A city of about 32,700 people has a long list of notable natives and residents. Some were born here, some grew up here and some helped found the city. This page collects the best-known names, grouped by field, with a short note on each. Lists like this are compiled from public references and may be incomplete, so if you know of someone we should add, let us know.
Entertainment, arts and media
- Madonna (born 1958): singer, songwriter, actress and businesswoman, born in Bay City. She is a Grammy and Golden Globe winner and a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
- Marie Dressler (1868-1934): Academy Award-winning actress who lived in Bay City briefly as a child.
- Robert Armstrong (1890-1973): actor best known for a lead role in King Kong.
- Rolf Armstrong (1889-1960): painter and pin-up artist.
- Betsy Brandt: actress known for Breaking Bad and The Michael J. Fox Show.
- Harriet Hammond (1899-1991): silent-film actress.
- Tyler McVey (1912-2003): actor.
- Patrick Yandall: jazz guitarist.
- Bruce LaFrance: musician with the band Tantric.
- Edward Jablonski (1923-2004): author, music archivist and aviation historian.
- Edmund Arnold: considered the father of modern news design.
- Gary Bautell: military radio broadcaster with the American Forces Network.
A fun bit of trivia: the Scottish pop band the Bay City Rollers is reported to have taken its name from Bay City, Michigan.
Sports
- Bill Hewitt: football player who played for the Chicago Bears, Philadelphia Eagles and the Phil-Pitt Steagles and is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
- Kid Lavigne: boxer who became world lightweight champion in 1896 and was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1998.
- Terry McDermott: speed skater who won the 500-meter gold medal at the 1964 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck.
- Alex Izykowski: bronze medalist in short track speed skating at the 2006 Winter Olympics.
- John Garrels: Olympic silver and bronze medalist.
- Doug Sharp: bronze medalist at the 2002 Olympics.
- Ruth Born (1925-2020): player in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League.
- Football: Bob Allman (Chicago Bears), Howie Auer (Philadelphia Eagles), Jim Kanicki (Cleveland Browns and New York Giants), Dennis Wirgowski (New England Patriots and Philadelphia Eagles), Troy Evans (Houston Texans and New Orleans Saints) and Trenton Robinson (Michigan State safety and 2012 NFL draft pick).
- Baseball: Spoke Emery, Ernie Gust and Doug Taitt (1902-1970) all played in Major League Baseball.
- Basketball: Eric Devendorf, a McDonald's All-American from Bay City Central who started at Syracuse University.
- Other: boxer and kickboxer Eric Esch, wrestlers Rick and Scott Steiner, and trick-shot billiards artist Jason Lynch.
Closer to home, the Bay City Wolves won Michigan-Ontario League baseball championships in 1923 and 1924.
Politics, law and public service
- Nathan B. Bradley: Bay City's first mayor, later a U.S. Representative and state senator.
- James G. Birney (1792-1857): abolitionist and Liberty Party presidential candidate in 1844 and 1848, and listed among the founders of Bay City.
- Emil Anneke: a German "Forty-Eighter" who became a U.S. politician.
- Isaac Marston: former Chief Justice of the Michigan Supreme Court.
- Thomas G. Kavanagh: Michigan Supreme Court justice.
- Bob Traxler and James A. Barcia: former U.S. Representatives from the area.
- Kristen McDonald Rivet: U.S. Representative and former state senator.
- Matt Meyer: governor of Delaware.
Military
- Emil F. Reinhardt (1888-1969): Major General who commanded the 69th Infantry Division in World War II and was the first U.S. commander to link up with Soviet troops.
- Charles B. Warren (1870-1936): Distinguished Service Medal recipient who later served as U.S. Ambassador to Japan and Mexico.
- James Joseph Raby: Rear Admiral in the U.S. Navy.
The city's naval tradition continues in the destroyer moored on the river. See USS Edson and Defoe Shipbuilding.
Business and industry
- Warren Avis: founder of Avis Rent A Car.
- William L. Clements: businessman and book collector who founded the Clements Library at the University of Michigan.
- John McGraw: businessman who co-founded Wenona, now part of Bay City, and later became a philanthropist.
- George W. Hotchkiss: nineteenth-century lumber dealer and journalist.
- Frederick Morrell Zeder: member of the Automotive Hall of Fame and engineer at Allis Chalmers, Willys and Chrysler.
Education, science and social causes
- Mary L. Doe (1836-1913): suffragist.
- Elizebeth Thomas Werlein (1883-1946): conservationist who worked to preserve New Orleans' French Quarter.
- Richard R. Murray: founder of Equity Schools and developer of the Cristo Rey school model.
- Annie Edson Taylor: the first person to survive going over Niagara Falls in a barrel, who has been linked to Bay City.
Explore the stories behind the names
Many of these people shaped the city or came out of its neighborhoods. Learn more in our history of Bay City, the neighborhoods guide and the Polish heritage story.
Sources
This list is compiled from the "Notable people" section of the public encyclopedia article on Bay City and its related list of people. Descriptions are paraphrased and shortened. Entries reflect those sources and may not capture every connection. We list people for information only and do not claim any endorsement or involvement.