This article is a list of notable individuals who were born in and/or have lived in Emporia, Kansas.
Academia
Frank A. Beach (1911–1988), ethologist Richard Grant Hiskey (1929–2016), chemist Vernon Lyman Kellogg (1867–1937), entomologist, evolutionary biologist Samuel Martin (1924–2009), linguist Carl Salser (1921–2006), author, businessman, educator Arthur Samuel (1901–1990), computer scientist
Arts and entertainment Film, television, and theatre Harry Cheshire (1891–1968), actor R. Lee Ermey (1944–2018), former U.S. Marine drill instructor, television host, and actor Thelma Hill (1906–1938), silent-film comedian Q (1996 or 1997), drag performer competing on season 16 of RuPaul's Drag Race James Still (1959– ), playwright
Journalism William Allen White (1868–1944), author and newspaper editor William Lindsay White (1900–1973), author, newspaper editor, CBS war correspondent, Reader's Digest roving editor
Literature Jacob M. Appel (1973– ), novelist (Einstein's Beach House)Phoning Home. University of South Carolina Press, 2014 Don Coldsmith (1926–2009), novelist Denise Low (1949– ), poet Keith Waldrop (1932–2023), poet, translator
Music Marvin Ash (1914–1974), jazz pianist Roy Burns (1935–2018), drummer Melora Creager (1966– ), cellist, singer-songwriter Cady Groves (1989–2020) Kelley Hunt, blues pianist, singer-songwriter Brian Leeds (1991–), electronic musician
Other visual arts Wendell Castle (1932–2018), furniture artist Evan Lindquist (1936–2023), artist, printmaker, Arkansas artist laureate Albert Murray (1906–1992), portrait painter Wilber Moore Stilwell (1908–1974), cartoonist, illustrator, painter
Business David Green (1941– ), founder of Hobby Lobby George Webb Slaughter (1811–1895), cattle breeder and drover, Baptist minister
Crime and law enforcement Mark Essex (1949–1973), mass murderer
Military William F. Cloud (1825–1905), U.S. Army colonel Grant F. Timmerman (1919–1944), U.S. Marine Corps sergeant, Medal of Honor recipient
Politics National William Ripley Brown (1840–1916), U.S. representative from Kansas Rose Conway, personal secretary to President Harry S. Truman Elmer O. Leatherwood (1872–1929), U.S. representative from Utah Preston B. Plumb (1837–1891), U.S. senator from Kansas, co-founder of Emporia Edward Herbert Rees (1886–1969), U.S. representative from Kansas
State Jim Barnett (1955– ), Kansas state legislator Samuel J. Crawford (1835–1913), 3rd governor of Kansas Don Hill (1944– ), Kansas state legislator Jeff Longbine (1962– ), Kansas state legislator Peggy Mast (1948– ), Kansas state legislator Richard Proehl (1944– ), Kansas state legislator Roy Wilford Riegle (1896–1988), Kansas state legislator
Religion Warren Parrish (1803–1877), early Mormon leader, Baptist minister
Sports Clint Bowyer (1979– ), NASCAR driver Jim Everett (1963– ), quarterback Daniel Gallemore (1985– ), mixed martial artist J. L. Lewis (1960–2019), professional golfer John Lohmeyer (1951– ), defensive lineman Ray Pierce (1897–1963), baseball pitcher Paul Samson (1905–1982), U.S. Olympic swimmer, water polo player Dean Smith (1931–2015), former North Carolina basketball coach, member of College Basketball Hall of Fame
See also Lists of people from Kansas List of people from Lyon County, Kansas
References