Learn About The 50 States
Gerald R. Ford (1913)close
Born in Omaha, Nebraska, Ford went on to star on the University of Michigan football team, and then earned his law degree at Yale. He served in the Navy in World War II, and when he returned, he entered Republican politics. He was elected to Congress from the state of Michigan in 1948. When he took the oath of office to the Presidency in 1974, his rise to the position was unprecedented in two ways. First, he succeeded the first US president to resign the office (Richard Nixon), and he was the first Vice-President to be selected under the terms of the 25th Amendment, having taking that position after the resignation of Nixon's first Vice-President, Spiro Agnew.
Click on any of the names below to find out more...
Looking for a famous American?
This page presents short biographies of more than 200 famous Americans drawn from our unit, "The 50 States." These personalities are arranged by theme.
Just click a theme at the top of the page to view a selection list for that theme.
African Americans:
Artists:
Business Leaders:
National "Characters":
| Phineas Taylor "P.T." Barnum | Clyde Barrow | John Wilkes Booth |
| Butch Cassidy | William "Buffalo Bill" Cody | Davy Crockett |
| Jesse James | Evel Knievel | Harland David "Colonel" Sanders |
| Jefferson R. "Soapy" Smith |
Cultural Figures:
Inventors:
Pioneers and "Firsts":
Politicians & Activists:
Scientists:
Sports Figures:
Accomplished Women:
Writers & Poets: