List of people from Cairo, Illinois

The following list includes notable people who were born or have lived in Cairo, Illinois. For a similar list organized alphabetically by last name, see the category page People from Cairo, Illinois.

Academics

Name	Image	Birth	Death	Known for	Association	Reference
Safford, Mary J.Mary J. Safford		Dec 31, 1834	Dec 8, 1891	Union army nurse in the US Civil War; professor of Women's Diseases at the Boston University; later became a doctor		[1]
Strode, HudsonHudson Strode		Oct 31, 1892	Sep 22, 1976	Author and professor of creative writing at the University of Alabama	Born in Cairo

Business

Name	Image	Birth	Death	Known for	Association	Reference
Halliday, William P.William P. Halliday		Jul 21, 1827	Sep 22, 1899	Banker, steamboat captain, owner of the Riverlore mansion, and businessman	Lived in and started several businesses in Cairo
Hinde, Charles T.Charles T. Hinde		Jul 12, 1832	Mar 10, 1915	Riverboat captain, railroad executive, founder of the Hotel del Coronado	Started his own shipping business in Cairo
Kniffen, Jan RogersJan Rogers Kniffen		1948		Business executive and television personality	Born in Cairo

Media

Name	Image	Birth	Death	Known for	Association	Reference
Ingram, RexRex Ingram		Oct 20, 1895	Sep 19, 1969	Stage, film, and television actor; first African-American actor to be hired for a contract role on a soap opera (The Brighter Day, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Sahara)	Born in Cairo

Military

Name	Image	Birth	Death	Known for	Association	Reference
Taggart, KellyKelly Taggart		Dec 17, 1932	May 7, 2014	Rear admiral in National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps (NOAA Corps); second Director of the NOAA Corps	Born in Cairo

Music

Name	Image	Birth	Death	Known for	Association	Reference
Clavin, ChrisChris Clavin		Aug 23, 1979		Owner of Plan-It-X Records; musician in Ghost Mice		[2]
Joans, TedTed Joans		Jul 4, 1928	Apr 25, 2003	Musician, poet and painter	Born in Cairo	[3]
Lehning, KyleKyle Lehning				Record producer and recording executive	Born in Cairo
Smith, George "Harmonica"George "Harmonica" Smith		Apr 22, 1924	Oct 2, 1983	Blues musician (harmonica)	Grew up in Cairo
Townsend, HenryHenry Townsend		Oct 27, 1909	Sep 24, 2006	Blues musician	Grew up in Cairo
Yancey, EstelleEstelle Yancey		Jan 1, 1896	Apr 19, 1986	Blues vocalist	Born in Cairo

Politics

Name	Image	Birth	Death	Known for	Association	Reference
Hayes, CharlesCharles Hayes		Feb 17, 1918	Apr 8, 1997	US congressman for Illinois's 1st congressional district (1983–1993)	Born in Cairo
Koen, CharlesCharles Koen (aka Chuck Koen)		1945		Civil rights activist; founded the Black Liberators
Thistlewood, Napoleon B.Napoleon B. Thistlewood		Mar 30, 1837	Sep 15, 1915	US congressman for Illinois's 25th congressional district (1908–1913)	Two term mayor of Cairo; died in Cairo
Townshend, Richard W.Richard W. Townshend		Apr 30, 1840	Mar 9, 1889	US congressman for Illinois's 19th congressional district (1877–1889)	Lived in Cairo
Trotter, DonneDonne Trotter		Jan 30, 1950		Illinois state senator for Illinois 17th district (1993–present)	Born in Cairo

Religion

Name	Image	Birth	Death	Known for	Association	Reference
Burnham, GraciaGracia Burnham		January 17, 1959		Protestant missionary to the Philippines; kidnapped by the Abu Sayyaf	Born in Cairo

Sports

Name	Image	Birth	Death	Known for	Association	Reference
Covington, ChetChet Covington		Nov 6, 1910	Jun 11, 1976	Pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies	Born in Cairo
Curtis, VernVern Curtis		May 24, 1920	Jun 24, 1992	Pitcher for the Washington Senators	Born and died in Cairo
Healy, EgyptianEgyptian Healy		Oct 27, 1866	Mar 16, 1899	Pitcher for seven Major League Baseball teams	Born in Cairo
Morgan, EdEd Morgan		May 22, 1904	Apr 9, 1980	Infielder for the Cleveland Indians and Boston Red Sox	Born in Cairo
Nesby, TyroneTyrone Nesby		Jan 31, 1976		Small forward for the Los Angeles Clippers and Washington Wizards, as well as four European teams	Born in Cairo
Smith, CarolineCaroline Smith		July 21, 1906	Nov 10, 1994	Diving gold medalist at 1924 Summer Olympics	Born in Cairo
Trickey, KenKen Trickey		Aug 30, 1933	Dec 4, 2012	College basketball coach for Oral Roberts University	Raised in Cairo; graduated from and coached at Cairo High School	[4]

References

1. Fischer, Leroy H. (1961). "Cairo's Civil War Angel, Mary Jane Stafford.". Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society (54).
2. Smith, Aaron Lake. "Trying to Revitalize a Dying Small Town", TIME, February 15, 2010.
3. Kelley, Robin D. G. (May 20, 2003). "Ted Joans, 1928-2003". The Village Voice.
4. "Trickey returns 'home' to ORU for hoop revival", The Southeast Missourian, July 17, 1987.