New Haven Notables

1Karen Carpenter

Karen Carpenter was born in New Haven in 1950. She and her brother, Richard, formed the 1970s duo The Carpenters. They were the biggest-selling group of the 70s. No fewer than ten of their singles went on to become million-sellers, and by 2005 combined worldwide sales of albums and singles well exceeded 100 million units. Carpenter's skills as a drummer earned admiration from her peers, although she is best known for her vocal performances of romantic ballads.

We came out right in the middle of the hard-rock period... it was hard-rock everywhere! But we were ready to make our music, you know? And it was such a turn around, I guess it caught people by surprise.

2Paul Giamatti

Born in New Haven (1967) Paul was schooled at Yale University, and trained at the Yale School of Drama. He has appeared in American Splendor, Sideways, Cinderella Man, The Illusionist, John Adams, Cold Souls, Barney's Version and Win Win. Nominated for 45 separate awards between 2001 and 2008, he has won 26 of them, including both an Emmy and a Golden Globe.

In a weird way, I like to find the quirkiness in ordinary things. I like to find what is ordinary in quirky people.

Illustration by Liz Garvey

3Michael J. McGivney

On March 29, 1882, while an assistant pastor at Saint Mary's Church on Hillhouse Avenue, McGivney founded the Knights of Columbus, (an organization that encourages men to be proud of their American-Catholic heritage) with a small group of parishioners. The order now has over 1.8 million member families and fifteen thousand councils.

In 1996, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Hartford opened an investigation into Father McGivney's life, with a stated goal of his beatification and canonization, or formal recognition by the Church of his sainthood.

Illustration by Liz Garvey

4The Five Satins

The Five Satins, formed in New Haven, consisted of leader Fred Parris, Lou Peebles, Stanley Dortch, Ed Martin and Jim Freeman in 1954. The doo-wop group is best known for their 1956 million-selling song, "In the Still of the Night." In 1957, the single was number three on the R&B chart in and number 25 on the pop charts. It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc. In 2003, the Five Satins were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame.

In the still of the night / I held you / I held you tight / 'Cause I love / Love you so / Promise I'll never / Let you go / In the still of the night.

Illustration by Liz Garvey

5Michael Bolton

Singer and songwriter Michael Bolton was born in 1954 in New Haven. He is known for songs such as his #1 hit version of "When a Man Loves a Woman" and his song "How Am I Supposed to Live Without You". He is a two-time Grammy winning artist and has sold over 52 million albums and singles worldwide; he has written songs for Barbra Streisand, Kenny G, Cher, and Kenny Rogers. In 1993 he established the Michael Bolton Foundation to assist women and children at risk from the effects of poverty and abuse.

I'm proud of my mentors. Ray Charles is the strongest influence on me as a singer.

Illustration by Margaret Watkins

6Patricia Smith

A New Haven native, born 1930, appeared in film and television roles from 1950s through the 1990s. She appeared in about every important television series in the 60s and 70s.

She starred in 73 television titles - Twilight Zone, Gunsmoke, Bonanza, Perry Mason, Hawaii Five-O, The FBI, The Bob Newhart Show, The Streets of San Francisco, Barnaby Jones, Quincy M.E., Highway to Heaven, Days of Our Lives, Lou Grant, Trapper John, M.D., Executive Suite, Cannon, Tales of the Unexpected, Ellery Queen, Ironside, Nanny and the Professor, Mission Impossible, The Debbie Reynolds Show, The Invaders, The Fugitive, Suspense, Route 66, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Studio One in Hollywood, and Men at Law.

Illustration by Liz Garvey

7Adam Clayton Powell Jr.

Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. was born in 1908, in New Haven. He built a formidable public following in Harlem through his crusades for jobs and housing for the poor. He won election to the New York City Council in 1941, becoming the first black man to serve on that body. In 1945 he won election to the U.S. House of Representatives. There he began a long fight against racial segregation.

Unless man is committed to the belief that all mankind are his brothers, then he labors in vain and hypocritically in the vineyards of equality.

8Charles Goodyear

A New Haven native, born 1800, the inventor who developed a process to vulcanize rubber in 1839, a process that improves the strength, resiliency, and freedom from stickiness and odor of rubber by combining sulfur or other additives in the presence of heat and pressure.

Life should not be estimated exclusively by the standard of dollars and cents.

Illustration by Liz Garvey

9Edward Bouchet

Born in New Haven (1852), Bouchet was enrolled in the Artisan Street Colored School with only one teacher, who nurtured his academic abilities. Bouchet attended New Haven High School and then Hopkins School where he was named valedictorian. Bouchet was the first African-American to graduate from Yale in 1874 and the first African-American to earn a Ph.D. in Physics from an American university in 1876. He taught physics and chemistry at the Institute for Colored Youth, in Philadelphia, for 26 years.

Illustration by Liz Garvey

10Eli Whitney and James Hillhouse

Eli Whitney, born in 1765, educated at Yale College, is best known for inventing the cotton gin, a key invention of the Industrial Revolution that made it possible to mechanically remove the seeds from cotton. Later, he secured contracts with the government for the manufacturing of muskets in New Haven for the continental army.

James Hillhouse, born in 1754, was an American lawyer, real estate developer, and politician from New Haven. He represented Connecticut in both the U.S. House and Senate. He is responsible for much of the current look of New Haven. A New Haven high school and street commemorate his name.

One of my primary objects is to form the tools so the tools themselves shall fashion the work and give to every part its just proportion.

Illustrations by Liz Garvey

11Noah Webster

Webster was born in New Hartford in 1758. After graduating from Yale in 1778, Webster became a lexicographer, textbook pioneer, English spelling reformer, political writer, editor, and prolific author. He was elected to the Connecticut House of Representatives in 1800 and 1802-1807. His blue-backed speller books taught five generations of American children how to spell and read, secularizing their education. His name became synonymous with "dictionary", especially the modern Merriam-Webster dictionary that was first published in 1828 as An American Dictionary of the English Language.

A pure democracy is generally a very bad government, it is often the most tyrannical government on earth; for a multitude is often rash, and will not hear reason.

12Ernest Borgnine

Ernest Borgnine (1917-2012) grew up in New Haven, and graduated from James Hillhouse High School. After serving in the U.S. Navy, he went into stage acting, moving onto television programs, and ended up landing roles that would build his impressive career as a film star. He appeared in films such as From Here to Eternity, Bad Day at Black Rock, Marty, All Quiet on the Western Front, and The Dirty Dozen. He is also well remembered for his run on the 1960s ABC sitcom McHale's Navy.

I wouldn't trade those 10 years for anything. The Navy taught me a lot of things It molded me as a man, and I made a lot of friends.

Illustration by Margaret Watkins

13Norman Lear

Norman Lear was born in New Haven in 1922. He spent part of his youth living in a fourth-floor walk-up apartment on York Street. He and his family moved to Brooklyn in 1934. In the 1950s he landed a job as a TV comedy writer.

Lear's greatest achievement was writing and producing All in the Family, the 1970s TV breakthrough comedy that examined bigotry, sexuality, and other timely topics. The lead character was Archie Bunker, based on Lear's father, Herman.

Lear went on to bring us the popular TV shows Maude, The Jeffersons and Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman. In 1981 he founded People for the American Way, dedicated to protecting First Amendment rights.

Life is made up of small pleasures. Happiness is made up of those tiny successes. The big ones come too infrequently. And if you don't collect all these tiny successes, the big ones don't really mean anything.

Illustration by Margaret Watkins, text by Randall Beach

14Chad Dawson

Born in South Carolina, Chad Dawson moved to New Haven attending Hillhouse High. A former WBC & IBF Light Heavyweight champion. In 2012, he was rated by The Ring Magazine as number one Light Heavyweight boxer in the world.

34 knockouts in 41 bouts as of 2019.

15Roger Sherman Baldwin

Roger Sherman Baldwin was born in 1793 in New Haven. He attended Hopkins School, and later graduated from Yale College with high honors in 1811. After leaving Yale he studied law in his father's office in New Haven, and was admitted to the bar in 1814. Baldwin served as city alderman, U.S. congressman, senator, and Connecticut governor. A prominent abolitionist, Baldwin served as counsel with former president John Quincy Adams, for the African prisoners in the Amistad case. Baldwin's 1841 defense gained him national recognition.

Illustration by Liz Garvey

16Albie Booth

New Haven born, "Little boy blue" Albie Booth was a star football player at Yale University from 1929 to 1931, and was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1966. Not yet a regular starter, he entered the game with Yale losing 13-0, and proceeded to rush for 233 yards and scored all of Yale's points, leading Yale to a 21-13 victory over Army. Newsreels reported the game with the caption, Booth 21-Army 13.

Illustration by Liz Garvey

17Meryl Streep

Meryl Streep has worked in theatre, television, and film. She is widely regarded as one of the most talented actors of all time. She earned an M.F.A. from Yale School of Drama. While at Yale, she played a variety of roles at the Rep. She won an academy award in 2012 for her film portrayal of Margaret Thatcher.

Acting is not about being someone different. It's finding the similarity in what is apparently different, then finding myself in there.

Illustration by Liz Garvey

18George Murphy

George Murphy was an actor, dancer, and politician. He was born on July 4, 1902 in New Haven and attended Yale.

After working as a tool maker for the Ford Motor Company, as well as a miner, a real estate agent, and a night club dancer, he became a famous song-and-dance man, appearing in many musical films, including Little Miss Broadway, For Me and My Gal, and This is the Army. He was president of the Screen Actors Guild from 1944 to 1946 and was given an honorary Academy Award in 1951. In 1964, he was elected to the U.S. Senate representing California, serving from 1965 to 1971.

How can you practice dancing in an airplane? There's a law against it.

19Robert Moses

Born in New Haven in 1888, Moses was class of 1909 at Yale College. He was, in every sense of the word, New York's master builder. Before him, there was no Triborough Bridge, Jones Beach State Park, Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, West Side Highway or Niagara and St. Lawrence power projects. He built all of these and more. He also built parks, playgrounds, housing, tunnels, beaches, and the 1964-1965 New York's Worlds Fair.

The works he created in New York became a model for the nation at large, although they were discredited by some planners in later years.

Property owners, real-estate developers are their allies, banks, estates, and even churches are content to collect their rents and close their eyes to the implications of their investments.

Illustrations by Liz Garvey, text from the 1981 New York Times obituary by Paul Goldberger

20Walter Camp

Born in New Britain, Walter Camp, who was associated with football at Yale University from 1876 to 1910, is considered the "Father of American Football." After attending the Hopkins Grammar School in New Haven, Camp graduated Yale University in 1880. He stayed on at Yale to study medicine for two years.

Camp played football at Yale from 1876 to 1882. He developed rule changes that cast the foundation of modern American football.

A savvy businessman, Camp sold college athletics to a ready public. He applied his business acumen to college athletics in producing both victories and spectator interest.

There's no substitute for hard work and effort beyond the call of duty. That is what strengthens the soul and ennobles one's character.

21Craig Breslow

New Haven-born and Yale University graduate Craig Breslow enjoyed a 12-year Major League Baseball career, pitching for the San Diego Padres, Boston Red Sox, Cleveland Indians, Minnesota Twins, Oakland Athletics, Arizona Diamondbacks and Miami Marlins. Breslow was a key member of Boston's 2013 World Series championship team, posting an impressive 1.81 ERA in 61 regular-season appearances. Breslow returned to the Red Sox in 2023 as Chief Baseball Officer, overseeing the club's baseball operations.

The whole no white pants after #LaborDay thing is going to present a problem when we get back to #Fenway.

Illustration by Margaret Watkins

22Josiah Willard Gibbs

Born in New Haven in 1839, Josiah Willard Gibbs was an American scientist who made important theoretical contributions to physics, chemistry, and mathematics. His work on the applications of thermodynamics was instrumental in transforming physical chemistry into a rigorous deductive science. In 1863 he received a doctorate from Yale in engineering. He later worked as a professor of mathematical physics from 1871 until his death in 1903. He ended up earning an international reputation and was praised by Albert Einstein as "the greatest mind in American history".

Gibbs also received what was at the time considered the highest honor awarded by the scientific community, the Copley Medal of the Royal Society of London.

One of the principal objects of theoretical research is to find the point of view from which the subject appears in the greatest simplicity.

23Lt. Augusto Rodriguez

Augusto Rodriguez was born in 1841 in San Juan, Puerto Rico. He emigrated with his family to the United States in the 1850s.

Rodriguez joined the 15th Connecticut Volunteer Infantry of the Union Army during the Civil War, and served in combat during the Battles of Fredericksburg and Wyse Fork.

After the war, he owned a cigar store, was a bartender and saloon keeper, and was also a firefighter in New Haven. He died in 1880, and was buried under the name of "Gustave Rodrique" in grave #2 in the Firefighters' Pantheon at the Evergreen Cemetery in New Haven. In 2013, a ceremony was held which recognized Rodriguez as Puerto Rico's first known U.S. Armed Forces veteran.

24Floyd Little

Floyd Douglas Little was born in New Haven in 1942. He shined as a running back at Hillhouse. He played for Syracuse University, and professionally for the Denver Broncos, where he was known as "The Franchise".

Little said at the dedication of the Floyd Little Athletic Center at Hillhouse High, "No one could ever believe that a guy who came from this area, with very little means, could rise up to be an all-city, all-state, All-American, All-Pro, College Football Hall of Fame and Pro Football Hall of Fame (player). It's an unbelievable story, but I feel that I've been truly blessed."

You can't tip-toe through games. If you're cautious, you're retired. You go all out and hope for the best.

Illustration by Liz Garvey

25Constance Baker Motley

Constance Baker Motley (1921-2005) was a civil rights activist, lawyer, judge, state senator, and Borough President of Manhattan. She was born in New Haven, and attended New Haven public schools.

Following law school, she was hired by the NAACP as a civil rights lawyer and was a lead trial attorney in a number of early and significant civil rights cases. She was the first African-American woman ever to argue a case before the U.S. Supreme Court. President Lyndon B. Johnson appointed her as a Federal Judge to the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.

When I was 15, I decided I wanted to be a lawyer. No one thought this was a good idea.

Illustration by Andrew Haskell

26A.C. Gilbert

Alfred Carlton Gilbert, inventor, athlete, toy-maker and businessman. He is best known as the inventor of the Erector Set. In 1909 Gilbert earned a M.D. degree in sports medicine from Yale. He won a gold medal for pole vaulting at the 1908 London Olympics. Choosing not to pursue a medical career, Gilbert founded New Haven's A.C. Gilbert Company, which built and sold erector sets, magic sets, and electric toy trains.

The greatest influences in the life of a boy are his toys. Yet through the toys American manufacturers are turning out, he gets both fun and an education. The American boy is a genuine boy and wants genuine toys.

Illustration by Liz Garvey

27Dr. Benjamin Spock

Dr. Benjamin Spock was born in New Haven, CT in 1903. He was a pediatrician who published the highly successful book, Common Sense Book of Baby and Child Care. He urged parents to trust their common sense, be flexible, and refrain from using corporal punishment. The book has been published in 39 languages and sold over 50 million copies.

The more people have studied different methods of bringing up children the more they have come to the conclusion that what good mothers and fathers instinctively feel like doing for their babies is the best after all.

Illustrations by Liz Garvey

28Foster Furcolo

John Foster Furcolo was born in New Haven (1911), where he attended public schools. He graduated from Yale College in 1933 and Yale Law in 1936.

In 1957 he was elected the first Italian-American governor of Massachusetts, serving two terms. Furcolo lobbied "successfully" on behalf of the idea of regional community colleges. State workers salaries, workman's compensation and unemployment benefits were all increased during his service as Governor.

From 1969 onward, he taught courses in legal ethics, criminal law, and government at a number of the state's community colleges. As an author of four books, he wrote an account on the atrocities of post WWII Poland entitled Rendezvous at Katyn, which was published in 1974.

Illustration by Liz Garvey

29Al Capp

Alfred Gerald Caplin, better known as Al Capp, was a cartoonist and humorist. He was born in 1909 in New Haven to Latvian parents who had come to live in America where "it was no crime to be a Jew". He was best known for his satirical comic strip Li'l Abner. He won the National Cartoonists Society's Reuben Award in 1947 for Cartoonist of the Year, and their 1979 Elzie Segar Award for his "unique and outstanding contribution to the profession of cartooning".

The secret of how to live without resentment or embarrassment in a world in which I was different from everyone else... was to be indifferent to that difference.

30George Weiss

Weiss was born in New Haven in 1894, and attended Yale. He was promoted to general manager of the Yankees in 1947, and led them to 10 American League pennants and seven world titles, in his thirteen seasons as GM from 1947 to 1960. In 1971, Weiss was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Casey Stengel lamented "He wasn't a terrific mixer but George sure knew how to pick men. Why, you can't stay in baseball that long by pulling players out of an icebox."

31Simeon Jocelyn

A 19th century abolitionist and social activist born in New Haven. He is known for his attempt to establish an African American college in New Haven and for his role in the Amistad affair.

An intensely debated issue, Jocelyn's "Negro College" was voted down 700 to 4 in a 1831 town meeting. A few years later a white mob attacked his home.

Photo: Massachusetts Historical Society