List of Swedish Americans

The following is a list of notable Swedish Americans. Including both original immigrants who obtained American citizenship and their American descendants.

To be included in this list, the person must have a Wikipedia article showing they are Swedish American or must have references showing they are Swedish American and are notable.

Actors

 * Maud Adams, Swedish-born, Bond girl
 * Ann-Margret, Swedish-born, actress and singer
 * Candice Bergen, actress and fashion model, father of Swedish descent
 * Edgar Bergen, actor and radio performer
 * Ingrid Bergman, Swedish-born
 * Nadia Bjorlin, soap opera actress, Swedish father
 * Rowan Blanchard, American actress
 * Veda Ann Borg, American film actress
 * Hayden Christensen, film actor; born in Canada; maternal grandfather is of Swedish ancestry
 * James Coburn, film actor
 * Elias Hillman, film actor from Sweden
 * Matt Damon, film actor, mother is of partial Swedish ancestry
 * Arthur Donaldson (1869-1955), Swedish-American actor
 * Molly Marcko, Actor in Hollywood. (born 2002)
 * Joseph J. Dowling, film American actor; his mother was Swedish
 * Kirsten Dunst, film actress, maternal grandmother was of Swedish descent
 * Robert Englund, film, television and voice actor, father was of part Swedish descent
 * Edie Falco, television, film and stage actress, mother was of part Swedish descent
 * Dave Franco, film actor, brother of James Franco; Swedish-American paternal grandmother
 * James Franco, film actor (Swedish-American paternal grandmother)
 * Stan Freberg, animation voice actor, author, recording artist, comedian, radio personality, puppeteer and advertising creative director
 * Greta Garbo, Swedish-born, film actress
 * Drake Glover, mother of partial Swedish descent
 * Legend Glover, mother of partial Swedish descent
 * Melanie Griffith, film actress, two of her maternal great grandparents were immigrants from Sweden
 * Jake Gyllenhaal, film actor, father of partial Swedish descent
 * Maggie Gyllenhaal, film actress; father of partial Swedish descent
 * Larry Hagman, actor, best known for the role of J.R. Ewing in the TV series Dallas (1978-1991 and 2012); his paternal grandfather was of Swedish heritage
 * Mark Hamill, maternal grandfather of Swedish descent; film actor and voice actor
 * Josh Hartnett, actor; mother of part Swedish descent
 * Signe Hasso, film actress
 * Susan Hayward, film actress, her maternal grandparents were immigrants from Sweden
 * Jon Heder, actor, of part Swedish descent
 * Garrett Hedlund, actor, father is of Swedish ancestry
 * Martha Hedman, Swedish-born, American stage actress
 * Tippi Hedren, film actress, paternal grandparents were immigrants from Sweden
 * Liza Huber, soap opera, television and stage actress
 * Gunilla Hutton, film actress
 * Scarlett Johansson, actress, singer, model; her paternal great-grandfather was Swedish
 * Tor Johnson, actor and wrestler, Swedish-born
 * Van Johnson, film and television actor, of part Swedish descent
 * Val Kilmer, actor, mother was of Swedish descent
 * Joel Kinnaman, actor, American father and Swedish-Jewish mother
 * Melinda Kinnaman, actress; half-sister of Joel; a Swedish and American citizen
 * Kris Kristofferson, country music songwriter, singer and actor, father was of Swedish descent
 * Caroline Lagerfelt, stage, film, and television actress
 * Brandon Lee, actor; son of Bruce Lee; his mother, Linda Lee Cadwell, is of part Swedish descent
 * Shannon Lee, actress; daughter of Bruce Lee
 * Eric Linden, film actor
 * Viveca Lindfors, stage and film actress
 * Helen Lindroth, Swedish-born; screen and stage actress
 * Susan Lucci, mother of part Swedish descent; soap opera actress
 * Kellan Lutz, actor, maternal grandmother is of partial Swedish ancestry
 * Jennette McCurdy, actress of Swedish descent
 * Matthew Modine, actor, paternal Swedish descent through his great-grandfather
 * Carlotta Nillson, Swedish-born, Broadway actress
 * Anna Q. Nilsson, Swedish-born, silent film actress
 * Warner Oland, film actor
 * Nancy Olson, film and television actress
 * Olivia Olson, actress and voiceover actress; her birth mother is Swedish
 * Mary-Louise Parker, film actress, star in TV series Weeds, of 1/4 Swedish descent
 * Michelle Pfeiffer, actress, maternal grandmother was of Swedish descent
 * Jeremy Renner, actor, of part Swedish descent
 * Andy Richter, comedic actor, writer, and late night talk show sidekick, maternal grandmother was of Swedish descent
 * Julia Roberts, actress, maternal great-grandmother was from Sweden
 * Alexander Skarsgård
 * Gloria Sarsgaard, mother of partial Swedish ancestry
 * Ramona Sarsgaard, mother of partial Swedish ancestry
 * Kevin Spacey, has Swedish ancestry from his maternal grandmother's side
 * Inger Stevens, Swedish-born, film and television actress
 * Emma Stone, paternal grandfather was of Swedish descent
 * Erik Per Sullivan, Malcolm in the Middle actor, Swedish mother
 * Bo Svenson, Swedish-born American actor, known for his roles in American genre films of the 1970s and 1980s
 * Gloria Swanson, silent film actress
 * Kristy Swanson, film and television actress, father of part Swedish descent
 * Karl Swenson, film and television actor, radio personality, of Swedish parentage
 * Uma Thurman, Academy Award-nominated film actress and former fashion model, mother is of part Swedish ancestry
 * Burr Tillstrom, puppeteer and the creator of Kukla, Fran and Ollie
 * Mamie Van Doren, stage, film and television actress, father and maternal grandmother were of Swedish ancestry
 * Donnie Wahlberg, film actor and producer; paternal grandfather of Swedish descent
 * Mark Wahlberg, Academy Award-nominated film actor (paternal grandfather of Swedish descent)
 * Robert Wahlberg, film actor; paternal grandfather of Swedish descent
 * Kari Wahlgren, voiceover actress
 * Maiara Walsh, actress
 * Irene Ware, actress in Hollywood; was in 40 movies, 1932-1940
 * Richard Widmark, father was of Swedish descent

Music

 * Leroy Anderson, Swedish immigrant parents, composer
 * Theresa Andersson, singer-songwriter
 * Herbert Blomstedt, orchestral conductor
 * David Carlson, composer
 * Olive Fremstad, Swedish-born, mezzo-soprano and soprano opera singer
 * Jerry Garcia, singer and guitarist of the Grateful Dead
 * Emilie Hammarskjöld, composer
 * Dinah Jane, member of girl group Fifth Harmony
 * Howard Hanson, composer, conductor, educator and music theorist
 * Catherine Christer Hennix, composer
 * Joe Hill, Swedish-born, songwriter, labor activist and member of the Industrial Workers of the World
 * Quincy Jones III, Swedish-born mother, composer, music producer, film producer and author
 * Ben Jorgensen, writer and singer for Armor For Sleep
 * Kris Kristofferson, influential country music songwriter, singer and actor
 * MC Lars, rapper
 * Peggy Lee, Swedish/Norwegian grandparents, jazz singer and songwriter
 * Neil Levang, musician
 * Jim Lindberg, singer-songwriter for the American punk rock band Pennywise
 * Alan Lindquest (1891-1984), voice teacher
 * Kerry Livgren, musician-songwriter for the American band Kansas
 * Tove Lo, singer-songwriter
 * Nils Lofgren, singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band
 * Mike Love, musician with The Beach Boys; his grandmother's father Charles Shtole was from Målilla in Småland
 * Freddy Moore, singer-songwriter
 * Ricky Nelson, singer-songwriter
 * Harry Nilsson, singer-songwriter
 * Jack Noren, jazz drummer and vocalist
 * Birgit Ridderstedt, folk singer and producer
 * Todd Rundgren, singer-songwriter
 * Ilya Salmanzadeh, singer-songwriter and producer
 * Grace Slick, singer-songwriter
 * Taylor Swift, country singer
 * Hughie Thomasson, singer and guitarist
 * Cal Tjader, Swedish parents, jazz musician
 * Theodor Uppman, Swedish parents, opera singer
 * Astrid Varnay, Swedish-born, opera singer
 * Henry Vestine, guitarist, son of Ernest Harry Vestine
 * Donnie Wahlberg, singer of pop group New Kids On The Block, actor and film producer
 * Mark Wahlberg, singer, actor, producer, model
 * Brian Wilson, lead bassist, vocalist, songwriter and producer for The Beach Boys
 * Carl Wilson, lead guitarist of The Beach Boys
 * Dennis Wilson, lead drummer of The Beach Boys

Other

 * Mary Katherine Campbell, two-time Miss America winner in 1922 and 1923; mother was half Swedish
 * Gretchen Carlson, journalist, co-host of Fox & Friends on Fox News Channel, former Miss America
 * Leticia Cline, model
 * Steve Dahl, longtime Chicago radio disc jockey and talk personality, influential early "shock jock"
 * Cary Fukunaga, director, writer, film producer and cinematographer
 * Stephen Gyllenhaal, director
 * Mitch Hedberg, comedian
 * Verne Lundquist, sportscaster, currently employed by CBS Sports television
 * Ozzie Nelson, Swedish immigrant father, entertainer, radio and television actor
 * Hjalmar Peterson, vaudeville artist
 * Nena von Schlebrügge, fashion model in the 1950s and 1960s; born in Mexico but of German and Swedish descent; mother of actress Uma Thurman
 * Steven Soderbergh, film producer, screenwriter, cinematographer, editor and Oscar-winning director, of part Swedish descent

Artists

 * Ernest Viggo Almquist, commercial artist
 * Carl Oscar Borg, Swedish-born, painter, known for themes of the Southwestern United States
 * Henrik Leopold Carlson (1859-1944), Swedish-born American sculptor, responsible for work on the Spreckles and Pantages Theaters in Los Angeles, California; his grandson Arnold 'Whitey' Carlson (1924–2010) was the founder of the LA Brewery Arts Complex
 * John F. Carlson, Swedish-born, Impressionist artist, author of Carlson's Guide to Landscape Painting
 * Peter David Edstrom, Swedish-born, sculptor
 * Bud Grace, cartoonist
 * Paul Granlund, sculptor
 * Albinus Hasselgren, painter and sculptor
 * Knute Heldner, Swedish-born, American artist
 * Gustavus Hesselius, Swedish-born, painter
 * John Hesselius, portraitist
 * Magnus Colcord "Rusty" Heurlin (1895-1986), Swedish-born, Swedish-American artist and painter best known for his depictions of Alaskan landscapes
 * Emil Janel, artist
 * Lester Johnson, painter
 * Olof Krans, Swedish-born, artist and painter
 * Hope Larson, illustrator and cartoonist
 * Karl Larsson, Swedish-born, painter, engraver and sculptor
 * Evan Lindquist, artist, printmaker, first artist laureate of Arkansas
 * Bror Julius Olsson Nordfeldt, Swedish-born, artist
 * Arvid Nyholm, artist known primarily as a portrait and landscape painter
 * Claes Oldenburg, Swedish-born, sculptor, best known for his public art
 * Paul Kuniholm Pauper, Swedish mother, Norwegian father; sculptor
 * Susan Mohl Powers, sculptor
 * Birger Sandzén, Swedish-born, painter
 * Haddon Sundblom, creator of Santa Claus images for the Coca-Cola Company
 * John August Swanson, Swedish father, visual artist, painter
 * Gustaf Tenggren, Swedish-born, illustrator
 * Carl E. Wallin, Swedish-born, artist and painter
 * Gunnar Widforss, Swedish-born, artist specializing in landscapes

Engineers

 * Ernst Alexanderson, Swedish-born, electrical engineer
 * Carl David Anderson, physicist
 * Chester Carlson, physicist, inventor, and patent attorney
 * John Ericsson, Swedish-born, inventor and mechanical engineer
 * Clarence "Kelly" Johnson, Swedish-born parents, aircraft engineer and aeronautical innovator, considered one of the most talented and prolific aircraft design-engineers
 * John B. Johnson, Swedish-born, electrical engineer and physicist
 * Clarence Hugo Linder, of Swedish descent, electrical engineer, founding member of the National Academy of Engineering
 * Harry Nyquist, Swedish-born, engineer, important contributor to information theory
 * John W. Nystrom, Swedish-born, engineer
 * Borje Rosaen, Swedish-born, mechanical engineer born in Tierp, Uppsala, Sweden
 * Lars Rosaen, mechanical engineer and inventor
 * Nils Rosaen, Swedish-born, mechanical engineer and inventor
 * Glenn T. Seaborg, Nobel Prize laureate, chemist prominent in the discovery and isolation of ten transuranic elements including plutonium, americium, curium, berkelium, californium, einsteinium, fermium, mendelevium, nobelium and seaborgium, which was named in his honor

Entrepreneurs and businesspeople

 * Gene Amdahl, computer architect and entrepreneur
 * John Brynteson, Swedish-born, Alaskan mining executive
 * Curt Carlson, founder of Carlson
 * Carl G. Cromwell, Texas-based oil and aviation pioneer
 * John Erlander, Swedish-born, founder of Rockford Union Furniture Company
 * Ernest O. Estwing, Swedish-born, founder of Estwing Manufacturing Company
 * Carl Friden, Swedish-born, founder of Friden, Inc.
 * Oscar Hedstrom, Swedish-born, co-founder of the Indian Motocycle Manufacturing Company
 * Walter Hoving, Swedish-born, head of Tiffany & Company
 * J. Erik Jonsson, Swedish immigrant parents, co-founder and former president of Texas Instruments Incorporated, mayor of Dallas and philanthropist
 * Arvid Emanuel Kallen, Swedish-born, General Motors executive
 * Michael Kors, founder of Michael Kors Holdings Limited (KORS)
 * Eli Lilly, philanthropist and founder of Eli Lilly and Company
 * Erik Lindblom, Swedish-born, Alaskan mining executive
 * Charles Magnus Lindgren, Swedish-born, shipping executive
 * John R. Lindgren, banking executive with State Bank of Chicago, founder of Haugan & Lindgren banking firm in Chicago
 * William Matson, Swedish-born, founder of Matson Navigation Company
 * John W. Nordstrom, Swedish-born, co-founder of the Nordstrom department store chain
 * Pehr August Peterson, Swedish-born, business executive and founder of the Swedish American Hospital
 * Rudolph A. Peterson, Swedish-born, President and CEO of Bank of America
 * Norman Ralston, co-founder of Aero Air
 * Cristina Stenbeck, Swedish father, American mother, businesswoman
 * Carl Strandlund, Swedish-born, inventor and entrepreneur
 * Gideon Sundbäck, Swedish-born, inventor, commercialized the zipper, son-in-law of colleague Peter Aronson
 * Carl A. Swanson, Swedish-born, founder of Swanson
 * Swante M. Swenson, Swedish-born, founder of the SMS Ranches
 * Nils F. Testor, Swedish-born, founder of Testor Corporation
 * Charles R. Walgreen, founder of Walgreens, one of America's largest pharmacy chains; Swedish-born parents
 * Charles Rudolph Walgreen, Jr., President of Walgreens
 * Charles R. Walgreen III, President of Walgreens
 * Carl Wickman, founder of Greyhound Lines, Inc.

Military

 * Buzz Aldrin, pilot and astronaut, Lunar Module Pilot on Apollo 11, the first lunar landing
 * Richard I. Bong, US Army Air Force and Medal of Honor recipient
 * Arleigh Burke, US Navy Admiral
 * John A. Dahlgren, US Navy Rear Admiral
 * John Ernest Dahlquist, US Army four-star general
 * Eric G. Gibson, Swedish-born, US Army soldier and Medal of Honor recipient
 * Roger Hanson, Confederate States Army General
 * Gregory G. Johnson, US Navy Admiral
 * Charles Linn, Swedish-born, Captain in the Confederate States Navy
 * Oscar Malmborg, Lieutenant colonel in the Union Army
 * Charles Momsen, US Navy Vice Admiral
 * Ivor Thord-Gray, Swedish-born, mercenary soldier

Politics and public service



 * Elmer L. Andersen, 30th Governor of Minnesota
 * C. Elmer Anderson, 28th Governor of Minnesota
 * John B. Anderson, US Representative from Illinois and an Independent candidate in the 1980 presidential election
 * Wendell Anderson, 33rd Governor of Minnesota, from January 4, 1971 to December 29, 1976
 * August H. Andresen, US Representative from Minnesota
 * Robert Bergland, US Representative from Minnesota, 20th United States Secretary of Agriculture
 * Joseph A. A. Burnquist, 19th Governor of Minnesota
 * George H.W. Bush, former president of the US
 * George W. Bush, former president of the US
 * Arne Carlson, 37th Governor of Minnesota
 * Carl Richard Chindblom, US Representative from Illinois
 * Byron Dorgan, US Senator
 * Adolph Olson Eberhart, 17th Governor of Minnesota
 * Mamie Eisenhower, wife of Dwight D. Eisenhower and First Lady of the United States from 1953 to 1961
 * Thomas Frankson, 22nd Lieutenant Governor of Minnesota
 * Orville Freeman, 29th Governor of Minnesota, 16th United States Secretary of Agriculture
 * Tipper Gore, wife of Vice President Al Gore
 * Jennifer Granholm, Governor of the state of Michigan; of Finnish-Swedish ancestry
 * John Hoeven, US Senator.
 * Johnny Isakson, 2nd generation, Republican Senator from Georgia since 2005
 * Daniel of St. Thomas Jenifer, Founding Father, signer of the U.S. Constitution.
 * John Albert Johnson, 16th Governor of Minnesota
 * Joseph B. Johnson, Swedish-born, 70th Governor of Vermont
 * Magnus Johnson, Swedish-born, US Senator from Minnesota
 * Tim Johnson, US Senator from South Dakota, father was of mostly Swedish ancestry
 * U. Alexis Johnson, US diplomat
 * Harold LeVander, 32nd Governor of Minnesota
 * John Lind, Swedish-born, 14th Governor of Minnesota
 * Charles August Lindbergh, Congressman for 6th District of Minnesota from 1907 to 1917
 * Gottfrid Lindsten, 32nd Lieutenant Governor of Minnesota
 * Zoe Lofgren, Member of the US House of Representatives from California
 * Ernest Lundeen, US Senator from Minnesota
 * Dan Lungren, Member of the US House of Representatives from California
 * Warren G. Magnuson, US Senator from Washington
 * Gregory J. Newell, former US Ambassador to Sweden (1985–1989); US Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs (1982–1985); former assistant secretary of State for President Ronald Reagan
 * Albin Walter Norblad, Sr, Swedish-born, 19th Governor of Oregon (father of Albin Walter Norblad, Jr, grandfather of Albin Walter Norblad III)
 * Albin Walter Norblad, Jr, Member of the US House of Representatives from Oregon (son of Albin Walter Norblad, Sr, father of Albin Walter Norblad III)
 * Albin Walter Norblad III, attorney, judge of the Oregon Circuit Court (son of Albin Walter Norblad, Jr, grandson of Albin Walter Norblad, Sr)
 * Floyd B. Olson, 22nd Governor of Minnesota
 * Lyndon Lowell Olson, Jr., politician and diplomat
 * William Rehnquist, lawyer, jurist and a political figure, who served as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States and later as the Chief Justice of the United States
 * Adolphus Frederic St. Sure, United States District Court Judge
 * Carl Skoglund, socialist
 * Charles Stenholm, Member of the US House of Representatives from Texas
 * Don Sundquist, 47th Governor of Tennessee
 * Tim Walberg, US Representative
 * Monrad Wallgren, 13th Governor of Washington, Member of the US House of Representatives and the US Senator from Washington
 * Earl Warren, California district attorney of Alameda County, the 30th Governor of California, and the 14th Chief Justice of the United States (from 1953 to 1969); of Swedish and Norwegian descent
 * Luther Youngdahl, 27th Governor of Minnesota
 * Oscar Youngdahl, Member of the US House of Representatives from Minnesota

Religious personalities

 * Marcus Borg, religious author
 * Paul Carlson, medical missionary of the Evangelical Covenant Church
 * Erland Carlsson, Swedish-born, Lutheran minister and one of the founders and President of the Augustana Synod
 * K. G. William Dahl, Swedish-born, Lutheran minister, founder of Bethphage Inner Mission in Axtell, Nebraska
 * John Alexis Edgren, Swedish-born, Baptist minister, founder of Bethel University in St. Paul, Minnesota
 * Lars Paul Esbjörn, Swedish-born, Lutheran minister and one of the founders of the Augustana Synod of the Lutheran church
 * Nils Frykman, Swedish-born, evangelist, hymnwriter and prominent figure in the Evangelical Covenant Church
 * Tuve Hasselquist, Swedish-born, Lutheran minister and founding president of the Augustana Synod
 * Johannes Alfred Hultman, Swedish-born, evangelist, hymnwriter and founding member of the Evangelical Covenant Church
 * Eric Jansson, Swedish-born, pietist leader
 * Andrew Nelson, missionary, linguist and lexicographer associated with the Seventh-day Adventist Church
 * Thomas S. Monson, President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
 * Eric Norelius, Swedish-born, Lutheran minister and one of the founders and President of the Augustana Synod
 * David Nyvall, Swedish-born, immigrant and church leader who helped shape the Evangelical Covenant Church and establish North Park University
 * Dale G. Renlund, junior member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
 * Andreas Rudman, Swedish-born, pioneer Lutheran minister and pastor of Gloria Dei (Old Swedes') Church
 * Carl Aaron Swensson, Lutheran minister and President of Bethany College
 * Gustaf Unonius, Swedish-born, Episcopalian clergyman and immigrant



Science

 * Carl David Anderson, physicist who won 1936 Nobel Prize in Physics
 * John Elof Boodin, Swedish-born, philosopher and educator
 * Walter Elmer Ekblaw, geologist, botanist, and college professor
 * Per Enflo, University Professor of Mathematics at Kent State University
 * David R. Lindberg, malacologist, professor of integrative biology at the University of California, Berkeley
 * Kerstin Lindblad-Toh, Co-Director of Genome Sequencing and Analysis Program, Broad Institute
 * Glenn T. Seaborg, scientist who won the 1951 Nobel Prize in Chemistry
 * Max Tegmark, cosmologist and Associate Professor of Physics at MIT
 * Ernest Harry Vestine, geophysicist and meteorologist

Sports

 * Tom Brady, American football quarterback
 * Lou Amundson, basketball player
 * Willie Bloomquist, baseball player
 * Ernst Brandsten, diving coach
 * Bob Burnquist, skateboarder
 * Swede Carlstrom, Major League shortstop for the Boston Red Sox
 * Gary Cederstrom, Major League Baseball umpire
 * Dick Enberg, sportscaster
 * Norman Julius "Boomer" Esiason, retired American football quarterback, network commentator.
 * Nancy Faust, stadium organist for the Chicago White Sox franchise in Major League Baseball
 * Ed Gustafson, professional athlete with the Brooklyn Dodgers
 * Rudolph Emil Hagberg, American football offensive lineman in the National Football League
 * Dorothy Hamill, figure skater
 * Matt Hasselbeck, former quarterback of the Seattle Seahawks
 * Walter Hellman, draughts player
 * Mike Holmgren, former head coach of the Seattle Seahawks
 * Jonas Jerebko, basketball player born to a Russian American father and a Swedish mother.
 * Greta Johansson, diver
 * Chester Johnston, former professional American football player
 * Walter Johnson, pitcher and three time triple crown winner for the Washington Nationals/Senators, 1907-1927
 * Swede Johnston, football player
 * John Kvist, football player
 * Ewa Mataya Laurance, professional pool player
 * Edward Lindberg, athlete
 * Freddie Lindstrom, baseball player
 * Matthew Lindstrom, baseball player
 * Greg Louganis, diver
 * Pug Lund, football player
 * Mike Lundin, ice hockey player
 * Phil Mickelson, American professional golfer
 * Jordy Nelson, American football player
 * Nils. V. "Swede" Nelson
 * Joakim Noah, basketball player
 * Bob Nystrom, ice hockey player
 * Eric Nystrom, ice hockey player
 * Andrew James Oberlander, All-American halfback football player
 * Bobo Olson, Swedish father, boxer
 * Charles August Risberg, baseball player
 * Ulf Samuelsson, Swedish-born, ice hockey player
 * Ted Sundquist, bobsledder and football manager
 * Jeffery Taylor, NBA player, Swedish mother
 * Nick Theslof, first American soccer player to play in Europe, grandson of Vivi-Anne Hultén
 * Adolph Frederick Youngstrom, football player

Writers

 * Nelson Algren, writer
 * Jack Anderson, journalist
 * Ray Bradbury, science fiction and fantasy, mother was an immigrant from Sweden
 * Siv Cedering, poet
 * Jonathan Franzen, novelist and essayist
 * Axel Carl Johan Gustafson, Swedish-born, writer
 * Victor Davis Hanson, military historian, columnist, political essayist and former classics
 * Dale Hurd, journalist, CBN; his great great grandfather hails from Kalmar, Sweden
 * Gustavo A. Mellander ('Gus'), historian, columnist, political commentator, university administrator, college president; honored by the United States House of Representatives, 1985
 * Edita Morris, writer
 * Lars-Erik Nelson, political columnist
 * Sigurd Olson, writer and environmentalist
 * Hans Ostrom, writer and professor
 * Carl Sandburg, poet, historian, novelist, balladeer and folklorist
 * Ernst Skarstedt, Swedish-born, first author editor, and newspaper publisher
 * Gerald Vizenor, novelist and literary critic

Colonial people

 * Måns Andersson, Swedish-born, resident of New Sweden
 * Jonas Bronck, Swedish-born, settler after whom the New York City borough of the Bronx was named
 * Sven Gunnarsson, Swedish-born, resident of New Sweden
 * Margaret Matson, Swedish-born, resident of New Sweden
 * Eric Pålsson Mullica, Swedish-born, resident of New Sweden
 * Peter Gunnarsson Rambo, Swedish-born, resident of New Sweden
 * Reorus Torkillus, Swedish-born, resident of New Sweden

Educators

 * George Akerlof, economist
 * Arnold Barton, educator and historian
 * Linda Lee Cadwell, teacher; widow of Bruce Lee
 * August Hjalmar Edgren, Swedish-born, linguistics and university professor
 * Claes Gösta Ryn, academic and educator

Other

 * Leroy J. Alexanderson, last captain of the SS United States
 * Alfred O. Andersson, publisher
 * Bo Andersson, former General Motors executive, and present President/CEO of GAZ Group
 * Lillian Asplund, Titanic survivor
 * Elivera M. Doud, mother of Mamie Eisenhower
 * Abraham Fornander, journalist, judge and ethnologist
 * Franklin S. Forsberg, publisher and diplomat
 * Charles Lindbergh, pioneering aviator famous for piloting the first solo non-stop flight across the Atlantic Ocean in 1927
 * Erik Lindbergh, aviator
 * Godfrey Lundberg, Swedish-born, engraver
 * Raymond Nels Nelson, Chief of Staff Senator Claiborne Pell, R.I., former Bureau Chief, Providence Journal, unsolved murder 1981
 * Buell Halvor Quain, ethnologist
 * Ivor Thord-Gray, Swedish-born, adventurer, ethnologist and linguist