| Francis | Bacon | A statesman, philosopher, and master of the English tongue. |
| Irene Temple | Bailey | American novelist and short story writer. |
| Mrs. | Barrow | One of the church's ladies. |
| Georgia | Brown | English singer and actress. |
| Mrs. | Buxton | One of the church's ladies. |
| Richard E. | Byrd | U.S. naval officer, pioneer aviator, and polar explorer. |
| Ben | Carpenter | Won the contest conducted by Mr. Kolb. |
| Ezzer | Clark | A preacher. |
| Christopher | Columbus | An Italian explorer and navigator. |
| Calvin | Coolidge | 30th President of the United States. |
| Miss | Coppidge | An English teacher. |
| Mr. | Corcoran | A farmer. |
| Brother | Cottrell | Soames' family's acquaintance. |
| Venus | de Milo | An ancient Greek statue. |
| Charles | Dickens | English writer and social critic. |
| Theodore | Dreiser | American novelist and journalist of the naturalist school. |
| Clabber | Dumpson | A minion. |
| Amantine | Dupin | French novelist, memoirist, and journalist. aka: George Sand. |
| Johnny | Faust | Matthew's friend. |
| Richard | Fields | American musician. aka: Dimples. |
| Benjamin | Franklin | One of the Founding Fathers of the United States. |
| Sigmund | Freud | Austrian neurologist and the founding father of psychoanalysis. |
| Greta | Garbo | Swedish-American actress. |
| Miss | George | An English teacher. |
| Hugo | Grancourt | Callie's grandfather. |
| Mrs. | Gunn | Mr. Henshaw's customer. |
| Miss | Hagar | Callie's friend. |
| Walter | Henshaw | A grocery owner. aka: Walt. |
| Serena | Hicks | One of the church's ladies. |
| Edward | Inwood | One of Matthew's students. aka: Ed. |
| Delmore | Jewel | Delmora's mother. |
| John | Keats | English romantic poet. |
| Omar | Khayyam | Persian mathematician, astronomer, philosopher, and poet. |
| Mr. | Kolb | Conducted a class in the Palmer Method. |
| Jake | Latham | Matthew's acquaintance. |
| Sinclair | Lewis | American novelist, short-story writer, and playwright. |
| Charles | Lindbergh | American aviator, military officer, author, inventor, and activist. |
| H. L. | Mencken | American journalist and writer. |
| Brother | Mosely | A preacher. |
| Mr. | Motherwell | A professor. |
| Caroline Amelia | Nation | An American activist. aka: Carry. |
| Charlotte | Newhouse | One of Matthew's students. |
| Phoebe | Oechen | Matthew's acquaintance. |
| Mr. | Olin | A farmer. |
| Mrs. | Olin | Mr. Olin's wife and became Jessica's good friend. |
| Carol | Pakorney | Leonie's best friend. |
| Pontius | Pilate | The fifth governor of the Roman province of Judaea. |
| Alexander | Poe | An author. |
| Marco | Polo | Venetian merchant and adventurer. |
| Ezra | Pound | American poet and critic. |
| Tom | Purdy | A boy who was raised at Ozark farm. |
| Pierre-Auguste | Renoir | A painter. |
| Scott | Richards | A television news reporter, photographer, producer and anchor. |
| Garney | Robles | A local carpenter and member of the school board. |
| Bertrand | Russell | British philosopher and logician. |
| Mrs. | Sells | One of the church's ladies. |
| William | Shakespeare | English playwright and poet. |
| Callie G. | Soames | Matthew's wife. |
| Gabriel | Soames | Matthew's grandfather. |
| Matthew | Soames | A school teacher. |
| Emma L. | Squier | A writer and actress. |
| Alfred | Tennyson | British poet. |
| Henry | Van Dyke | A famous short story writer, poet, and essayist. |
| Alice | Wandling | One of Matthew's students. |
| George | Washington | 1st President of the United States. |
| Edith | Wharton | American novelist, short story writer, and designer. |
| Aaron | | Matthew's brother. |
| Bertie | | Jessica's aunt. |
| Billy | | Ed's acquaintance. |
| Blossom | | A Jersey cow. aka: Blossie. |
| Bobby | | Ruthie's cousin. |
| Cass | | Ophelia's mother. |
| Creighton | | Jessica's second husband. |
| Delmora | | One of Matthew's students. |
| Fanny | | Jake's wife. |
| Genevieve | | Leonie's friend. |
| Helen | | One of Matthew's students. |
| Jessica | | One of Mathew and Callie's daughters. |
| Jo | | Soames' aunt. |
| Kenneth | | A basketball coach. aka: Kenny. |
| Leonie | | One of Mathew and Callie's daughters. |
| Lil | | Ed's sister. |
| Lindy | | Matthew's acquaintance. |
| Marvin | | Jessica's admirer. |
| Mary Jo | | The youngest daughter of Matthew and Callie. |
| Mathy Elizabeth | | The third daughter of Matthew and Callie. |
| Maude | | A horse. |
| Mitch | | Hugo's eldest son. |
| Ophelia | | Callie's cousin. aka: Phelie |
| Orville | | A farmer. |
| Peter | | Mathy's son. |
| Pharaoh | | Matthew's mule. |
| Ralph | | Ophelia's husband. |
| Ralphie | | Ralph and Ophelia's son. |
| Roy | | Mrs. Gunn's husband. |
| Ruthie | | Mathy's friend. |
| Soames | | Leonie's son. |
| Sukie | | An old cow. |
| Thaddeus | | One of Callie's half-brothers. aka: Thad. |
| Virg | | Johnny's acquaintance. |
| Wesley | | One of Callie's half-brothers. |
