Athletes and sports figures

by Agan, Kelly. Ernest Eugene Barnes – known as Ernie -- was born on July 15, 1938 to parents Ernest E. Barnes, Sr. and Fannie Mae Geer near the Hayti neighborhood in Durham.  His father, originally from [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Roberson, Elizabeth Whitley. North Carolina was the site of the first powered airplane flight in 1903. In 1913, only ten years later, a native North Carolinian became the first woman to make a parachute jump from an [...] (from Tar Heel Junior Historian, NC Museum of History.)

by Green, C. Sylvester. His preparatory schooling included attendance at the Franklinton Classical and Military Institute and at the Raleigh Male Academy. At both institutions his scholastic record showed superior grades, [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Rutherford, Rocky. EVENT. A rodeo has various types of events: roping, barrel racing, bareback riding, saddle bronc riding, bull riding, etc. Each was referred to as an "event" until the PBR and other bucking bull [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Case, Steven. Dale Earnhardt was born on April 29, 1951, in Kannapolis (Cabarrus County). His father Ralph, a competitive and innovative driver on the NASCAR Modified, Sportsman and Grand National circuits, [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Blackburn, George T., II. Isaac Edward Emerson, chemist, manufacturer, sportsman, and philanthropist, was born in Orange County, the son of Robert J. Emerson, a farmer, and his wife, Cornelia Lewis Hudson of Wake County. [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Case, Steven. A Wilmington native, Roman Gabriel attracted national interest during his quarterback days at N. C. State University, where he was twice recognized as an All-American. In 1962 Gabriel's [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Caldwell, Martha B. Graves, Ernest by Martha B. Caldwell, 1986 27 Mar. 1880–9 June [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Case, Steven. A native of Alabama, Mia Hamm made her mark in North Carolina during her years with the UNC women's soccer team (1989-94). She helped them to win four of their record twenty NCAA championships. [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Hood, Henry G., Jr. Allan Wilson Hobbs, educator, was born in Greensboro, the son of Dr. Lewis Lyndon Hobbs, president of Guilford College, and Mary Mendenhall Hobbs. His brother Lewis Lyndon, Jr., became a surgeon in [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Case, Steven. The story of James Augustus Hunter reads like a Hollywood script. Born the last of eight children in Perquimans County, North Carolina, Jim Hunter rose to superstar status in baseball while [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Case, Steven. Michael Jordan may have been born in Brooklyn, but North Carolina claims him as one of our own. The Jordan family moved to North Carolina when Michael Jordan was very small and he grew up in [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Thompson, Taylor. Think about the shoes you’ve seen others wear. Have you ever seen someone wearing Air Jordans? If so, you might know that they get their name from Michael Jordan. He is a legendary basketball player. [...] (from NCpedia K-8 Collection.)

by Case, Steven. A native of Asheville, Justice acquired his nickname in the Navy, into which he was drafted in 1943. Seeing him dodge tacklers for the Bainbridge Naval Training Center team, an officer remarked, "He [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Case, Steven. Ray Charles Leonard, known as the boxing champion "Sugar Ray" Leonard (after the champion boxer Sugar Ray Robinson), was born on May 17, 1956 in Wilmington, North Carolina to Getha Leonard and [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Flannagan, Clara H. R. George Leonidas Lyon, sportsman and world champion trapshooter, was born in Durham, the second son of Robert E. and Mary Duke Lyon. His paternal grandfather was Zachariah Inge Lyon, pioneer tobacco [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Sumner, Jim L. Angus Morris (Monk) McDonald, college athlete and physician, was born and raised in Charlotte, the son of Angus Morris, Sr., and Ann Howard McDonald. His father was founder of the Southern Real [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Sumner, Jim L. Murray, William David by Jim L. Sumner, 1991 9 Sept. 1908–29 Mar. 1986 William David Murray, [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Agan, Kelly. North Carolina Sports Figures: Olympic Athletes and Coaches in the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame by Kelly Agan, North Carolina Government & Heritage Library, [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Agan, Kelly. North Carolina universities have won the NCAA Basketball Tournament championship thirteen times during the event's history, with victories by Duke University's Blue Devils, UNC-Chapel Hill's Tar [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Sumner, Jim L. Estelle Lawson Page, amateur golfer, was born in her mother's hometown of East Orange, N.J., but raised in Chapel Hill. She was the only child of Dr. Robert Baker and Estelle Adelaide Ward Lawson. [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Case, Steven, Agan, Kelly. Every sport has one quintessential player who transforms the game from pastime to art form, a person who attracts public attention by presence alone. In the world of golf, this person is Arnold [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Case, Steven. Lee's son Richard Petty and his grandson Kyle Petty have taken the family vocation to new heights. Richard Petty's career included 200 NASCAR Winston Cup wins and he was nine times named the Most [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Conway, Robert O. Saunooke, Osley Bird by Robert O. Conway, 1994 19 July 1906–15 April 1965 See also: Qualla [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Sumner, Jim L. Ernest Grady Shore, baseball player and law enforcement officer, was born in East Bend, one of four children of Henry and Eugenia Poindexter Shore. Longtime Yadkin County farmers, the Shores traced [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Wegner, Ansley Herring. Sir Archie by Ansley Wegner Research Branch, NC Office of Archives and History, 2006.www.ncmarkers.com See also: Additional NCpedia articles related to Sir [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Case, Steven. Enos "Country" Slaughter by Steven Case, 2010. NC Government & Heritage Library. April 27, 1916 - August 12, 2002 Enos "Country" Slaughter is a well known name in the history of [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Kemp, Amy. Dean Edwards Smith was the head Men’s Basketball Coach at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill from 1961 until 1997. At the time of his retirement, he had more wins than any basketball [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Sumner, Jim L. Snavely, Carl Gray by Jim L. Sumner, 1994 31 July 1894–12 July 1975 Carl Gray Snavely, college football coach, was born in Omaha, Nebr., the son of Charles, a Methodist minister, and Bessie [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Sumner, Jim L. Suggs, George Franklin by Jim L. Sumner, 1994 7 July 1883–4 Apr. 1949 George Franklin Suggs, professional baseball player, was the first North Carolina–born major league star of the modern [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Riley, Jack. James Moore Tatum, star athlete, football coach, and university athletic director, was born at McColl, S.C., the youngest of five sons of Walter Robert and Jessie Carmichael Tatum. His father was a [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Reising, R. W. Thorpe, James Francis by R. W. Reising, 1996 28 May 1888–28 Mar. 1953 See also: Jim Thorpe and Babe Ruth James Francis Thorpe, perhaps the greatest performer in the history of sport, spent [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Cecelski, David S. Mel A. Tomlinson was one of America's most brilliant dancers in the 1970s and '80s. Raised in Raleigh's Chavis Heights public housing project, he became a star in Agnes de Mille's Heritage Theater, [...] (from Listening to History, News and Observer.)

by Agan, Kelly, Miles, Jeff, Smythe, Andrea. Tomlinson, Mel Alexander by Jeff Miles, North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, 2015; Revised by SLNC Government & Heritage Library, September [...] (from Government & Heritage Library, State Library of North Carolina.)

by Hogg, Kevin. Hoyt Wilhelm was a record-setting major league baseball relief pitcher elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1985, the first relief pitcher so honored. He used his skill and perseverance to carve [...] (from NCpedia.)

by Sumner, Jim L. Woodall, Charles Lawrence, Jr. by Jim L. Sumner, 1996 26 July 1894–6 May 1963 Charles Lawrence Woodall, Jr., professional baseball player and coach, was born in Staunton, Va., the son of [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Powell, William S. William (Will) Andrew Wynne, bicyclist, professional baseball player, and radio pioneer, was born near the community of Neuse in Wake County, the son of William W. and Elizabeth Culbreth Wynne. In [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)

by Sumner, Jim L. Zachary, Jonathan Thompson Walton by Jim L. Sumner, 1996 7 May 1896–24 Jan. 1969 Jonathan Thompson Walton Zachary, professional baseball player, was born in Graham, one of eight children of [...] (from Dictionary of North Carolina Biography, University of North Carolina Press.)