Spartanburg, South Carolina - Notable People

Notable People

• Ted Alexander (1912 – 1999), American baseball pitcher in the Negro Leagues
• Pink Anderson (1900–1974), blues musician; inspiration for the "Pink" in Pink Floyd
• David Ball (born 1953), country musician
• Joe Bennett, lead singer and guitarist from the 1950s rock 'n roll band "Joe Bennett and the Sparkletones"
• James Francis Byrnes (1882–1972), lawyer, congressman, senator, Supreme Court Justice (only person to step down off the bench for another federal post—head the wartime Office of Economic Stabilization), advisor to FDR, Secretary of State to Truman, Governor of South Carolina
• Wilson Casey (born 1954), syndicated newspaper columnist, speaking entertainer, and Guinness World Record holder
• Marshall Chapman (born 1949), singer-songwriter
• David Daniels (born 1966), counter-tenor
• Stephen Davis (born 1974), American football running back
• Marion Kirkland Fort (1921–1964), mathematician
• Art Fowler (1922–2007), pitcher and pitching coach in Major League Baseball
• Hank Garland (1930–2004), legendary Nashville guitarist who played on the records of Patsy Cline and Elvis, among others.
• George Gray (aka One Man Gang) (born 1960), Pro wrestler
• Fred Griffith (born 1964), American actor and film producer
• Mark Hammond (born 1963), South Carolina Secretary of State
• Lee Haney (born 1951), eight-time Mr. Olympia record holder
• Dennis Hayes (born 1950), inventor of the Hayes modem
• Walter Hyatt (1950–1996), country musician and songwriter
• Mark R. Johnsen (born 1962), founder and owner of Spartanburg's first and only brewery, RJ Rockers Brewing Company
• Joseph T. Johnson (1858–1919), United States Representative from South Carolina
• Kenneth Law, cellist
• Donald Lawrence (born 1961), Gospel artist
• Fred L. Lowery (born 1943), Southern Baptist pastor
• Marshall Tucker Band, Southern rock band featuring George McCorkle, Doug Grey, Jerry Eubanks, Toy Caldwell, Tommy Caldwell, et al.
• Marcus McBeth (born 1980), baseball player
• Roger Milliken (1915–2010), billionaire owner of the largest privately held textile manufacturing firm in the world (Milliken & Company)
• Bud Moore (born 1925), NASCAR team owner/crew chief
• D. J. Moore (born 1987), American football player
• Samuel J. Nicholls (1885–1937), United States Representative from South Carolina
• Angela Nikodinov (born 1980), US figure skater
• Cotton Owens (born 1924), NASCAR team owner/crew chief
• David Pearson (born 1940), race car driver
• Gianna Rolandi (born 1952), operatic soprano
• Al "Flip" Rosen (born 1924), MLB 4-time All-Star third baseman and first baseman, MVP, 2-time home run champion, 2-time RBI leader
• Donald S. Russell (1906–1998), former South Carolina governor, president of the University of South Carolina, US Senator, and member of the US 4th Circuit Court of Appeals
• Archibald Rutledge (1883–1973), South Carolina poet laureate, resided in Spartanburg for about 20 years
• Jack Smith (1924–2001), NASCAR driver
• Buck Trent (born 1938), country music instrumentalist who accompanied Porter Wagoner & Dolly Parton, among others
• Ira Tucker (1925–2008), lead singer of the influential gospel group the Dixie Hummingbirds
• William "Singing Billy" Walker (1809-1875), compiler of shape note tunebooks, including The Southern Harmony, and Musical Companion.
• Celia Weston (born 1951), actress.
• William Westmoreland (1914–2005), Commander of U.S. Forces in Vietnam during the Tet Offensive, later Chief of Staff of the United States Army, pushed heavily for investigation of My Lai Massacre against President Nixon's wishes
• Ricky Fields Jr. (born 1990), Notable Citizen, Dorman Alumni