Famous people from Maine include novelist Stephen King and actress Anna Kendrick (both born in Portland), actor Patrick Dempsey (Lewiston), poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (Portland), Senator Susan Collins (Caribou) and Olympic marathon champion Joan Benoit (Cape Elizabeth). This guide groups more than 50 Maine natives by field and shows the hometown of each, with links to our guides to those towns.

The list covers people born in Maine. Many other well-known people have lived or worked in the state without being born here, and they are not included.

Famous Authors and Poets From Maine

Stephen King: horror and suspense novelist; born in Portland (see our Stephen King’s Bangor guide)
Joe Hill: horror novelist; born in Hermon
Tabitha King: novelist; born in Old Town
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow: poet; born in Portland
Edna St. Vincent Millay: Pulitzer Prize-winning poet; born in Rockland
Edwin Arlington Robinson: poet; born in Alna
Carolyn Chute: novelist; born in Portland
Gilbert Patten: author of the Frank Merriwell novels; born in Corinna
Ellen G. White: co-founder of the Seventh-day Adventist Church; born in Gorham

Famous Actors and Entertainers From Maine

Patrick Dempsey: actor, Grey’s Anatomy; born in Lewiston
Anna Kendrick: Oscar-nominated actress; born in Portland
Judd Nelson: actor, The Breakfast Club; born in Portland
Andrea Martin: actress and comedian; born in Portland
Linda Lavin: actress, Alice; born in Portland
Victoria Rowell: actress; born in Portland
John Ford: film director with six Oscars; born in Cape Elizabeth
Gladys George: actress, The Maltese Falcon; born in Patten
Reta Shaw: actress, Mary Poppins; born in South Paris
Charles Rocket: actor, Saturday Night Live; born in Bangor
Ernie Coombs: children’s entertainer, Mr. Dressup; born in Lewiston

Famous Musicians From Maine

Patty Griffin: Grammy-winning singer-songwriter; born in Old Town
Howie Day: singer-songwriter; born in Brewer
Juliana Hatfield: singer-songwriter and guitarist; born in Wiscasset
Gordon Bok: folk singer-songwriter; born in Camden
Dick Curless: country singer; born in Fort Fairfield
Frank Churchill: Oscar-winning Disney composer; born in Rumford

Famous Politicians and Public Figures From Maine

Susan Collins: U.S. senator; born in Caribou
Olympia Snowe: former U.S. senator; born in Augusta
Margaret Chase Smith: first woman to serve in both houses of Congress; born in Skowhegan
Edmund Muskie: governor, senator and secretary of state; born in Rumford
George J. Mitchell: Senate majority leader; born in Waterville
William Cohen: senator and U.S. defense secretary; born in Bangor
John Baldacci: governor and congressman; born in Bangor
Janet Mills: governor; born in Farmington
Paul LePage: former governor; born in Lewiston
Hannibal Hamlin: 15th vice president of the United States; born in Paris
Melville Fuller: eighth chief justice of the United States; born in Augusta
Dorothea Dix: reformer and advocate for people with mental illness; born in Hampden
Joshua Chamberlain: Civil War hero and governor; born in Brewer
Samantha Smith: child peace activist; born in Houlton

Famous Athletes From Maine

Joan Benoit: first women’s Olympic marathon champion; born in Cape Elizabeth
Ian Crocker: three-time Olympic swimming champion; born in Portland
Cooper Flagg: basketball star; born in Newport
Louis Sockalexis: pioneering baseball player; born on Penobscot Indian Island
Ricky Craven: NASCAR driver and broadcaster; born in Newburgh
Cindy Blodgett: basketball player and coach; born in Clinton
Rick DiPietro: NHL goaltender; born in Lewiston

Famous Inventors, Business Leaders and Scientists From Maine

Yvon Chouinard: founder of Patagonia; born in Lewiston
Percy Spencer: inventor of the microwave oven; born in Howland
Milton Bradley: board game maker; born in Vienna
Augustin Thompson: creator of Moxie; born in Union
Hiram Maxim: inventor of the Maxim machine gun; born in Sangerville
Charles Flint: founder of the company that became IBM; born in Thomaston
Victor McKusick: “father of medical genetics”; born in Parkman

Famous Artists From Maine

Marsden Hartley: painter and poet; born in Lewiston
Waldo Peirce: painter; born in Bangor

Which Maine Towns Produced the Most Famous People?

Among the people listed here, Portland has the most, with nine natives. Lewiston follows with six and Bangor with four. Small towns also stand out: Rumford produced a Disney composer and a U.S. secretary of state, and Old Town was the hometown of singer Patty Griffin and novelist Tabitha King.

Want to see where these people came from? Start with our guides to Portland, Lewiston and Bangor, or browse the best places to visit in Maine.

Famous People From Maine FAQs

Who is the most famous person from Maine?

Stephen King is probably the best known Maine native today. He was born in Portland and lives in Bangor. Among historical figures, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and Hannibal Hamlin, Abraham Lincoln’s first vice president, are the best known.

Are there famous actors from Maine?

Yes. Patrick Dempsey (Lewiston), Anna Kendrick (Portland), Judd Nelson (Portland), Andrea Martin (Portland) and Linda Lavin (Portland) were all born in Maine.

Who invented the microwave oven?

Percy Spencer, who was born in Howland, Maine, is credited with inventing the microwave oven.

Which famous athletes are from Maine?

Joan Benoit won the first women’s Olympic marathon, and swimmer Ian Crocker won Olympic gold. Basketball star Cooper Flagg is from Newport, Maine.

Is Stephen King from Maine?

Yes. He was born in Portland, lives in Bangor, and sets many of his novels in fictional Maine towns.