Historical figures in New York City
The atlas holds 252 people and 669 moments here, from 1772 to 2023. The most recorded lives are Nikola Tesla, Andy Warhol and Isaac Asimov. Among them Writers, Political Leaders and Performers, across the Space Age and the Cold War.
Notable people
Abdelaziz Bouteflika
from 1971 to 1974
2 moments here
Algerian politician, diplomat, and president. Born in Oujda, he joined the National Liberation Army during the Algerian War, served as Algeria's…
Abdullah Ahmad Badawi
from 2005 to 2006
2 moments here
Malaysian civil servant and politician who served as Malaysia’s fifth prime minister from 2003 to 2009.…
Abdullah of Saudi Arabia
from 2000 to 2010
3 moments here
Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud was King and Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia from 2005 until his death in 2015.…
Abraham Lincoln
from 1860 to 1861
2 moments here
American lawyer, Illinois legislator, congressman, and sixteenth president of the United States.…
Ahmed Sékou Touré
from 1959 to 1982
3 moments here
Guinean nationalist, trade-union leader, and Guinea’s first president, serving from independence in 1958 until his death in 1984.…
Albert Camus
in 1946
1 moment here
French writer, philosopher, journalist, and political activist, born in French Algeria. Camus studied and worked in Algiers, moved between Algeria…
Albert Einstein
from 1921 to 1930
6 moments here
German-born theoretical physicist who transformed modern physics through special and general relativity, foundational work on quantum theory, and…
Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
in 1975
1 moment here
Soviet and Russian novelist, essayist, historian, dissident, and Nobel laureate whose writings on Soviet political repression and the Gulag made him…
Alexander Graham Bell
in 1915
1 moment here
Scottish-born Canadian-American inventor, scientist, teacher of the deaf, and engineer best known for patenting the first practical telephone.…
Alexander Hamilton
from 1772 to 1804
10 moments here
American statesman, lawyer, revolutionary officer, constitutional convention delegate, and first U.S. secretary of the treasury.…
Alexei Leonov
from 1975 to 2010
2 moments here
Soviet and Russian cosmonaut, aviator, artist, and writer. Leonov became the first person to conduct a spacewalk on 18 March 1965 and commanded Soyuz…
Alfred Hitchcock
from 1938 to 1942
2 moments here
English filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock (1899–1980), known as the “Master of Suspense,” worked in British cinema before relocating to Hollywood in 1939.…
Alice Munro
in 2002
1 moment here
Canadian short-story writer and 2013 Nobel laureate. Born in Wingham, Ontario, Munro studied in London, Ontario; lived in British Columbia during her…
Ali Khamenei
in 1987
1 moment here
Iranian Shia cleric and politician who was president of Iran from 1981 to 1989 and supreme leader from 1989 until his death in 2026.…
Amelia Earhart
in 1928
1 moment here
American aviator and author. Earhart was born in Atchison, Kansas, became a leading aviation pioneer, crossed the Atlantic as a passenger in 1928,…
Andy Warhol
from 1949 to 1987
14 moments here
American artist and filmmaker whose work helped define Pop art. Born in Pittsburgh, Warhol studied there before moving to New York in 1949.…
Anthony Quinn
from 1947 to 1983
7 moments here
Mexican-American actor, painter, sculptor, writer, and civil-rights supporter Anthony Quinn (Manuel Antonio Rodolfo Quinn Oaxaca) worked in film,…
Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
from 1940 to 1941
3 moments here
French writer and aviator Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (1900–1944) pioneered airmail flying in Europe, Africa, and South America, wrote works including…
Aretha Franklin
from 1960 to 2017
5 moments here
American singer, pianist, songwriter, and civil-rights activist known as the “Queen of Soul.” Her documented movements span childhood relocations…
Arthur Conan Doyle
in 1922
1 moment here
Scottish-born British physician and writer best known as the creator of Sherlock Holmes. Doyle studied medicine at the University of Edinburgh,…
Asha Bhosle
from 2006 to 2008
2 moments here
Indian playback singer and actress whose career in Indian film and popular music spanned more than eight decades.…
Astrud Gilberto
from 1963 to 1981
7 moments here
Brazilian-American singer and songwriter best known for her English-language vocals on “The Girl from Ipanema.” Born in Salvador, she grew up in Rio…
Atal Bihari Vajpayee
from 1977 to 2003
5 moments here
Indian statesman, poet, journalist and Bharatiya Janata Party leader who served as India’s prime minister in 1996 and from 1998 to 2004.…
Audrey Hepburn
from 1951 to 1991
3 moments here
British actress and humanitarian Audrey Hepburn (Audrey Kathleen Ruston) was born in Brussels, raised across Belgium, England and the Netherlands,…
Moments
- 1772 Boarding with Hercules Mulligan Alexander Hamilton
- 1773 King's College student Alexander Hamilton
- 1774 First public appearance Alexander Hamilton
- 1775 Hearts of Oak raid at the Battery Alexander Hamilton
- 1776 Battle of Harlem Heights Alexander Hamilton
- 1776 Watches the battle from Fort Lee George Washington
- 1782 Return to civilian life Alexander Hamilton
- 1783 Postwar law practice Alexander Hamilton
- 1783 Bids farewell at Fraunces Tavern George Washington
- 1785 Journey onward to New York James Madison
- 1786 Residence in New York City after marriage James Monroe
- 1786 Marriage to Elizabeth Kortright James Monroe
- 1787 Congressional business after the convention James Madison
- 1788 Return to New York after Virginia ratification James Madison
- 1789 Arrives in New York George Washington
- 1789 Takes the oath at Federal Hall George Washington
- 1789 Began vice presidency John Adams
- 1789 First Congress in New York James Madison
- 1789 Secretary of the Treasury sworn in Alexander Hamilton
- 1804 Death at William Bayard Jr.'s home Alexander Hamilton
- 1804 Duel with Aaron Burr Alexander Hamilton
- 1807 Visits New York City Simón Bolívar
- 1823 Family move to Brooklyn Walt Whitman
- 1830 Move to Lafayette Place James Monroe
- 1830 Office boy on Fulton Street Walt Whitman
- 1831 Departure for New York Edgar Allan Poe
- 1831 Death in New York City James Monroe
- 1833 Return to New York Ralph Waldo Emerson
- 1835 Compositor in Manhattan Walt Whitman
- 1841 Printer for the New World Walt Whitman
- 1842 Attends the Boz Ball Charles Dickens
- 1842 Departs New York for England Charles Dickens
- 1843 Arrival on Staten Island Henry David Thoreau
- 1844 Marriage to Julia Gardiner John Tyler
- 1846 Fordham cottage residence Edgar Allan Poe
- 1846 Editor of the Brooklyn Daily Eagle Walt Whitman
- 1847 Northern tour in New York James K. Polk
- 1848 Myrtle Avenue residence and printing office Walt Whitman
- 1849 Meeting with Thurlow Weed Millard Fillmore
- 1852 Lectures from New York hotel William Makepeace Thackeray
- 1853 Leaves Hannibal for New York Mark Twain
- 1855 Second United States tour: New York William Makepeace Thackeray
- 1856 Return reception in New York City Millard Fillmore
- 1858 Birth at Roosevelt family home Theodore Roosevelt
- 1859 Pfaff's tavern regular Walt Whitman
- 1860 Discussion with Presbyterian pastor in Manhattan James Buchanan
- 1860 Delivered the Cooper Union address Abraham Lincoln
- 1861 Received crowds in New York City Abraham Lincoln
- 1865 Brooklyn work on Drum-Taps sequel Walt Whitman
- 1866 New York leave from Attorney General's Office Walt Whitman