Notable Residents
Since 1860, Graceland Cemetery has been the focus of architects and planners—so much so that it’s usually defined by its association with and final resting place of many members of the renowned style of the Chicago School of Architecture. Graceland also shines historically, having attracted many of Chicago’s most prominent families and some of the world’s most famous citizens. The list of famous, as well as infamous, Chicagoans is so impressive, we’re pleased to help you get to know many of them here on our website.
To help you locate many of Graceland’s famous Chicagoans and identify their monuments and the architects and designers who created them, you can pick up a free map at the Cemetery office, or download one here.
1863 - 1917
A Champion in Three Divisions Bob Fitzsimmons was one of the great boxing champions of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Born in Cornwall, England, and raised in New […]
Architecture as Art Bruce Goff’s buildings were colorful, dramatic, sculptural, and highly imaginative. He frequently used unexpected combinations of materials, unusual geometric forms, and expressive details. Rather than designing buildings […]
1809 - 1884
Cyrus Hall McCormick was born in 1809 in Rockbridge County, Virginia, where he grew up on his family’s farm. His father, Robert McCormick, worked on agricultural machinery. Cyrus continued this […]
1846 - 1912
A Visionary of the City Among the many notable figures buried at Graceland Cemetery in Chicago is Daniel Burnham, one of the city’s most influential architects and urban planners. Burnham […]
1931 - 2015
Ernie Banks: Mr. Cub Ernie Banks was one of the most beloved figures in Chicago baseball. Known simply as “Mr. Cub,” Banks spent his entire Major League Baseball career with […]
1831 - 1897
George Pullman was one of the most important industrialists of 19th-century Chicago. Born in Brocton, New York, in 1831, Pullman became famous for transforming railroad travel through his development of […]
1869 - 1926
A Chicago Architect with a European Influence Howard Van Doren Shaw was one of Chicago’s important architects of the early 20th century. Born in 1869, he studied at Yale and […]
1878 - 1946
The First Black Heavyweight Champion Jack Johnson changed boxing history in 1908 when he became the first Black world heavyweight champion. His victory was a groundbreaking achievement at a time […]
1895 - 1946
László Moholy-Nagy Comes to Chicago László Moholy-Nagy was one of the most influential artists and designers of the 20th century. Born in Hungary, he was an artist, photographer, designer, filmmaker, […]
1856 - 1924
A Pioneer of American Architecture Louis Sullivan was one of America’s most influential architects. Born in Boston in 1856, Sullivan moved to Chicago as a young man and became one […]
1886 - 1969
A Pioneer of Modernism Among the notable architects connected to Chicago is Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, whose work helped redefine the city’s architectural identity in the 20th century. Mies […]
1871 - 1961
Marion Mahony Griffin was a pioneering Chicago architect whose career spanned three continents and more than five decades. She was born in Chicago in 1871, and was the second woman […]
1834 - 1906
Marshall Field was one of the most influential businessmen in 19th-century Chicago. Born in Conway, Massachusetts, in 1834, Field moved west as a young man and eventually became one of […]
1818 - 1887
Martin Ryerson was one of Chicago’s prominent businessmen and real estate investors during the city’s extraordinary growth in the second half of the 19th century. Born in Bergen County, New […]
1925 - 2015
Minnie Miñoso was one of the most beloved baseball players in Chicago history. Born Saturnino Orestes Armas Miñoso in Havana, Cuba, in 1925, he became one of the first Black […]
1832 - 1901
Philip Danforth Armour was born in Stockbridge, New York, in 1832, and came from a farming family where developed an early interest in business. After working in several industries, he […]
1826 - 1902
Potter Palmer was one of the most influential businessmen of 19th-century Chicago. Born in Albany County, New York, in 1826, Palmer began his career in the dry-goods business before moving […]
1864 - 1911
A Baseball Star of the 19th Century Robert Lee “Bob” Caruthers was one of the most talented baseball players of the 19th century. Born in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1864, Caruthers […]
1832 - 1882
The Father of the National League William Hulbert played a major role in shaping the future of professional baseball. A Chicago businessman and baseball executive, Hulbert became president of the […]
1832 - 1907
William Le Baron Jenney was an architect and engineer whose ideas helped transform Chicago into the birthplace of the modern skyscraper. Known as the “Father of the Skyscraper,” Jenney was […]