20. Daniel Boone
Daniel Boone achieved lasting fame in his own lifetime, both on America’s frontier and in cities and towns along the coast. After he blazed a western route through the Cumberland Gap and established settlements in Kentucky more than 300,000 pioneers followed his route to the west. Though he is indelibly linked with Kentucky, he spent less time there than he did in Missouri, where he migrated with much of his family after falling into debt through failed investments and land speculation. His leadership at the opening of the westward migration following the American Revolution made him one of America’s earliest folk heroes, and as such he remains.