John Archibald Campbell (1811 - 1889)

Campbell was born near Washington, Georgia, to Col. Duncan Greene Campbell (for whom the now-defunct Campbell County, Georgia was named). Considered a child prodigy, he graduated from the University of Georgia in 1825 at the age of 14, and immediately enrolled at the United States Military Academy for three years and would have graduated in […]

John Arledge (1907 - 1947)

Actor. Born Johnson Lundy Arledge, he performed in vaudeville and on stage, making his big screen debut in “King of Jazz” (1930). A veteran of nearly fifty films, his credits included “Heart Break” (1931),”County Fair” (1937), “Gone With the Wind” (1939), “The Grapes of Wrath” (1940), “Ski Patrol” (1940), “Cheers for Miss Bishop” (1941) and […]

John Ashley (1934 - 1997)

Born John Atchley, John Ashley was reared in Oklahoma and attended Will Rogers High School in Tulsa and Oklahoma State University in Stillwater, where he studied a BA in Economics. While a student, Ashley visited a friend in California and accompanied him to the set of The Conqueror (1956). He was seen by John Wayne […]

John Aspinwall Roosevelt (1916 - 1981)

After the war, John Aspinwall Roosevelt pursued a business career in California as the Regional Merchandising Manager for Grayson & Robertson Stores in Los Angeles. In 1953, he became a partner in a Beverly Hills financial company but left shortly thereafter to take up residence in the family compound in Hyde Park. Unlike his siblings, Roosevelt […]

John Avery McIlhenny (1867 - 1942)

Businessman, Soldier, Politician. He was the son of Tabasco brand pepper sauce inventor Edmund McIlhenny and after his father’s death in 1890, he oversaw the business operations with his mother. With the outbreak of the Spanish-American War, he joined the First Volunteer Cavalry of the United States Army, the celebrated Rough Riders on May 19, […]

John Avildsen (1935 - 2017)

After starting out as an assistant director on films by Arthur Penn and Otto Preminger, John Avildsen received his first success with the low budget feature Joe (1970) which received critical acclaim for star Peter Boyle and moderate box office business. This was followed by another critical success, Save the Tiger (1973), that was nominated […]

John B. Cowle (1826 - 1914)

Owner of Globe Iron Works which became part of Cleveland Shipbuilding.  Treasurer of Cleveland Drydock Co.  Later affiliated with Universal Machine and Boiler Co.  Two ore freighters were named after him, one in 1902 (Sank,1909, Lake Superior), one in 1910 (renamed Harry L. Allen, sank, 1960’s). (bio by: Joyce)

John B. Gallaudet (1903 - 1983)

Actor. He had a career that spanned motion pictures and television from 1935 to 1967. His movies appearences included roles in “In Cold Blood”, “The Patsy” and “Angels in the Out Field” in 1951. (bio by: Graving Queen of the OC)  Family links:  Spouse:  Constance Helen Gallaudet (1910 – 1991)* *Calculated relationship

John Backus (1924 - 2007)

John Warner Backus (December 3, 1924 – March 17, 2007) was an American computer scientist. He directed the team that invented and implemented FORTRAN, the first widely used high-level programming language, and was the inventor of the Backus–Naur form (BNF), a widely used notation to define formal language syntax. He later did research into the […]

John Bacon (1740 - 1799)

Sculptor. His original technique did much to improve the transition of statues from artificial stone to marble. In 1769 he was awarded the first gold medal by the Royal Academy for sculpture. His many works and monuments can be found at St Paul’s Cathedral and Westminster Abbey. (bio by: s.canning)

John Bacon (1740 - 1799)

Sculptor. His original technique did much to improve the transition of statues from artificial stone to marble. In 1769 he was awarded the first gold medal by the Royal Academy for sculpture. His many works and monuments can be found at St Paul’s Cathedral and Westminster Abbey. (bio by: s.canning)

John Bacon Curtis (1827 - 1897)

Businessman and Inventor. He began manufacturing chewing gum out of sap from spruce trees in 1848, and became wealthy after  it became popular with the public. (bio by: Russ Dodge)

John Baldwin (1799 - 1884)

Educator. He was the founder of Baldwin Institute (later to join with German Wallace College to become Baldwin-Wallace College). (bio by: MJGoette)  Family links:  Parents:  Joseph Baldwin (____ – 1825)  Rosannah Baldwin (____ – 1843)  Spouse:  Mary Dunn Chappel Baldwin (1802 – 1895)  Children:  Rosanna Baldwin Walker (1831 – 1924)*  Newton Baldwin (1836 – 1854)* […]

John Ball (1911 - 1988)

Author. A modern crime novelist, he wrote the ‘Virgil Tibbs’ series of books about a Black homicide investigator from Pasadena. The most well renowned was “In The Heat Of The Night” (1965), becoming a theatrical film in 1967 starring Sidney Portier and Rod Steiger and a television series in the late 1980s which featured Howard […]

John Banner (1910 - 1973)

Actor. He had a forty five year career acting on stage, in motion pictures, and on television, and his best remembered for his role of ‘Sergeant Schultz’ in the 1960s television situation comedy “Hogan’s Heroes” (1965  to 1971).  An actor of Jewish descent in his hometown of Vienna, he was forced to leave when Germany […]

John Baptiste Charles Lucas (1758 - 1842)

Born in France, Lucas happened to meet Benjamin Franklin, the U.S. Ambassador to the French court. Fascinated by Franklin’s conversations on the new democracy & the vast opportunities of a new frontier, he decided to emigrate to America. He arrived in 1784 & moved to St. Louis in 1805 where he was appointed Commissioner of […]

John Baptiste Ford (1811 - 1903)

Industrialist. He founded Pittsburgh Plate Glass Company in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.  Family links:  Spouse:  Mary Bower Ford (1806 – 1897)* *Calculated relationship

John Bardeen (1908 - 1991)

John Bardeen was born in Madison, Wisconsin on May 23, 1908.  Bardeen attended the University High School at Madison for several years, but graduated from Madison Central High School in 1923. He graduated from high school at age fifteen, even though he could have graduated several years earlier. His graduation was postponed due to taking […]

John Barron McKay (1922 - 1975)

Pioneer Astronaut. During World War II, he served as a US Navy pilot in the Pacific Theater, earning the Air Medal with two Clusters and a Presidential Unit Citation. After the war, he joined Edwards Air Force Base, California in 1951, as a D-558 and X-1 test pilot. As a project pilot, he flew on […]

John Bartlett (1820 - 1905)

Author. He is best remembered for his work “Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations” which was published in 1855. Known for his memory for quotations and trivia, “Ask John Bartlett” became a byword in the community whenever someone was stumped. His father was a descendant of the Mayflower Pilgrims Love Brewster, one of the founders of the town […]

John Bassett Moore (1860 - 1947)

Jurist. First American Judge to serve on the Permanent Court of International Justice. An 1880 graduate of the University of Virginia, he was admitted to the Delaware bar in 1883. In 1885 he clerked at the Department of State. He served as Assistant Secretary of State during the Spanish-American War in 1898, and after the […]

John Batterson Stetson (1830 - 1906)

Businessman. He learned the hat trade from his father. After his father’s death he moved to St. Louis, Missouri, and worked for a brick manufacturer. When the factory and business were ruined by floods, Stetson headed west to Colorado to find his fortune in gold. His hat making skills proved useful as he used the […]

John Bauer (1882 - 1918)

Swedish Artist and Illustrator. Acclaimed for describing the world of elves, trolls and the mystique of the Nordic fairy tales. From 1907-1910 and 1912-1915 he illustrated a Swedish annual Christmas book for children, called “Bland tomtar och troll” (Among Elves and Trolls). That title has become synonumous with his pictures more than the contents of […]

John Beal (1970 - 1997)

Beal was born James Alexander Bliedung in Joplin, Missouri. He originally went to New York to study art but a chance to understudy in a play made him change his mind. He began acting in the 1930s, opposite Katharine Hepburn (in the 1934 RKO film The Little Minister),[1] among others; one of his notable screen […]

John Beggs (1847 - 1925)

John Irvin Beggs was born in Philadelphia on September 17, 1847, the son of James and Mary Irvin Beggs. Both of his parents were of Scottish descent but had emigrated to the United States from Northern Ireland.  His early life was spent around Philadelphia. After his father died when he was seven years old, Beggs […]

John Belcher (1841 - 1913)

British architect. A renowed architect, his numerous projects included Whiteley’s store in Bayswater (1910), Colchester Town Hall (1898) and the Aston Memorial in Lancaster (1906), which was built in the lavish Edwardian Baroque style. He was also an accomplished musician and artist, and was elected President of the RIBA, (1904-1906) and the Royal Academy in […]

John Belushi (1949 - 1982)

John Belushi Actor. Comedian. Born John Adam Belushi in Chicago to Albanian immigrant parents. As a boy, his family moved to Wheaton, where John played on the high school football team and was homecoming king. He attended the University of Wisconsin at Whitewater where he co-founded an acting troupe. Belushi then auditioned for and won […]

John Bennett (1928 - 2005)

British Character Actor. He was born in Beckenham, Kent, and died in London. He began his career on stage in the mid 1940s and twenty years later, debuted in cinema with “The Challenge” (1960). His films included “Lawrence of Arabia” (1962), and “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum” (1966).  More recently, […]

John Bentley (1839 - 1902)

John Francis Bentley was born in Doncaster, Yorkshire. As a boy, he enjoyed sketching and architecture, but his father disapproved and found him a job as an apprentice with a firm of engineers in Manchester. In 1855, however, he moved to London and began a five-year indenture with a firm of architects. The following year, […]

John Beradino (1917 - 1996)

Actor, Baseball Player. Best Known for his role as ‘Dr. Steve Hardy,’ on the long-running soap opera “General Hospital” from it beginning in 1963 until his death in 1996. John started out as a child actor working for producer Hal Roach. Right after graduating University of Southern California where he attended on a baseball scholarship, […]