Famous people, both living and dead, can help to inspire us to greater things and teach us about missing gaps in our own knowledge. Indeed, by studying the lives of some of the most famous people throughout history, you can turn yourself into a better person. And who doesn’t want that?
Thanks to the internet, you don’t need to spend a fortune on physical biographies in your local bookstore. Here are the best websites for biographies of renowned people who have ever lived.
1. Biography
Biography has been online for many years and has become one of the most well-known sites out there for memoirs, interviews, and life stories.
The People section has grown to thousands of entries and covers everyone from actors to scientists. When you click on a person's profile, you'll get a brief overview of their life, a list of “quick facts”, and information on their education, career, and personal life.
Biography also has entire sections dedicated to nostalgia, celebrities, history and culture, and crime and scandal. Most of the content in these sections takes a long-form article approach.
If you enjoy the content on the main site, make sure you also check out Biography's YouTube channel. Most of the videos are a couple of minutes long and focus on a single person.
2. S9
S9 is like a Wikipedia of biographies. The content is editable by the users, and they also can contribute to the existing biographies on the site.
Every day, there is a selection of featured biographies, with many of the selections being for people you might not have heard of but who have achieved wonderful things in their lives. The site also has a birthday section and a latest biographies section, allowing you to delve into the lives of different fascinating people every time you log on.
S9 even has a biographical game in the form of a quiz. The questions are, predictably, based on people's lives. Fair warning—to get a good score, you need to have a serious deep amount of knowledge.
3. Notable Biographies
The simply organized encyclopedia on famous and historical personalities is very readable with an alphabetically arranged Wikipedia-like presentation. You can also add your own information through a form.
It lacks the large number of entries that you will find on some of the other sites on this list, but don't let that put you off. If you're looking for a who's-who of various global luminaries rather than endless lists of people you have never heard of, this is the site for you.
4. Women's History Month
Women's History Month is an official site produced by the US government. Of course, the month of the celebration itself is March, but you can visit and enjoy the site and its massive amount of content throughout the year.
The Library of Congress, National Archives and Records Administration, National Endowment for the Humanities, National Gallery of Art, National Park Service, Smithsonian Institution, and United States Holocaust Memorial Museum join in commemorating and encouraging the study, observance, and celebration of the vital role of women in American history.
Overall, the site is an exhaustive resource on women who have impacted history through the ages. It pays tribute to some of the greatest women in history with multimedia content and other exhibits.
5. Wikipedia
If you want information on famous people, you can never go too far wrong with the ubiquitous Wikipedia. If anyone has achieved something globally noteworthy in their lives, you can be almost certain that they will have an entry on the site.
Of course, for the true giants of history, the entries can run to tens of thousands of words. But even for slightly less-famous people, you will still be able to find plenty of information.
Wikipedia is also one of the few biography sites that is available in multiple languages. For regionally famous people, you might find their local entry has far more information than the English-language entry. You can use Google Translate if you cannot understand the language in question.
And hey, if no article exists about the person in question, you can always try and make one yourself!
6. Academy of Achievement
The Academy of Achievement aims to provide readers with insight into the visionaries and pioneers who have shaped the modern world around us. The academy has existed for more than six decades, thus making inclusion in its hall of fame an honor in its own right.
For all the people who have made it onto the hallowed list over the years, you can access complete biographies, samples of their work, images, interviews, video content, and more.
7. Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
If you're a politics fanatic, you will love the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. It features a biography for all 12,877 people who have served in the House of Representatives and Congress since the forming of the United States.
For each person, you will be able to find information about the congresses they served, the years they served, the state/territory they represented, their position, and their party. Of course, there is also a text article dedicated to each person, with information on their personal life, background, and career.
We've also covered some of the best sites for unbiased fact-checking if this isn't enough for your politics fix.
8. Academy of American Poets
If literature is more your thing, head to the Academy of American Poets. It offers more than 3,000 biographies of contemporary and classical poets from the US.
The site also offers non-biographical content. For example, there are thousands of poems for you to read, a poem-a-day feature, a library containing books, texts, and more, and even materials for teachers and links to poetry events near your location.
Learn About People to Become a Better Person
No matter what hobbies and interests you have, there is always something to be learned by studying the lives of other people.
Whether they help you find an answer to a moral question, inspire you to start a new project, or simply helps you pass some time on your commute, these sites will all help to keep you entertained and engaged for hours.