburn
• Grace Bilger (1907–2000), artist; Olathe
• Grant Bond (born 1974), artist; Kansas City
• Blackbear Bosin (1921–1980), Native American artist; Wichita
• Gwendolyn Elizabeth Brooks (1917–2000), poet; Topeka
• Bruce Conner (1933–2008), artist; McPherson
• John Steuart Curry (1897–1946), artist; Winchester
• Aaron Douglas (1900–1979), artist; Topeka
• Randall Duell (1903–1992), architect and art director; Russell County
• Edgar Heap of Birds (born 1954), artist; Wichita
• Bruce Helander (born 1947), artist; Great Bend
• Elizabeth Layton (1909–1993), artist; Wellsville
• Evan Lindquist (born 1936), printmaker, Artist Laureate of Arkansas; Salina
• Barbara Morgan (1900–1992), photographer; Buffalo, Kansas
• Gordon Parks (1912–2006), photographer and film director; Fort Scott
• Birger Sandzen (1871–1954), artist, art professor at Bethany College; Lindsborg
• Gary Mark Smith (born 1956), photographer, studied at University of Kansas; Wichita
• W. Eugene Smith (1918–1978), photographer; Wichita
• Mort Walker (1923–2018), cartoonist, creator of Beetle Bailey and Hi and Lois comic strips; El Dorado

Authors

• Laura Abbot, author of Harlequin romance novels; Kansas City
• Elizabeth Barr Arthur (1884–1971), poet, author, journalist, librarian, police officer, suffragist; Lincoln County
• Gwendolyn Brooks (1917–2000), author, poet; Topeka
• William Burroughs (1914–1997), author; Lawrence
• Don Coldsmith (1926–2009), author of Western fiction; Iola
• Dorothy Canfield Fisher (1879–1958), author of children's books; Lawrence
• Thomas Frank (born 1965), author and editor; Mission Hills
• Clara H. Hazelrigg (1861–1937), author, educator, social reformer; Council Grove
• Jane Heap (1883–1964), author and publisher; Topeka
• Scott Heim (born 1966), author; Hutchinson
• Langston Hughes (1902–1967), author and poet; Lawrence
• William Inge (1913–1973), playwright; Independence
• Bill James (born 1949), author; Mayetta
• Bill Martin Jr. (1916–2004), children's author; Hiawatha
• Fred Myton (1885–1955), screenwriter; Garden City
• Kathy Patrick, author, founder of Pulpwood Queens Book Club; Eureka
• Scott Phillips (born 1961), author; Wichita
• Vance Randolph (1892–1980), folklorist; Pittsburg
• Red Reeder (1902–1998), author and United States Army officer; Fort Leavenworth
• Richard Rhodes (born 1937), author and historian; Kansas City
• Lois Ruby, author of historic fiction; Lawrence
• Damon Runyon (1880–1946), author; Manhattan
• Mary Francis Shura (1923–1990), children's, romance and mystery author; Pratt
• William Stafford (1914–1993), poet and pacifist; Hutchinson
• Max Yoho (1934–2017), author; Colony

Dancers

• Clark Tippet (1954–1992), ballet; Parsons

Musicians

Athletics

Athletes

A - F

• Alvan Adams (born 1954), basketball; Lawrence
• John H. Adams (1914–1995), jockey; Iola
• Neil Allen (born 1958), baseball pitcher, pitching coach; Kansas City
• David Arkin (born 1987), pro football player; Wichita
• Elden Auker (1910–2006), baseball pitcher; Norcatur
• Chase Austin (born 1989), NASCAR driver; Eudora
• Chris Babb (born 1990), basketball player in the Israeli Basketball Premier League; Topeka
• Ron Baker (born 1993), NBA player (New York Knicks); Utica and Scott City (born in Hays)
• Thane Baker (born 1931), gold medalist at 1956 Summer Olympics, decathlon; Elkhart
• Tony Barker (born 1968), football player; Wichita
• Chris Barnes (born 1970), professional bowler; Topeka
• James Bausch (1906–1974), gold medalist 1932 Summer Olympics; Garden Plain
• Oliver Bradwell (born 1992), sprinter; Wichita
• Judy Bell (born 1936), member of World Golf Hall of Fame; Wichita
• Matt Besler (born 1987), professional soccer player; Overland Park
• B.H. Born (1932–2013), basketball player; Medicine Lodge
• Clint Bowyer (born 1979), NASCAR driver; Emporia
• George Brett (born 1953), baseball Hall of Famer; Mission Hills
• Bryce Brown (born 1991), football player; Wichita
• Orville Brown (1908–1981), pro wrestler, NWA champion; Sharon
• Mildred Bliss Burke (1915–1989), pro wrestler, Professional Wrestling Hall of Fame; Coffeyville
• Enos Cabell (born 1949), baseball player; Fort Riley
• Veronica Campbell-Brown (born 1982), track and field athlete (Olympic and world champion); Great Bend
• Antoine Carr (born 1961), basketball player
• Willie Cauley-Stein (born 1993), professional basketball player Spearville
• Larry Cheney (1886–1969), baseball pitcher; Belleville
• Jack Christiansen (1928–1986), football Hall of Famer; Sublette
• Tony Clark (born 1972), baseball player; Newton
• Maliek Collins (born 1995), football player; Kansas City
• Baron Corbin (born 1984), football player, WWE wrestler; Lenexa
• Nolan Cromwell (born 1955), football player; Smith Center
• Aaron Crow (born 1986), baseball player; Topeka
• Glenn Cunningham (1909–1988), silver medalist, 1936 Olympic Games,1,500m run; Elkhart
• Johnny Damon (born 1973), baseball player; Fort Riley
• Eldon Danenhauer (1935–2021), football player; Clay Center
• Darren Daulton (born 1962), baseball player; Arkansas City
• Wantha Davis (1917–2012), jockey; Liberal
• Joey Devine (born 1983), baseball player; Junction City
• Lynn Dickey (born 1949), football player; Osawatomie
• Andy Dirks (born 1986), baseball player; Burrton
• Larry Drew (born 1958), basketball player and coach; Kansas City
• Mark Duckens (born 1965), football player; Wichita
• Brian Duensing (born 1983), baseball player; Marysville
• Brody Eldridge (born 1987), football player; La Cygne
• Tim Elliott (born 1986), mixed martial artist; Wichita
• Maurice Evans (born 1978), basketball player; Wichita
• Kyle Farnsworth (born 1976), baseball player; Wichita
  • Galen Fiss (1931–2006), football player; Johnson City Adrianna Franch (born 1990), soccer player (world champion); Salina
• Scott Fulhage (born 1961), football player; Beloit

G - M

• Andrew Gachkar (born 1988), football player; Overland Park
• Kendall Gammon (born 1968), football player; Rose Hill
• Tyson Gay (born 1982), track and field athlete (world champion); Great Bend
• Maurice Greene (born 1974), track and field athlete (world and Olympic champion); Kansas City
• Adrian Griffin (born 1974), basketball player and coach; Wichita
• Geneo Grissom (born 1992), football player; Hutchinson
• Andy Gruenebaum (born 1982), soccer player
• Don Gutteridge (1912–2008), baseball player and manager; Pittsburg
• Joe Hastings (born 1987), football player; Wichita
• Tanner Hawkinson (born 1990), football player; McPherson
• Mark Haynes (born 1958), football player; Kansas City
• Ben Heeney (born 1992), football player; Hutchinson
• Bobby Henrich (born 1938), baseball player; Lawrence
• Don Hill (1904–1967), football player; Hiawatha
• Shaun Hill (born 1980), football player; Parsons
• Elon Hogsett (1903–2001), baseball player; Brownell
• Lionel Hollins (born 1953), basketball player and coach; Arkansas City
• Scott Huffman (born 1964), pole vaulter; Quinter
• Damian Johnson (born 1962), football player; Great Bend
• Walter Johnson (1887–1946), baseball Hall of Famer; Humboldt
• Pete Kilduff (1893–1930), baseball player; Weir
• Fred Kipp (born 1931), baseball pitcher; Piqua
• Tonya Knight (born 1966), IFBB professional bodybuilder; Overland Park
• Laurie Koehn (born 1982), WNBA player; Moundridge
• Gene Krug (born 1955), baseball player; Garden City
• Adam LaRoche (born 1979), baseball player; Fort Scott
• Bobby Lashley (born 1976), professional wrestler for WWE; Junction City
• Shalee Lehning (born 1987), WNBA player; Sublette
• Martin Lewis (born 1975), NBA basketball player; Liberal
• Danny Manning (born 1966), NBA basketball player; Lawrence
• Harold Manning (1909–2003), Steeplechase world record holder and Olympian; Sedgwick
• Rudy May (born 1944), baseball player; Coffeyville
• Jon McGraw, professional football player; Riley
• Archie "Hap" McKain (1911–1985), baseball player; Delphos
• Peter Mehringer (1910–1987), Olympic gold medalist wrestler, pro football player; Kinsley
• Brian Moorman (born 1976), football player; Sedgwick
• Mike Morin (born 1991), baseball player; Leawood

N - Z

• Marcio Navarro (born 1978), professional kickboxer and mixed martial artist; Wichita
• Jordy Nelson (born 1985), football player; Leonardville
• Terence Newman (born 1978), football player; Salina
• Nicole Ohlde (born 1982), WNBA player; Clay Center
• Antonio Orozco (born 1987), professional boxer; Garden City
• Victor Ortiz (born 1987), professional boxer; Garden City
• Bob Orton (1929–2006), professional wrestler; Kansas City
• Bob Orton Jr. (born 1950), professional wrestler, WWE Hall of Fame; Kansas City
• John Parrella (born 1969), professional football player; Topeka
• Hal Patterson (1932–2011), professional football player; Larned
• Jordan Phillips (born 1992), professional football player; Towanda
• Joseph Randle (born 1991), professional football player; Wichita
• Ronn Reynolds (born 1958), professional baseball player; Wichita
• Dustin Richardson (born 1984), MLB pitcher; Newton
• John Riggins (born 1949), football player, Pro Football Hall of Famer; Centralia
• Brandon Rios (born 1986), professional boxer; Garden City
• Lafayette Russell (1905–1978), football player, B-movie actor "Reb" Russell; Osawatomie
• Johnny Rutherford (born 1938), race car driver; Coffeyville
• Jim Ryun (born 1947), athlete and politician; Wichita
• Barry Sanders (born 1968), football player, NFL Hall of Famer; Wichita
• Melvin Sanders (born 1981), pro basketball player; Liberal
• Wes Santee (1932–2010), NCAA cross country champion, track and field athlete; Ashland
• Gale Sayers (1943–2020), NFL Hall of Famer; Wichita
• Otto Schnellbacher (1923–2008), pro basketball and football player; Sublette
• Ryan Schraeder (born 1988), professional football player; Wichita
• Grant Sherfield (born 1999), basketball player in the Israeli Basketball Premier League
• Wayne Simien (born 1983), NCAA All-American, NBA basketball player; Leavenworth
• Mark Simoneau (born 1977), professional football player; Smith Center
• Marilynn Smith (1929–2019), professional golfer and LPGA co-founder; Topeka
• Darren Sproles (born 1983), professional football player; Olathe
• Bubba Starling (born 1992), professional baseball player; Gardner
• Lee Stevens (born 1967), professional baseball player; Lawrence
• Jackie Stiles (born 1978), WNBA basketball player; Claflin
• Stewart "Smokey" Stover (born 1938), professional football player; McPherson
• Darrell Stuckey (born 1987), professional football player; Kansas City
• Tom Sturdivant (1930–2009), professional baseball player; Gordon
• Steve Tasker (born 1962), NFL Pro Bowl MVP in 1993; Leoti (born in Smith Center
• Luther Haden "Dummy" Taylor (1875–1958), baseball pitcher; Oskaloosa
• Doug Terry (born 1968), pro football player; Liberal
• Tommy Thompson (1916–1989), pro football player; Hutchinson
• Joe Tinker (1880–1948), MLB shortstop, member of Baseball Hall of Fame; Muscotah
• Blake Treinen (born 1988), professional baseball player; Osage City
• Jerame Tuman (born 1976), pro football player; Liberal
• Ron Warner (born 1975), professional football player; Independence
• Earl Watson (born 1979), NBA basketball player; Kansas City
• Tom Watson (born 1949), golfer, member of World Golf Hall of Fame; Stilwell
• Mitch Webster (born 1959), MLB player; Larned
• Kendra Wecker (born 1982), WNBA player; Marysville
• Michael Wilhoite (born 1986), pro football player; Manhattan
• Jess Willard (1881–1968), world heavyweight boxing champion, St. Clere; Pottawatomie County
• Kamerion Wimbley (born 1983), professional football player; Wichita
• Lynette Woodard (born 1959), basketball Hall of Famer; Wichita
• Brad Ziegler (born 1979), baseball player; Pratt
• John Zook (1947–2020), professional football player; Garden City

Coaches

Aviators and astronauts

• Walter Herschel Beech (1891–1950), aviator and aircraft designer; Wichita
• Clyde Vernon Cessna (1879–1954), aviator and aircraft designer; Rago
• Amelia Earhart (1897–1937), aviator; Atchison
• Joe Engle (1932–2024), astronaut; Chapman
• Ronald Evans (1933–1990), astronaut; St. Francis
• Daniel Forbes (1920–1948), United States Army Air Corps pilot; Carbondale
• Steve Hawley (born 1951), astronaut; Salina
• Donald Hudson (1895–1967), World War I flying ace; Topeka
• Glenn L. Martin (1886–1955), aviation pioneer; Salina
• Lloyd Carlton Stearman (1898–1975), aviator and aircraft designer; Wellsford

Businesspeople and inventors

• Philip Anschutz (born 1939), billionaire investor; Russell
• Bion Barnett (1857–1958), co-founder of Barnett Bank; Hiawatha
• Olive Ann Beech, chairwoman of Beech Aircraft Company; Wichita (born in Waverly)
• Dan and Frank Carney (Dan born 1931, Frank 1938–2020), founders of Pizza Hut; Wichita
• Walter Chrysler (1875–1940), founder of Chrysler Corporation; Wamego
• William Coffin Coleman (1870–1957), founder of the Coleman Company; Wichita
• David Dillon (born 1951), former CEO of Kroger; Hutchinson
• Vic Edelbrock (1913–1962), automotive engineer; Eudora
• David Green (born 1941), founder of Hobby Lobby; Emporia
• James Harbord (1866–1947), president and chairman of the board of RCA; Manhattan
• Hollis Dow Hedberg (1903–1988), president of Gulf Oil Company; Falun
• William Wadsworth Hodkinson (1881–1971), pioneer film marketer and distributor; Independence
• Carl Ice (born 1956), President of BNSF; Topeka
• Omar Knedlik (1915–1989), inventor of the ICEE frozen drink; Barnes
• Charles G. Koch (born 1935), CEO of Koch Industries; Wichita
• David H. Koch (1940–2019), executive and politician; Wichita
• Alan Mulally (born 1945), engineer, former president and CEO of the Ford Motor Company; Lawrence
• Matthew K. Rose (born 1959), chairman and CEO of Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp.; Salina
• Harry F. Sinclair (1876–1956), founder of Sinclair Oil Company; Independence
• Russell Stover (1888–1954), founder of Russell Stover Candies; Alton

Film, stage and television

Directors

• Michael Almereyda (born 1960), film director; Overland Park
• Steve Balderson (born 1975), film director; Wamego
• Darren Lynn Bousman (born 1979), film director; Overland Park
• Chris Buck (born 1960), film director, animator; Wichita
• Eric Darnell (born 1960), director, writer, songwriter, animator; Prairie Village
• Randall Duell (1903–1992), art director; Russell County
• Alex Graves (born 1968), television director; El Dorado
• Sherman Halsey, music video and television director; Independence
• Martin and Osa Johnson (1884–1937 and 1894–1953), film pioneer, explorer; Chanute
• Stephen R. Johnson (1952 - 2015), music video and television director; Paola
• Oscar Micheaux (1893–1951), film director; Great Bend
• Gordon Parks (1912–2006), film director; Fort Scott
• Richard Thorpe (1896–1991), film director; Hutchinson

Public figures

Journalists

• Frank Marshall Davis (1905–1987), journalist, poet, political and labor movement activist; Arkansas City
• Steve Doocy (born 1956), co-host of Fox News's Fox & Friends; Abilene
• Elizabeth Farnsworth (born 1943), television journalist; Topeka
• William M. Gallagher (1923–1975), Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist; Hiawatha
• Jane Grant (1892–1972), journalist who co-founded The New Yorker; Girard
• E. W. Howe (1853–1937), author and newspaper editor; Atchison
• Bill Kurtis (born 1940), television journalist; Independence
• Jim Lehrer (1934–2020), television journalist; Wichita
• Melissa McDermott (born 1960s), television news anchor for CBS's Up to the Minute; Wichita
• Clementine Paddleford (1898–1967), journalist and food critic; Riley County
• Eugene C. Pulliam (1889–1975), founder Central Newspapers, Inc.; Ulysses
• Roy A. Roberts (1887–1967), newspaper editor; Muscotah
• W. Eugene Smith (1918–1978), photojournalist; Wichita
• John Cameron Swayze (1906–1995), television journalist; Wichita
• Julius Wayland (1854–1912), newspaper editor, Appeal to Reason; Girard
• William Allen White (1868–1944), author and newspaper editor; Emporia
• Gene Wojciechowski, author, sportswriter and ESPN commentator; Salina

Religious

• William Bickerton (1815–1905), founder of the Church of Jesus Christ (Bickertonite) and the Zion Valley, Kansas, colony; St. John
• Charles J. Chaput (born 1944), Archbishop, Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Denver; Concordia
• Sheri L. Dew (born 1953), influential Latter-day Saint spokeswoman; Ulysses
• Bart D. Ehrman (born 1955), New Testament scholar; Lawrence
• Jerry Johnston (born 1959), Southern Baptist Convention evangelist and pastor; Overland Park
• Emil Kapaun (1916–1951), Army chaplain Korean War, posthumous Medal of Honor recipient, Catholic martyr and sainthood candidate; Pilsen
• Ron Kenoly (born 1944), musical worship leader; Coffeyville
• Lillian M. Mitchner (1862/64-1954), President, Kansas State Woman's Christian Temperance Union; Topeka
• Fred Phelps (1929–2014), leader of Westboro Baptist Church; Topeka
• James Reeb (1927–1965), Unitarian minister beaten to death by segregationists in Selma, Alabama, during the Civil Rights Movement; Wichita
• David Laurin Ricken (born 1954), bishop of Roman Catholic Diocese of Cheyenne; Dodge City
• Michael Jarboe Sheehan (born 1939), Archbishop of Santa Fe; Wichita
• M. Madeline Southard (1877–1967), Methodist minister and writer
• John Joseph Sullivan (1920–2001), Bishop of Grand Island, Nebraska, and Kansas City-St. Joseph; Horton
• Gerald B. Winrod (1900–1957), evangelical Christian and Nazi sympathizer; Wichita
• Gordon Winrod (1926–2018), Christian Identity minister; Hesston

Others

Notable historical figures not from Kansas but who participated in a significant event in Kansas

• John Brown (1800–1859), abolitionist; Osawatomie
• Buffalo Bill Cody (1846–1917), buffalo hunter and showman; Leavenworth
• Wyatt Earp (1848–1929), lawman; Wichita and Dodge City
• Mary Tenney Gray (1833-1904), known as the "Mother of the Women's Club Movement in Kansas"; Kansas City
• Dora Hand (1844–1878), dance hall singer, Dodge City^[1]
• Wild Bill Hickok (1837–1876), lawman; Hays and Abilene
• John James Ingalls (1833–1900), politician^[2]
• Kris Kobach (born 1966), candidate for governor in 2018, Kansas Secretary of State
• James H. Lane (1814–1866), abolitionist, senator and union general; Lawrence
• Bat Masterson (1853–1921), lawman; Dodge City
• Carrie Nation (1846–1911), temperance activist; Medicine Lodge
• Mary Bell Smith (1818-1894), organizer and first president, Kansas Woman's Christian Temperance Union

Fictional persons

See also

• Lists of people from Kansas

Notes and References

1. Web site: Susan Leiser Silva and Lee A. Silva, "The Killing of Dora Hand",43374, 2009. historynet.com; originally in Wild West Magazine. April 13, 2014.
2. Web site: John James Ingalls. Architect of the Capitol. 16 July 2018. en.