Name ______
Date ______
Biography Choices
Directions: Read through the list and select your top 5 choices. Each student must have a different character. We will select using cards so it is fair to everyone. We hope you are able to research one of your top five choices. Write your five choices (name and number on a scrap sheet). If a person on your list is selected, cross it off. There can only be one student per important person.
1. Adams / John / President2. Albright / Madeleine / First Woman Secretary of State
3. Alexandar The Great / Leader
4. Ali / Muhammad / Boxer
5. Andersen / Hans Christian / Author of many well known fairy tales.
6. Anderson / Marian / Singer that helped to end segregation.
7. Angelou / Maya / A strong African American woman who retains dignity.
8. Anthony / Susan B / An early leader for women’s rights.
9. Apgar / Virginia / Anesthesiologist who developed the score for measuring a newborn’s physical condition at birth.
10. Archimedes / Mathematician
11. Armstrong / Louis / A famous trumpeter; one of the first great improvisers in jazz history
12. Arnold / Benedict / American general that becomes a Revolutionary War traitor
13. Bailey / Anne / Scout carrying messages to troops moving throughout the frontier and tracking enemy movements during the Revolutionary War.
14. Banneker / Benjamin / African American astronomer and mathematician who challenged the concept of slavery.
15. Barton / Clara / Founder of The Red Cross
16. Bell / Alexander Graham / Scientist
17. Bentley / Snowflake / Scientist who photographed thousands of snowflakes
18. Blackwell / Elizabeth / First woman doctor
19. Blume / Judy / Author
20. Blair / Tony / Prime Minister of Great Britain
21. Boone / Daniel / Colonial Pioneer, hunter and woodsman
22. Buchanan / James / President
23. Carnegie / Andrew / Captain of Industry
24. Carson / Rachel / Ecologist and Environmentalist
25. Carter / Jimmy / President
26. Carver / George Washington / Slave who later on in life experimented with peanuts.
27. Catherine the Great / Female ruler of Russia
28. Charlemagne / Great Military Leader
29. Chavez / Cesar / Worker’s rights
30. Churchill / Winston / British soldier and writer
31. Cleopatra / Egyptian Queen
32. Clemente / Roberto / Baseball player
33. Cleveland / Grover / President
34. Clinton / Hillary / First Lady to Bill Clinton (former president)
35. Cobb / Ty / Baseball Player
36. Cody / Buffalo Bill / Pony Express Rider
37. Confucius / Philosopher
38. Coleman / Bessie / Daring Stunt Pilot
39. Columbus / Christopher / Discovered America
40. Coolidge / Calvin / President
41. Cummings / E.E. / American writer and Poet
42. Curie / Marie / Scientist
43. Da Vinci / Leonardo / Philosopher; scientist; inventor
44. DiMaggio / Joe / Baseball Player
45. Douglass / Frederick / Escaped slavery and became an orator, writer and leader
46. Drew / Charles / Surgeon who established blood banks
47. Earhart / Amelia / Women Pilot
48. Edison / Thomas / Scientist; Inventor
49. Einstein / Albert / Scientist; inventor
50. Eisenhower / Dwight / President
51. Ellington / Duke / African American musician who influenced jazz
52. Farragut / David / Naval officer for whom the rank of admiral was created
53. Fitzgerald / Ella / Jazz vocalist
54. Fleming / Alexander / Discovered Penicillin
55. Fleming / Peggy / Figure Skater
56. Ford / Henry / Engineer and Industrialist
57. Franklin / Benjamin / Inventor
58. Garfield / James / President
59. Gates / Bill / Inventor of Microsoft
60. Gershwin / George / Musician
61. Glenn / John / Astronaut
62. Gandhi / Mahatma / Leader- Non-violence policy
63. Gehry / Frank / Architect
64. Goodall / Jane / Scientist- studied chimpanzees.
65. Gooden / Dwight / Baseball player
66. Gore / Al / Former Vice-President; involved in the environment
67. Grant / Ulysses / President
68. Gretzky / Wayne / Hockey Player
69. Gutenberg / Johannes / Invented the printing press
70. Hale / Nathan / Revolutionary spy
71. Hamill / Dorothy / Figure Skater
72. Hamilton / Alexander / Framer of the Constitution
73. Hamm / Mia / soccer
74. Handler / Daniel / AKA Lemony Snicket
75. Harding / Warren / President
76. Harf / Danny / Surfer
77. Harrison / Benjamin / President
78. Harrison / William / President
79. Hawking / Stephen / British physicist
80. Hendrix / Jimi / Musician
81. Hawk / Tony / Skateboarder
82. Hayes / Rutherford / President
83. Henson / Jim / Puppeteer; Muppets
84. Henson / Matthew / Black Explorer who helped to discover the North Pole
85. Henry / Patrick / Revolution
86. Hershey / Milton / Chocolate
87. Hoover / J. Edgar / FBI Director
88. Houdini / Harry / Magician and escape artist.
89. Hughes / Langston / African American who is known as the voice of Harlem
90. Ishi / Last of the Yahi Indian tribe lived in hidden villages and caves in Northern California
91. Jackson / Andrew / President
92. Jackson / Bo / Athlete
93. Jackson / Jesse / African American minister, civil rights worker who ran for Democratic presidential nomination in 1984 and 1988
94. Jackson / Mahalia / Gospel singer who helped to break down racial barriers
95. Jackson / Stonewall / Confederate general; took a stand at the first battle of Bull Run during the Civil War.
96. Jefferson / Thomas / President
97. Jemison / Mae / First African-American to go into space.
98. Joan of Arc / Led the French army against English, burned at the stake for witchcraft
99. Jobs / Steve / Apple corporation
100. Johnson / Andrew / President
101. Johnson / James Weldon / Civil Rights Leader, poet and song writer
102. Johnson / Lyndon / President
103. Joplin / Scott / Pianist and Composer
104. Jones / Frederick McKinley / African American engineer and inventor
105. Jordan / Barbara / African American woman; spokesperson for democracy
106. Jordan / Michael / Basketball player
107. Kagan / Elena / Supreme Court Judge
108. Kahlo / Frida / Mexican artist and wife of Diego Rivera
109. Keller / Helen / Blind and Deaf girl who was an inspiration.
110. Kelly / Princess Gace of Monaco / Life of a princess, her acting career, marriage to the Prince and the princess of Monaco
111. Kepler / Johannes / Scientist discovered the laws of planetary motion
112. Kennedy / Claudia / Army’s highest-ranking ever
113. King / Coretta Scott / Wife of Martian Luther King Jr. Involved in Civil Rights.
114. King. Jr. / Martin Luther / Civil Rights
115. King / Stephen / Author
116. Koch / Robert / Scientist; studied anthrax
117. L’Engle / Madeline / Author of A Wrinkle in Time
118. Lee / Robert E. / General
119. Lee / Stan / Comic Book Writer
120. Lenin / Vladimir / First head of the Soviet Union
121. Lennon / John / Musician-One of the Beatles
122. Leslie / Lisa / Slam Dunk Queen
123. Lewis and / Clark / Explorers from St. Louis to the Pacific Ocean
124. Lewis / Carl / Track Star
125. Lincoln / Abraham / President
126. Lindberg / Charles / Pilot
127. Madison / James / President
128. Marshall / Thurgood / First African-American on the Supreme Court
129. Mandela / Nelson / First Black President of South Africa
130. MacArthur / Douglas / General
131. Mendel / Gregor / Scientist; Genes
132. Mendeloyev / Dmitri / Scientist; periodic table
133. Meyer / Stephenie / Author
134. Minh / Ho Chi / Vietnamese leader
135. Morse / Samuel / Telegraph and Morse Code
136. Mozart / Wolfgang Amadeus / Composer and musician
137. Newton / Isaac / Scientist
138. Nightingale / Florence / Famous Nurse
139. Nixon / Richard / President
140. Oakley / Annie / Famous marksman (female)
141. Ohr / Michael / Football player from The Blindside
142. O’Keeffe / Georgia / Painter
143. Owens / Jesse / Olympic Track Star
144. Parks / Rosa / Civil Rights
145. Pastuer / Louis / Scientist
146. Pierce / Franklin / President
147. Penn / William / Pioneer
148. Peron / Eva / First Lady of Argentina
149. Phelps / Michael / Olympic Athlete (swimming)
150. Plato / Greek Philosopher
151. Pocahontas / American Indian princess who helped John Smith
152. Polk / James / President
153. Powell / Colin / Top-ranking officer in the U.S. Military; Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
154. Price / Leontyne / African American Opera Superstar
155. Ride / Sally / Female Astronaut
156. Rivera / Diego / Legendary Mexican Painter
157. Robeson / Paul / Singer and controversial figure in world poltics
158. Robinson / Jackie / Baseball player
159. Roosevelt / Eleanor / Wife of a President and represented him when he became ill.
160. Roosevelt / Franklin / President
161. Roosevelt / Theodore / President
162. Ross / Betsey / Sewed the American Flag
163. Ross / Diana / Singer who overcame discrimination
164. Rowling / J.K. / Author of Harry Potter Series.
165. Rudolph / Wilma / Gold Medalist in Track
166. Russell / Bill / Basketball player
167. Rutherford / Ernest / Created the Nuclear Model of the Atom
168. Samson / Deborah / A woman who disguised herself as a man and served in the army during the American Revolution
169. Spielberg / Steven / Filmmaker
170. Stanton / Elizabeth Cady / Pioneer in the Woman Suffrage Movement
171. Taft / William / President
172. Tecumseh / Shawnee Rebel
173. Thorpe / Jim / American Indian athlete who participated in many sports
174. Truman / Harry / President
175. Truth / Sojourner / Slave who fought for equal rights.
176. Tubman / Harriet / Slave who worked with the Underground Railroad
177. Tudor / Mary / First queen of England; executed many people
178. Twain / Mark / American humorist and writer
179. Tyler / John / President
180. Van Buren / Martin / President
181. Walker / C.J. / Made more money than any woman has ever made with her hair care business
182. Walker / Herschel / Football player
183. Wasdin / Howard / Member of Navy SEAL Team Six
184. Washington / Booker T. / African American Inventor
185. Washington / George / General; President
186. Washington / Harold / Chicago’s first black mayor
187. Webster / Noah / Dictionary
188. Whitman / Meg / President and CEO of eBay
189. Whitman / Walt / Poet
190. Whitney / Eli / Inventor
191. Wilder / Laura Ingalls / Author of the Little House series
192. Williams / Venus / Female Tennis player
193. Wilson / Woodrow / President
194. Winfrey / Oprah / Talk-Show Host; Philanthropist
195. Woodhull / Victoria / Fought for women’s rights; first woman to run for president
196. Wright Brothers / Airplanes
197. X / Malcolm / African American Rights
198. Yamaguchi / Kristi / Asian American who won a gold medal in figure skating
199. Young / Andrew / First Black United States Ambassador to the United Nations
200. Zuckerberg / Mark / Facebook creator
****If you happen to find a person that you think would be suitable for this project, but isn’t included on the list, see Ms. DePoorter.