This is a list of notable past and present residents of the U.S. city of Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and its surrounding metropolitan area.
Athletics
Dustin Ackley, outfielder for the New York Yankees
Ray Agnew III, NFL player
Hubbard Alexander, football coach
Kathleen Baker, Olympic gold and silver medalist swimmer
Dillon Bassett, NASCAR driver
Ronnie Bassett Jr., NASCAR driver
Tanner Beason, Major League Soccer (MLS) player
Ed Berrier, NASCAR driver
Don Cardwell, former Major League Baseball pitcher
Randolph Childress, former professional basketball player
Richard Childress, NASCAR team owner
Sam Cronin, former Major League Soccer player
Alvin Crowder, MLB All-Star pitcher
Hubert Davis, head coach of the men's basketball team at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, basketball analyst for ESPN, former University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and NBA player Carl Eller, NFL defensive end, College Football Hall of Fame and Pro Football Hall of Fame member C.E. "Big House" Gaines, head basketball coach of Winston-Salem State University for 47 years; member of Basketball Hall of Fame Ed Gainey, Canadian Football League player Harry Giles, 20th pick in the 2017 NBA draft, current NBA player for the Portland Trail Blazers. Danny Gathings, retired basketball player Harvey Gentry, former Major League Baseball player Rufe Gentry, former Major League Baseball player for the Detroit Tigers Mark Grace, first baseman for Chicago Cubs and Arizona Diamondbacks, broadcaster and coach Tommy Gregg, former Major League Baseball player Jerry Haas, retired professional golfer Chris Hairston, NFL offensive lineman Happy Hairston, former NBA player for Los Angeles Lakers; NBA Champion C. J. Harris, basketball player in the Israeli Basketball Premier League Josh Hawkins, NFL cornerback Madison Hedgecock, NFL fullback Ricky Hickman, professional basketball player Josh Howard, NBA player Othello Hunter, professional basketball player in the Israeli Basketball Premier League Marc Johnson, professional skateboarder Randy Jones, Olympic bobsledder, winning a silver medal in the four-man event Rusty LaRue, NBA player and NCAA record holder in football Anthony Levine, NFL safety and two-time Super Bowl champion Camille Little, WNBA player Caleb Martin (basketball), NBA player for the Miami Heat Brian McDonough, Olympic cyclist Wilmer "Vinegar Bend" Mizell, MLB pitcher for Pirates and Cardinals, and US congressman from 1968–74 Earl Monroe, NBA player for New York Knicks and Baltimore Bullets Patrick O'Sullivan, NHL player Arnold Palmer, former professional golfer, attended Wake Forest University Chris Paul, NBA player for the Phoenix Suns Juvonte Reddic (born 1992), basketball player in the Israeli Basketball Premier League J-Mee Samuels, track and field sprinter Ernie Shore, former Major League Baseball pitcher and sheriff of Forsyth County, North Carolina Ben Smith, NHL player and 2013 Stanley Cup champion Ramondo Stallings, NFL player Ryan Taylor, former NFL tight end for the Green Bay Packers Reyshawn Terry, professional basketball player and 2005 NCAA champion with UNC
Government, politics, and military
Hannah Atkins, member of the Oklahoma House of Representatives from 1968 to 1980, and the first African-American woman elected to it Jim Broyhill, Republican politician; served North Carolina in both U.S. House of Representatives and Senate Ted Budd, former United States Representative and United States Senator from North Carolina Richard Burr, United States Senator Irving E. Carlyle, North Carolina lawyer and state leader Daryl L. Caudle, Admiral, Commander, U.S. Fleet Forces Command Larken Egleston, Charlotte, North Carolina City Councilmember Gordon Gray, newspaper publisher, Secretary of the Army under President Truman, and President Eisenhower's National Security Advisor William Heaton, former chief of staff to Bob Ney Lawrence Joel, United States Army soldier; received Medal of Honor during the Vietnam War Henry Johnson, United States Army soldier; posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions in World War I Norman M. Miller, United States Navy officer; one of the most decorated Naval Aviators during World War II Ray C. Osborne, served as the first Lieutenant Governor of Florida under the state constitution of 1968 Bennetta Bullock Washington, "first first lady" of Washington, D.C., director of Job Corps for Women at Department of Labor Togo West, United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs, United States Secretary of the Army, General Counsel of the Navy