List of people from Carbondale, Illinois

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

Arts and culture

Name	Birth	Death	Known for	Association	Reference
Agnes Ayres	Apr 4, 1898	Dec 25, 1940	Actor (The Sheik)	Born in Carbondale
Shawn Colvin	Jan 10, 1956		Grammy Award-winning singer and musician	Grew up in Carbondale
Darva Conger	Sep 21, 1965		Winner of Who Wants to Marry a Multi-Millionaire? (2000)	Born in Carbondale
Ben Falcone	Aug 25, 1973		Actor (What to Expect When You're Expecting and Enough Said)	Born in Carbondale
R. Buckminster Fuller	Jul 12, 1895	Jul 1, 1983	Architect and futurist; built the geodesic domes found around Carbondale	Taught at Southern Illinois University Carbondale
John Gardner	Jul 21, 1933	Sep 14, 1982	Novelist and teacher (Grendel)	Taught at Southern Illinois University Carbondale	^[1]
Paul Gilbert	Nov 6, 1966		Guitarist (Racer X, Mr. Big)	Born in Carbondale
Rodney Jones	1950		Poet and nominee for the Pulitzer Prize	Professor of English at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale
Laurie Metcalf	Jun 16, 1955		Actress (Roseanne, 2017 Tony Award winner)	Born in Carbondale
Dave Soldier	Nov 6, 1956		Composer and founder of the Thai Elephant Orchestra	Born in Carbondale
Frankie Trumbauer	May 30, 1901	Jun 11, 1956	Saxophonist; contemporary of Bix Beiderbecke	Born in Carbondale

Crime

Name	Image	Birth	Death	Known for	Association	Reference
Timothy Krajcir		Nov 28, 1944		Serial killer; murdered two Carbondale women

Daniel Woloson Serial Rape; Robbery Strangle Susan Schumake

Military

Name	Image	Birth	Death	Known for	Association	Reference
Oscar Koch		Jan 10, 1897	May 16, 1970	US Army officer; served as Intelligence officer (G-2) for Third United States Army during World War II	Lived in Carbondale	^[2]
John Alexander Logan Jr.		Jul 24, 1865	Nov 11, 1899	US Army officer; posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for actions during the Philippine–American War	Born in Carbondale

Politics

Name	Birth	Death	Known for	Association	Reference
Laura Liu	Jul 19, 1966	Apr 17, 2016	Illinois Appellate Court judge	Born in Carbondale	^[3]
Sheila Simon	Mar 13, 1961		46th lieutenant governor of Illinois	Lives in Carbondale
John Ratcliffe	Oct 20, 1965		6th Director of National Intelligence	Graduated from high school in Carbondale

Sports

Name	Birth	Death	Known for	Association	Reference
Sola Abolaji	Mar 27, 1985		Professional soccer player	Born in Carbondale
Ron Acks	Oct 3, 1944	Nov 21, 2023	Linebacker for the Atlanta Falcons, New England Patriots and Green Bay Packers
Stephen Bardo	Apr 5, 1968		Shooting guard at University of Illinois; ESPN college basketball analyst		^[4]
Jim Caldwell	Jan 16, 1955		Head coach of the Detroit Lions, Indianapolis Colts	Wide receiver coach at Southern Illinois University
Chris Carr	Mar 12, 1974		Shooting guard for six different NBA teams	Attended Southern Illinois University
Justin Dentmon	Sep 5, 1985		Professional basketball player, 2010 top scorer in the Israel Basketball Premier League	Born in Carbondale, went to Carbondale Elementary schools and Carbondale Community High School
Troy Hudson	Mar 13, 1976		Point guard for the Minnesota Timberwolves and Golden State Warriors	Born in Carbondale
Brandon Jacobs	Jul 6, 1982		Running back for the New York Giants and San Francisco 49ers	Played football at Southern Illinois University
Jerry Kill	Aug 24, 1961		Head football coach for the University of Minnesota and Southern Illinois University
Bart Scott	Aug 18, 1980		Linebacker for the New York Jets	Played football for Southern Illinois University
Wan Kuzain bin Wan Kamal	Sep 14, 1998		Soccer midfielder for St. Louis City SC 2	Born in Carbondale, went to Carbondale Elementary schools and Carbondale Community High School
Steve Waterbury	Apr 6, 1952	May 19, 2017	Pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals	Born in Carbondale
Shawn Watson	Sep 21, 1959		Quarterbacks coach for the Louisville Cardinals football team	Born in Carbondale