Troy Maxson - The protagonist of Fences, a fifty-three year-old, African American man who works for the sanitation department, lifting garbage into trucks. Troy is also a former baseball star in the Negro Leagues.
Rose Maxson - Troy's wife and mother of his second child, Cory. Rose is a forty-three year-old African American housewife who volunteers at her church regularly and loves her family.
Jim Bono - Troy's best friend of over thirty years. Jim Bono is usually called "Bono" or "Mr. Bono" by the characters in Fences. Bono and Troy met in jail.
Cory Maxson - The teenage son of Troy and Rose Maxson. A senior in high school, Cory gets good grades and college recruiters are coming to see him play football.
Gabriel Maxson - Troy's brother. Gabriel was a soldier in the Second World War, during which he received a head injury that required a metal plate to be surgically implanted into his head.
Lyons Maxson - Troy's son, fathered before Troy's time in jail with a woman Troy met before Troy became a baseball player and before he met Rose. Lyons is an ambitious and talented jazz musician.
Raynell Maxson - Troy's illegitimate child, mothered by Alberta, his lover.