5 Minute Biographies

“A pen is to me as a beak is to a hen.” – J.R.R. Tolkien. J. R. R. Tolkien Biography John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, known as J.R.R. Tolkien, was born on 3 January 1892 in Bloemfontein in what was then called the Orange Free State but which is now part of South Africa. He is …

“I have ways of making money that you know nothing of” – John D. Rockefeller For a man who was never president nor a world-changing inventor, it is surprising to many that the name John D Rockefeller continues to echo all the way from the 19th century through to the present.  But whereas he may …

“A national debt, if it is not excessive, will be to us a national blessing.” – Alexander Hamilton. Alexander Hamilton was one of the founding fathers of the United States of America. He was heavily involved in promoting the US Constitution in addition to founding the nation’s financial system, The US Coast Guard, and the …

“There is no greater harm than that of time wasted.” – Michelangelo Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni was born on 6 March 1475 in the village of Caprese, which is in Tuscany, Italy, approximately 100km to the east of Florence. His family was in the banking business and so while not affluent, they certainly weren’t …

“I ought to be jealous of the tower. She is more famous than I am.” – Gustave Eiffel. Gustave Eiffel was born on 15 December 1832 in the city of Dijon, the historical capital of the Burgundy region of France. His family name is Bönickhausen and that is the name under which his birth was …

“You may all go to Hell, and I will go to Texas” – Davy Crockett. There is probably not a person in America who was a child in the mid-1950s who can’t still sing the theme song to the TV show Davy Crockett.  “Born on a mountaintop in Tennessee, greenest state in the land of …

“The most important tool of my trade was a mirror” – Lana Turner Lana Turner was one of the most famous women of the 20th century. She was a Hollywood actress, sex symbol, pinup girl and a film, theatre and television icon who had one of the longest and most illustrious careers of any professional …

“That’s one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind” – Neil Armstrong Neil Armstrong had flying in the blood one might say. Born in Ohio on 5 August 1930, Neil Armstrong attended his first aviation event at the Cleveland air races at the ripe old age of only two. By the age …

“Women, like men, should try to do the impossible. And when they fail, their failure should be a challenge to others” – Amelia Earhart Born on 24 July 1897 at her grandfather’s home in Atchison, Kansas, Amelia Mary Earhart was the daughter of Samuel Stanton Earhart, a claims officer for the Rock Island Railroad and …

“All I know is just how to make people laugh” – Stan Laurel Born on 16 June 1890 in Ulverston, Lancashire, England, Arthur Stanley Jefferson, known later to the world as Stan Laurel, was the son of a theatre manager from Bishop Auckland called Arthur Jefferson and an actress from Ulverston called Margaret. He was …

“Live without seeing, but be what you are.” – Louis Braille Louis Braille Biography Born on 4 January 1809, Louis Braille was from a small town called Coupvray, which is about twenty miles to the East of Paris, France. He was the youngest of four children born to Simon-René, who was a leatherer and maker …

“The Analytical Engine does not occupy common ground with mere ‘calculating machines.’ It holds a position wholly its own, and the considerations it suggests are more interesting in their nature” – Ada Lovelace. Ada Lovelace Biography Augusta Ada King, Countess of Lovelace was born in London, England on 10 December 1815. She was the daughter …

“It is therefore not unreasonable to suppose that some portion of the neglect of science in England, may be attributed to the system of education we pursue. – Charles Babbage. Charles Babbage Biography Often considered the father of computing, Charles Babbage was an 18th-century polymath, meaning he was a person who had expertise in several …

 “Thank goodness I was never sent to school; it would have rubbed off some of the originality.” – Beatrix Potter Beatrix Potter Biography Helen Beatrix Potter was born on 28 July 1866 in West Brompton, which is in London, England. She had a relatively privileged upbringing, being born into an upper-class household. She was the …

“I would never die for my beliefs because I might be wrong” – Bertrand Russell Bertrand Russell Biography Bertrand Russell was one of the great thinkers of the 20th century. He was born into a life within the British aristocracy on 18 May 1872. His father was John Russell, Viscount Amberley who was a British …

“I never had a chance to play with dolls like other kids. I started working when I was six years old.” – Billie Holiday Billie Holiday Biography Billie Holiday was a well-known American jazz singer who was born on 7 April 1915 as Eleanora Fagan in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Her prolific singing career spanned almost thirty …

“I’m not concerned with your liking or disliking me… All I ask is that you respect me as a human being.” – Jackie Robinson Jackie Robinson Biography Jack Roosevelt Robinson, known as Jackie, was born on 31 January 1919 in Cairo, Georgia, USA. He was the last of five children born into a family of …

Virginia Katherine McMath, who became known as Ginger Rogers, was born in Independence, Missouri on July 16, 1911. She was an American singer, actress, and well-known dancer. Her mother Lela Emogene was a scriptwriter, newspaper reporter, and film producer. When Ginger Rogers was born, Lela left her husband William and went away to have her …

“Truth is the daughter of time, and I feel no shame in being her midwife.” – Johannes Kepler. Johannes Kepler Biography Johannes Kepler was born on 27 December 1571 in Well der Stadt, a small town in what is now the Stuttgart region of Germany. He was the fourth child of Heinrich Kepler, a mercenary …

Elvis Aaron Presley was born on 8 January 1935 in Tupelo, Mississippi in a shotgun house built by his father Vernon. He had a twin brother called Jesse who was 35 minutes older than he but unfortunately was stillborn.Elvis’s mother, Gladys, who was of Scots-Irish descent, had eloped with Vernon when she was 21. She …