Welcome to the Famous Virginians Page.
Click on the picture to learn more about the Famous Virginian.
A. Linwood Holton, Jr., as governor of Virginia, promoted racial equality and appointed more African Americans and women to positions in state government than previous governors.
Woodrow Wilson was a twentieth-century president who wrote a plan for world peace.
First Female Bank President and First African American Bank President in the United States.
L. Douglas Wilder
First African American Governor in the United States.
First African American to win the Men’s Singles Tennis Championship. A gifted speaker and author, he wrote about social issues.
Harry F. Byrd
Governor of Virginia that implimented a “Pay As You go” policy for road construction in Virginia.
He opposed the integration of schools with his “Massive Resistance” campaign.
Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson
The first Battle of Bull Run (or Manassas) was the first major clash of the Civil War. Confederate General Thomas (Stonewall) Jackson played a major role in this battle.
Robert E. Lee
Commander of the Northen Army of Virginia. General of the Confederate Army. Surrendered the Confederate Army to Ulysses S. Grant April 9, 1865.
John Brown
Abolitionist. Led a raid on a weapons arsenal in Harper’s Ferry Virginia.
Harriet Tubman
A former slave who helped slaves escape to the North and supported the Underground Railroad.
Nat Turner
Slave who led a a slave revolt against plantation owners in 1831.
James Madison
Known as the Father of the Constitution, he kept detailed notes during the constitutional convention. His skill of compromise helped to create the United States Constitution.
Known as the Father of Our Country. Became the first president of the United States. Was commander-in-chief of the Continental Army during the Revolutionary war against the English. He also explored and surveyed the Great Dismal Swamp in the Coastal Plain Region of Virginia.
African slave during the Revolutionary War who served in the Continental Army and was granted his freedom after the war.
Author of the Virginia Statute of Religious Freedom. America’s third President. Author of the Declaration of Independence.
Author of the Virginia Declaration of Rights. This document became the basis of the Bill of Rights.
Patrick Henry
Inspired colonists by saying “…give me liberty or give me death”
Pocahontas
American Indian. Daughter of Chief Powhatan. Befriended the Jamestown colonists and helped them survive. She believed they could live in harmony.
Captain John Smith
Led Jamestown with strong leadership. Intitiated trade relationships with the Powhatan. Emphasized a self-sustaining agriculture. Implemented a forced work program and helped the Jamestown colonists survive.