Famous Citizens:

Hank Aaron
Born Henry Louis Aaron in Mobile, Alabama, he first played semi-pro baseball when he was 15 years old. He played shortstop for two seasons with the Indianapolis Clowns in the Negro Leagues, and then joined the Milwaukee Braves in 1952. He finished his career with the all-time home run record (755) and was tops in RBIs. He won three Gold Gloves as a right fielder, and was an All-Star in each of the 23 seasons he played.

 

 

Nat “King” Cole
Nathaniel Adams Coles (he later dropped the “s”) was the son of a Baptist minister and was born in Montgomery, Alabama. His mother taught him to play the piano, and by age 12, he was playing organ and singing in his father’s church. When his family moved to Chicago, he became interested in jazz music and formed the group “Royal Dukes” in 1935. After signing with Capital Records, he became the first black man to top the record charts as an independent vocalist. By the 1950s, his popularity had crossed racial boundaries, and he became the first black man to have a weekly television series—“St. Louis Blues.”

 

 

Zelda Fitzgerald
Zelda Sayre was born in Montgomery, Alabama, the daughter of an Alabama State Supreme Court Justice. Although she was from a conservative family, she became known as a rebel, especially once she left home for the University of Alabama, where she became a stereotypical “flapper” of the 1920s. Zelda married young writer F. Scott Fitzgerald and the two became the epitome of the high living, wild, Jazz age couple. Zelda published numerous essays and short stories before her mental health deteriorated and she spent the remainder of her life in and out of institutions.

 

 

Helen Keller
Helen Keller was born in Tuscumbia, Alabama, and was a normal child until she caught a fever at the age of 18 months. The fever made her both blind and deaf, and the hearing loss meant her speech was impaired as well. Helen became very frustrated with not being able to communicate, and her family hired Anne Sullivan to teach Helen to use sign language and read Braille. Helen went on to graduate from Radcliffe College with high honors in 1904, a time when most girls never went to college at all.