List of United States Military Academy alumni



The United States Military Academy (USMA) is an undergraduate college in West Point, New York with the mission of educating and commissioning officers for the United States Army. The Academy was founded in 1802 and is the oldest of the United States' five service academies. It is also called The Academy, The Point, and West Point. The Academy graduated its first cadet, Joseph Gardner Swift, in October 1802. Sports media refer to the Academy as "Army" and the students as "Cadets"; this usage is officially endorsed. The football team is also known as "The Black Knights of the Hudson" and "The Black Knights". A small number of graduates each year choose the option of entering the United States Air Force, United States Navy, or United States Marine Corps. Before the founding of the United States Air Force Academy in 1955, the Academy was a major source of officers for the Air Force and its predecessors. Most cadets are admitted through the congressional appointment system. The curriculum emphasizes the sciences and engineering fields.

The list is drawn from graduates, non-graduate former cadets, current cadets, and faculty of the Military Academy. Notable graduates include 2 American Presidents, 4 additional heads of state, 18 astronauts, 74 Medal of Honor recipients, 70 Rhodes Scholars, and 3 Heisman Trophy winners. Among American universities, the academy is fourth on the list of total winners for Rhodes Scholarships, seventh for Marshall Scholarships and fourth on the list of Hertz Fellowships.

Academicians

 * "Class year" refers to the alumni's class year, which usually is the same year they graduated. However, in times of war, classes often graduate early. For example, there were two classes in 1943 - January 1943 and June 1943.

Businesspeople

 * Henry A. du Pont, Class of 1861. President & general manager of Wilmington & Western Railroad (1879–1899).
 * Robert E. Wood, Class of 1900. Chairman and CEO of Sears, Roebuck (1939–1954). Responsible for shifting the company's focus from a mail-order catalog company to a department store retailer. Wood also started AllState Insurance as a subsidiary of Sears. During WWI, BG Wood served as the Quartermaster of the Army and also served as the chief quartermaster during the construction of the Panama Canal.
 * William T. Seawell, Class of 1941. Chairman & CEO Pan Am Airways (1971–1981).
 * Robert F. McDermott, Class of 1943. Former Chairman & CEO of United Services Automobile Association (USAA).
 * Rueben Pomerantz, Class of 1946. President of Holiday Inns of America (1969–1972).
 * John F. Donahue, Class of 1946. Founder and Chairman, Federated Investors ($400 Billion Dollar Asset Management Firm).
 * John G. Hayes, Class of 1949. President of Coca-Cola Bottling Company (1963).
 * Frank Borman, Class of 1950. President Eastern Airlines (1975–1986).
 * Walter F. Ulmer, Class of 1952. President and CEO of Center for Creative Leadership (1985–1994).
 * Randolph V. Araskog, Class of 1953. President, Chairman, CEO of ITT Communications.
 * Dana G. Mead, Class of 1957. Chairman and CEO of Tenneco (1994–1999), Chairman of MIT Corporation (since 2003).
 * Pete Dawkins, Class of 1959. Chairman and CEO of Primerica Financial Services, Vice-Chairman and EVP of Travelers Insurance, Vice Chairman of Bain and Company, Vice-Chairman of Citi Global Wealth Management, and currently Senior Partner at Flintlock Capital.
 * Fred Malek, Class of 1959. Founder and Chairman of Thayer Capital Partners, Chairman of Northwest Airlines.
 * Robert G. Morrison, Class of 1960. President and CEO of Taurus International Gun Manufacturing, Inc.
 * Frank J. Caufield, Co-Founder of venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers
 * Jim Kimsey, Class of 1962. Chairman and co-founder of AOL
 * Marshall Carter, Class of 1962. Chairman of the New York Stock Exchange (since 2005). Former Chairman and CEO of the State Street Bank and Trust Company.
 * Daniel W. Christman, Class of 1965. Superintendent of USMA from 1996 to 2001. Chairman of Ultralife Corporation, SVP of International Affairs for U.S. Chamber of Commerce (since 2003)
 * Ronald Naples, Class of 1967. Chief Accountability Officer for the State of Pennsylvania; Retired Chairman and CEO of Quaker Chemical Corporation.
 * Roland Smith, CEO of Office Depot & Office Max (since NOV 2013), former CEO of Wendy's and Arby's.
 * William P. Foley, II, Class of 1967, Former CEO and current Chairman of Fidelity National Information Services
 * James A. Smith, Class of 1967, Former CFO of JLL
 * Marshall Larsen, Class of 1970. Chairman and CEO of Goodrich, Corporation (since 2003)
 * Bob McDonald, Class of 1975. CEO of Procter & Gamble
 * Ken Hicks, Class of 1974. President and CEO of Foot Locker and former President of JCPenney
 * William Albrecht, Class of 1974. President of Occidental Oil and Gas.
 * Vincent Viola, Class of 1977. Former Chairman of NYMEX (2001–2004), CEO of VirtuFinancial and owner and member of Chairman's Council of the New Jersey Nets.
 * Joe DePinto, Class of 1986. CEO of 7-Eleven Corp.
 * Alex Gorsky, Class of 1982. CEO of Johnson & Johnson
 * Anthony J. Guzzi, Class of 1986. President and CEO of EMCOR Group, Inc. The world's largest specialty construction, facilities services, energy infrastructure provider and a Fortune 500 Company.
 * Albert Dunlap, CEO of Scott Paper and Sunbeam.
 * Keith McLoughlin, President and CEO of Electrolux
 * Anthony Noto, Class of 1991. EVP and CFO for National Football League.
 * Brad Hunstable, Class of 2001. Founder and President of Ustream.TV.

Director of the Central Intelligence Agency

 * David H. Petraeus, Class of 1974. DCIA 6 September 2011 – 9 November 2012

Cabinet members

 * Andrew J. Donelson, Class of 1820. President's Secretary (1829–1837)
 * Jefferson Davis, Class of 1828. United States Secretary of War (1853–1857)
 * Montgomery Blair, Class of 1835. United States Postmaster General (1861–1864)
 * William Tecumseh Sherman, Class of 1840. United States Secretary of War (1869)
 * Gustavus Woodson Smith, Class of 1842. Confederate States Secretary of War (1862)
 * John Schofield, Class of 1853. United States Secretary of War (1868–1869)
 * Marshall Carter, Class of 1931. Deputy Director of Central Intelligence (1962–1965) and Director of the National Security Agency (1965–1969).
 * Rafael M. Ileto, Class of 1943. Philippine Secretary of National Defense (1986–1988)
 * Brent Scowcroft, Class of 1947. National Security Advisor (1974–1977, 1989–1993)
 * Alexander Haig, Class of 1947. United States Secretary of State (1981–1982)
 * Fidel V. Ramos, Class of 1950. Philippine Secretary of National Defense (1988–1991)
 * John Block, Class of 1957. United States Secretary of Agriculture (1981–1986)
 * Jim Nicholson, Class of 1961. United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs (2005–2007)
 * Barry McCaffrey, Class of 1964, U.S. Drug Czar (1996–2001)
 * Eric K. Shinseki, Class of 1965, United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs (since 2009)
 * James Peake, Class of 1966, United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs (2007–2009)

Ambassadors

 * Andrew J. Donelson, Class of 1820. Chargé d'affaires of the United States to the Republic of Texas (1845). U.S. Minister to Prussia (1846–49). U.S. Vice Presidential Candidate (1856)
 * Rufus King, Class of 1833. U.S. Minister to the Papal States (1863–1867)
 * William Woods Averell, Class of 1855. U.S. Consul General to British North America (1866–1869)
 * Hugh Judson Kilpatrick, Class of 1856, U.S. Minister to Chile, 1866–70, 1881
 * Frederick Dent Grant, Class of 1871. U.S. Minister to Austro-Hungarian Empire (1890–1893)
 * James Maurice Gavin, Class of 1929, U.S. Ambassador to France (1961–62)
 * John D. Eisenhower, Class of 1944. U.S. Ambassador to Belgium (1969–1971).
 * David Manker Abshire, Class of 1951. U.S. Ambassador to NATO (1983–1987)
 * Jim Nicholson, Class of 1961. U.S. Ambassador to the Vatican (2001–2005)
 * Alfred Hoffman, Jr.. Ambassador to the Republic of Portugal (2005–2007).
 * Kenneth P. Moorefield, Class of 1965. Ambassador to the Republic of Gabon and Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe (2002–2005). Also served as senior State Department representative on the Iraq/Afghanistan Transition Planning Group (2005–2007)
 * Robert M. Kimmitt, Class of 1969. U.S. Ambassador to Germany (1991–1993).
 * John Galvin, Class of 1954, U.S. Ambassador to Bosnian Peace Negotiations
 * William B. Taylor, Jr., U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine (2006-2009)
 * Karl Eikenberry, Class of 1973, U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan (2009-2011)

Governors (civil)

 * Robert Francis Withers Allston, Class of 1821, Governor of South Carolina (1856–58)
 * David Wallace, Class of 1821. Governor of Indiana (1837–1840)
 * Robert Milligan McLane, Class of 1837, Governor of Maryland (1884–85)
 * Isaac Ingalls Stevens, Class of 1839, Governor of Washington Territory (1853–1857)
 * George Stoneman, Class of 1846. Governor of California (1883–1887)
 * George B. McClellan, Class of 1846, Governor of New Jersey (1878–81)
 * Ambrose Burnside, Class of 1847, Governor of Rhode Island (1866–69)
 * Francis Redding Tillou Nicholls, Class of 1855, Governor of Louisiana (1877–80, 88–92)
 * William H. Upham, Class of 1866. Governor of Wisconsin (1895–1897)
 * Alexander Oswald Brodie, Class of 1870, Governor of Arizona Territory (1902–05)
 * Charles H. Martin, Class of 1887, Governor of Oregon (1935–39)
 * Chester Harding (governor), Class of 1889, Governor of Panama Canal Zone (1917–21)
 * Jay Johnson Morrow, Class of 1891, Governor of Panama Canal Zone (1921–24)
 * Meriwether L. Walker, Class of 1893, Governor of Panama Canal Zone (1924–28)
 * Harry Burgess, Class of 1895, Governor of Panama Canal Zone (1928–32)
 * Clarence S. Ridley, Class of 1905, Governor of Panama Canal Zone (1936–40)
 * Glen E. Edgerton, Class of 1908, Governor of Panama Canal Zone (1940–44)
 * Joseph C. Mehaffey, Class of 1911, Governor of Panama Canal Zone (1944–48)
 * Francis K. Newcomer, Class of 1913, Governor of Panama Canal Zone (1948–52)
 * John S. Seybold, Class of 1920, Governor of Panama Canal Zone (1952–56)
 * William E. Potter, Class of 1933, Governor of Panama Canal Zone (1956–60)
 * William A. Carter, Class of 1930, Governor of Panama Canal Zone (1960–62)
 * Robert John Fleming, Class of 1928, Governor of Panama Canal Zone (1962–67)
 * David Stuart Parker, Class of 1940, Governor of Panama Canal Zone (1971–75)
 * Harold Parfitt, Class of 1943, Governor of Panama Canal Zone (1975–79)
 * Warren E. Hearnes, Class of 1946. Governor of Missouri (1965–1973)
 * Dave Heineman, Class of 1970. Governor of Nebraska (since 2005)

Governors (military)

 * Thomas Childs, Class of 1814. Military governor of Puebla, Mexico.
 * John H. Martindale, Class of 1835. Military Governor of Washington, D.C.
 * Rufus Saxton, Class of 1849. Military governor of the Department of the South.
 * Fitzhugh Lee, Class of 1856. Military governor of Havana, Cuba.
 * Philip Sheridan, Class of 1853. Military governor of the Fifth Military District.
 * Douglas MacArthur, Class of 1903. Military governor of Japan.
 * George S. Patton, Class of 1909. Military governor of Bavaria.
 * Joseph T. McNarney, Class of 1915. Military governor of U.S. Occupation Zone, Germany.
 * Matthew Ridgway, Class of 1917. Military governor of Japan.
 * Lucius D. Clay, Class of 1918. Military Governor in West Germany noted for Berlin Airlift.

Legislators

 * Daniel Azro Ashley Buck, Class of 1808, U.S. Representative (1823–1825,1827–1829), Vermont
 * Daniel Tunern, Class of 1814, U.S. Representative, North Carolina (1827–1829)
 * James Monroe, Class of 1815, U.S. Representative (1839–1841), New York
 * George Wurtz Hughes, Class of 1827, U.S. Representative (1859–1861), Maryland
 * Jefferson Davis, Class of 1828. U.S. Representative (1845–1846) and Senator (1847–1853, elected but not seated 1875), Mississippi
 * Alexander C.M. Pennington, Class of 1828, represented New Jersey's 5th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 1853–1857.
 * Joseph E. Johnston, Class of 1829, U.S. Representative, Virginia
 * Henry Bell Van Rensselaer, Class of 1831, U.S. Representative, New York
 * Robert Milligan McLane, Class of 1837, U.S. Representative, Maryland
 * John B. S. Todd, Class of 1837. U.S. Congressman, Dakota Territory (1861–1863,1864–1865)
 * James Madison Leach, Class of 1838, U.S. Representative, North Carolina
 * Isaac Ingalls Stevens, Class of 1839, U.S. Representative, Washington Territory
 * Egbert Ludoricus Viele, Class of 1847, U.S. Representative, New York
 * Ambrose Burnside, Class of 1847. U.S. Senator, Rhode Island (1875–1881)
 * Henry Warner Slocum, Class of 1852. U.S Representative, New York (1869–1873, 1883–1884)
 * Henry A. du Pont, Class of 1861. U.S. Senator, Delaware (1895–1896,1906–1917)
 * Joseph Wheeler, Class of 1859. U.S. Representative, Alabama (1881–1882, 1883, 1885–1900)
 * Frank Obadiah Briggs, Class of 1872, U.S. Senator, New Jersey
 * Lawrence D. Tyson, Class of 1883. U.S. Senator, Tennessee (1925–1929)
 * Bertram Tracy Clayton, Class of 1886. U.S. Representative, New York (1899–1901)
 * Charles Henry Martin, Class of 1887, U.S. Representative, Oregon
 * Butler Ames, Class of 1894, U.S. Representative, Massachusetts
 * Frank Kowalski, Class of 1930, U.S. Representative from Connecticut.
 * Howard Hollis Callaway, Class of 1949, U.S. Representative, Georgia
 * John Michael Murphy, Class of 1950, U.S. Representative, New York
 * Adam Benjamin, Jr., Class of 1958, U.S. Representative, Indiana (1977–82)
 * Jack Reed, Class of 1971. U.S. Representative (1991–1997), U.S. Senator (1997- ), Rhode Island
 * John Shimkus, Class of 1980. U.S. Representative, Illinois (1997- )
 * Geoff Davis, Class of 1981. U.S. Representative, Kentucky (2004- )
 * Michael Pompeo, Class of 1986. U.S. Representative, Kansas (2011- )
 * Brett Guthrie, Class of 1987. U.S. Representative, Kentucky (2009-)

Mayors

 * William Lewis Cabell, Class of 1850. Mayor of Dallas, Texas (1874–76, 1877–79, 1883–85)
 * Robert M. Isaac, Class of 1951. Mayor of Colorado Springs, Colorado (1979–1997)
 * Matthew Collier, Class of 1979. Mayor of Flint, Michigan (1988–1992)
 * William “Rusty” Bailey III, Class of 1994. Mayor of Riverside, California (2013 - )

Jurists

 * Montgomery Blair, Class of 1835, Attorney for Dred Scott in landmark 1857 Supreme Court Case Dred Scott v. Sandford. President Abraham Lincoln's Cabinet (1861–1864)
 * Francis Redding Tillou Nicholls, Class of 1855, Chief Justice Louisiana Supreme Court (1892–1911)
 * Richard Whitehead Young, Class of 1882. Philippines Supreme Court Justice (1899–1901)
 * Richard D. Cudahy, Class of 1948. Judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
 * Mike Bowers, Class of 1963. Georgia's longest serving Attorney General (1981-1997)
 * Rhesa H. Barksdale, Class of 1966. U. S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (1990- )
 * Roy Moore, Class of 1969. Chief Justice Alabama Supreme Court (2001–2003)
 * Salvatore T. Sirna, Class of 1990. Judge, California Superior Court, Los Angeles County (2010- )

Law Enforcement and Intelligence figures

 * Alva Revista Fitch
 * Frederick Dent Grant New York City Police Commissioner
 * Fitz John Porter
 * William Farrar Smith
 * Norman Schwarzkopf, Sr.
 * Hoyt Vandenberg
 * Lon Horiuchi
 * Barry McCaffrey Class of 1964 Drug Czar during Clinton Administration
 * Keith B. Alexander Class of 1974 Head of the National Security Agency, General - Commander of Cyber Command
 * Douglas I. McKay
 * James R. McDonough Class of 1970, Former Florida Drug Czar and Secretary of Florida Department of Corrections 2006-2008

Literary figures and actors

 * Henry Martyn Robert, Class of 1857. Author of Robert's Rules of Order
 * John Wilson Ruckman, Class of 1883. First Editor, Journal of U.S. Artillery. Author of numerous technical articles on gunnery.
 * Cornelis DeWitt Willcox, Class of 1885.
 * Archibald Gracie IV, Survivor of the RMS Titanic. Author of Titanic: A Survivor's Story.
 * Hal Moore, Class of 1945. Author of We Were Soldiers Once...And Young
 * James Salter, Class of 1945, prolific US author. Selected to The Academy of Arts and Letters.
 * Bill McWilliams, Class of 1955. Author of A Return To Glory.
 * Thomas M. Carhart, Class of 1966. Author of Lost Triumph, etc.
 * Gus Lee, Ex-Class of 1966 and an Honorary Member of the Class of 1970. Author of China Boy, Chasing Hepburn, etc.
 * Lucian Truscott IV, Class of 1969. Journalist and author of Dress Grey.
 * James R. McDonough, Class of 1970.  Author of "Platoon Leader" and other works
 * French MacLean, Class of 1974. Military Historian; author of Custer's Best.  Received John M. Carroll Award.
 * Brian Haig, Class of 1975. Novelist
 * James Carafano, Class of 1977. Author of Winning the Long War, etc.
 * Mark Valley, Class of 1987. TV and movie actor.
 * Tom McCafferty, Class of 1988. Movie and television actor.
 * Amy Efaw, Class of 1989. Author of Battle Dress.
 * Col. Gregory D. Gadson, Class of 1989. Movie Actor.

Indian Wars combatants & Buffalo Soldiers

 * John Hanks Alexander, Class of 1887
 * Walker Keith Armistead, Class of 1803
 * John W. Barlow, Class of 1861
 * Robert C. Buchanan, Class of 1830
 * Edward Canby, Class of 1839
 * Philip St. George Cooke, Class of 1827
 * George Crook, Class of 1852
 * George Armstrong Custer, Class of 1861
 * John Wynn Davidson, Class of 1845
 * Henry Ossian Flipper, Class of 1877
 * James W. Forsyth, Class of 1856
 * Robert S. Garnett, Class of 1841
 * John Gibbon, Class of 1847
 * Oliver O. Howard, Class of 1854
 * Robert Lee Howze, Class of 1888
 * Charles King, Class of 1866
 * Gustavus Loomis, Class of 1811
 * Ranald S. Mackenzie, Class of 1862
 * Randolph B. Marcy, Class of 1832
 * Wesley Merritt, Class of 1860
 * George H. Morgan, Class of 1880
 * Edward Ord, Class of 1839
 * John J. Pershing, Class of 1886
 * John Pope (military officer), Class of 1842
 * Marcus Reno, Class of 1857
 * William Tecumseh Sherman, Class of 1840
 * Philip Sheridan, Class of 1853
 * Samuel D. Sturgis, Class of 1846
 * George Wright (general), Class of 1822

Spanish-American War and Philippine Insurrection combatants

 * Stanley Dunbar Embick, Class of 1899
 * Frederick Dent Grant, Class of 1871
 * William G. Haan, Class of 1889
 * Hamilton S. Hawkins, Class of 1855
 * Guy Henry, Class of 1898
 * Lucius Roy Holbrook, Class of 1896
 * Willard Ames Holbrook, Class of 1885
 * Robert Lee Howze, Class of 1888
 * Richard L. Hoxie, Class of 1868
 * Jacob Ford Kent, Class of 1861
 * Charles King, Class of 1866
 * Fitzhugh Lee, Class of 1856
 * Manus MacCloskey, Class of 1898
 * Wesley Merritt, Class of 1860
 * Eben Swift, Class of 1876
 * Charles Symmonds, Class of 1888
 * Joseph Wheeler, Class of 1859
 * James H. Wilson, Class of 1860
 * John Moulder Wilson, Class of 1860

Korean War combatants

 * Creighton W. Abrams, Jr., Class of 1936. Corps Chief of Staff, Korean War
 * Arnold W. Braswell, Class of 1948
 * Mark Wayne Clark, Class of 1917
 * J. Lawton Collins, Class of 1917
 * Lawrence Russell Dewey, Class of 1924
 * James Van Fleet, Class of 1915
 * Alexander Haig, Class of 1947
 * William M. Hoge, Class of 1916
 * Lyman Lemnitzer, Class of 1920
 * Douglas MacArthur, Class of 1903
 * Andrew P. O'Meara, Class of 1930
 * Ralph Puckett, Class of 1949. Commander of 8th Army Ranger Company
 * Fidel V. Ramos, Class of 1950. Platoon leader of the 20th Battalion Combat Team, Philippine Expeditionary Forces to Korea
 * Matthew Ridgway, Class of 1917
 * Davis C. Rohr, Class of 1952
 * Edward Rowny, Class of 1941
 * Maxwell D. Taylor, Class of 1922
 * Thomas J. H. Trapnell, Class of 1927
 * William H. Tunner, Class of 1928
 * Sam S. Walker, Class of 1946
 * Walton Walker, Class of 1912
 * Roderick Wetherill, Class of 1940. Later Major General in the Vietnam War.

Vietnam War combatants

 * Creighton W. Abrams, Jr., Class of 1936. Commanded the U.S. Army Military Assistance Command, Vietnam (1968 to 1972).
 * Anderson W. Atkinson, Class of 1946
 * Peter J. Boylan, Class of 1961
 * Wesley Clark, Class of 1966
 * Allen Ross Culpepper, Class of 1966
 * Eugene P. Deatrick, Jr., Class of 1946
 * Jack K. Farris, Class of 1957
 * Alexander Haig, Class of 1947
 * Paul D. Harkins, Class of 1929
 * Harold Keith Johnson, Class of 1933
 * Nicholas S. H. Krawciw. Class of 1959
 * Barry McCaffrey, Class of 1964
 * James R. McDonough, Class of 1970
 * Montgomery Meigs, Class of 1967
 * Hal Moore, Class of 1945. Commanded 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment in the Ia Drang Valley (1965)
 * Joseph J. Nazzaro, Class of 1936
 * Robin Olds, Class of 1943
 * George Patton IV, Class of 1946
 * Ralph Puckett, Class of 1949. Commander 2d Battalion, 502d Infantry (Airborne), 101st Airborne Division
 * Fidel V. Ramos, Class of 1950. Chief of Staff of the Philippine Military Contingent and Civil Action Group to Vietnam (1965–1968)
 * Davis C. Rohr, Class of 1952
 * Hoyt S. Vandenberg, Jr., Class of 1951
 * Sam S. Walker, Class of 1946
 * William Westmoreland

Supreme Allied Commanders of NATO

 * Dwight Eisenhower, Class of 1915.
 * Andrew Goodpaster, Class of 1939.
 * Bernard W. Rogers, Class of June 1943.
 * Alexander Haig, Class of 1947.
 * John Galvin, Class of 1954
 * George Joulwan, Class of 1961.
 * Wesley Clark, Class of 1966.

Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

 * Omar N. Bradley, Class of 1915. CJCS, 1949–1953.
 * Nathan F. Twining, Class of 1919. CJCS, 1957–1960.
 * Lyman L. Lemnitzer, Class of 1920. CJCS, 1960–1962.
 * Maxwell D. Taylor, Class of 1922. CJCS, 1962–1964.
 * Earle G. Wheeler, Class of 1932. CJCS, 1964–1970.
 * George S. Brown, U.S. Air Force, Class of 1941. CJCS, 1974–1978.
 * Martin E. Dempsey, Class of 1974. CJCS, 2011–present.

Army Chiefs of Staff/Commanders of the Army

 * George B. McClellan, Class of 1846. Commanding General of the Army (1861–1862)
 * Henry Wager Halleck, Class of 1839. Commanding General of the Army (1862–1864)
 * Ulysses S. Grant, Class of 1843. Commanding General of the Army (1864–1869)
 * William Tecumseh Sherman, Class of 1840. Commanding General of the Army (1869–1883)
 * Philip Sheridan, Class of 1853. Commanding General of the Army (1883–1888)
 * John Schofield, Class of 1853. Commanding General of the Army (1888–1895)
 * J. Franklin Bell, Class of 1878. U.S. Army Chief of Staff (1906–1910)
 * Hugh L. Scott, Class of 1876. U.S. Army Chief of Staff (1914–1917)
 * Tasker H. Bliss, Class of 1875. U.S. Army Chief of Staff (1917–1918)
 * Peyton C. March, Class of 1888. U.S. Army Chief of Staff (1918–1921)
 * John Pershing, Class of 1886. U.S. Army Chief of Staff (1921–1924)
 * John L. Hines, Class of 1891. U.S. Army Chief of Staff (1924–1926)
 * Charles Pelot Summerall, Class of 1892. U.S. Army Chief of Staff (1926–1930)
 * Douglas MacArthur, Class of 1903. U.S. Army Chief of Staff (1930–1935)
 * Malin Craig, Class of 1898. U.S. Army Chief of Staff (1935–1939)
 * Dwight D. Eisenhower, Class of 1915. U.S. Army Chief of Staff (1945–1948)
 * Omar Bradley, Class of 1915. U.S. Army Chief of Staff (1948–1949)
 * J. Lawton Collins, Class of 1917. U.S. Army Chief of Staff (1949–1953)
 * Matthew Ridgway, Class of 1917. U.S. Army Chief of Staff (1953–1955)
 * Maxwell D. Taylor, Class of 1922. U.S. Army Chief of Staff (1955–1959)
 * Lyman Lemnitzer, Class of 1920. U.S. Army Chief of Staff (1959–1960)
 * Earle Wheeler, Class of 1932. U.S. Army Chief of Staff (1962–1964)
 * Harold Keith Johnson, Class of 1933. U.S. Army Chief of Staff (1964–1968)
 * William Westmoreland, Class of 1936. U.S. Army Chief of Staff (1968–1972)
 * Bruce Palmer, Jr., Class of 1936. U.S. Army Chief of Staff (1972)
 * Creighton Abrams, Class of 1936. U.S. Army Chief of Staff (1972–1974)
 * Bernard W. Rogers, Class of 1943. U.S. Army Chief of Staff (1976–1979)
 * Edward C. Meyer, Class of 1951. U.S. Army Chief of Staff (1979–1983)
 * John Wickham, Class of 1950. U.S. Army Chief of Staff (1983–1987)
 * Carl E. Vuono, Class of 1957. U.S. Army Chief of Staff (1987–1991)
 * Dennis Reimer, Class of 1962. U.S. Army Chief of Staff (1995–1999)
 * Eric Shinseki, Class of 1965. U.S. Army Chief of Staff (1999–2003)
 * Martin E. Dempsey, Class of 1974. U.S. Army Chief of Staff (2011)
 * Raymond T. Odierno, Class of 1976. U.S. Army Chief of Staff (2011–present)

Air Force Chiefs of Staff

 * Carl Spaatz, Class of 1914. 1st USAF Chief of Staff (1947–1948)
 * Nathan Farragut Twining, Class of 1918. 3rd USAF Chief of Staff (1953–1957)
 * Thomas D. White, Class of 1920. 4th USAF Chief of Staff (1957–1961)
 * John P. McConnell, Class of 1932. 6th USAF Chief of Staff (1965–1969)
 * John Dale Ryan, Class of 1938. 7th USAF Chief of Staff (1969–1973)
 * Lew Allen, Class of 1946. 10th USAF Chief of Staff (1978–1982)
 * Charles A. Gabriel, Class of 1950. 11th USAF Chief of Staff (1982–1986)
 * Michael Dugan, Class of 1958. 13th USAF Chief of Staff (1990)

Chief of Staff of Non-American Armed Forces

 * Douglas MacArthur, Class of 1903. Field Marshal of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (1935–1946)
 * Fidel V. Ramos, Class of 1950, Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (1986–1988)
 * Boonsrang Niumpradit, Class of 1971, Supreme Commander of the Royal Thai Armed Forces of Thailand(2006-2008)
 * Narciso Abaya, Class of 1971, Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines

Presidential Medal of Freedom recipients

 * Brent Scowcroft, Class of 1947. Medal awarded in 1991
 * Buzz Aldrin
 * Michael Collins
 * Omar Bradley
 * Wesley Clark
 * H. Norman Schwarzkopf, Jr.

Congressional Gold Medal recipients

 * Ulysses S. Grant
 * John J. Pershing
 * Douglas MacArthur
 * Matthew Ridgeway
 * H. Norman Schwarzkopf, Jr.

Congressional Space Medal of Honor recipients

 * Frank Borman
 * Ed White

Scientists, Inventors, and Physicians

 * Benjamin Alvord, Class of 1833. Mathematician.

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 * Seth Barton, Class of 1849 (USA & CSA), noted chemist.
 * Ormsby M. Mitchel, Class of 1825. Astronomer.
 * Thoralf M. Sundt, Jr., Class of 1952. Neurosurgeon (Mayo Clinic); One of America’s premier neurosurgerons; Operated on President Ronald Reagan in 1989; member National Academy of Sciences.
 * George Bomford, Class of 1805. Inventor of ordnance and explosives; standardized army usage as Chief of the Ordnance Department.
 * John James Abert, Class of 1811. Head topographer for the U.S. Army; his officers mapped the American West under his supervision.
 * Benjamin Bonneville, Class of 1815. Organized expedition that explored the Great Salt Lake, crossed the Sierras, found the headwaters of the Yellowstone and discovered the Humboldt River.
 * George Washington Whistler, Class of 1819. Invented contour lines on maps. Father of James McNeill Whistler, the artist. Husband of "Whistler's Mother"
 * Robert Parker Parrott, Class of 1824. Invented the Parrott rifle used extensively during the American Civil War.
 * Henry DuPont, Class of 1833. Improved the production of gunpowder. Chemicals industry pioneer.
 * Henry Dunwoody, Class of 1866. Invented the crystal radio receiver.
 * William W. Averell, Class of 1855. Inventor of asphalt.
 * John Wilson Ruckman, Class of 1883. Inventor of artillery devices critical in WWI.
 * George O. Squier, Class of 1887. Developer of Muzak. Early radio engineer.
 * Leslie Groves, Class of 1918. Chief engineer for the Manhattan Project and the Pentagon
 * Edward A. Murphy, Jr., Class of 1940. Credited with the invention of Murphy's Law.
 * Peter Huybers, Class of 1996. MacArthur Foundation Grant awardee ("Genius Grant").  Planetary and Climate scientist and currently a professor at Harvard.

Television and movie figures

 * James Salter. Class of 1945. Screenwriter
 * Rod Lurie, Class of 1984. Director, screenwriter
 * Roger Carstens, Class of 1986. Film "The Project;" television series "The Wanted."
 * Mark Valley, Class of 1987. Actor.
 * Kelly Perdew, Class of 1989. Reality show winner, The Apprentice (2004)
 * Greg Plitt, Class of 2000. American fitness supermodel and actor.
 * Jack Kennedy, Class of 1995. Actor.
 * Nate Steinwachs, Class of 1996. Actor.

Eponyms

 * Ambrose Burnside — Sideburns
 * Edward A. Murphy, Jr. — Murphy's Law
 * Henry Martyn Robert— Robert's Rules of Order

Graduates depicted on currency

 * Pierre Gustave Toutant de Beauregard, $20 1863 State of Louisiana, Shreveport
 * Joseph King Mansfield, $500 1873, 1875, 1878, 1880 United States (legal tender) notes
 * George Henry Thomas, $5 1890, 1891 Treasury or coin notes
 * Jefferson Davis, on Confederate notes
 * George Meade, $1,000 1890, 1891 Treasury notes
 * Robert E. Lee, on U.S. coins, the 1937 Battle of Antietam Half Dollar Commemorative, and 1925 Stone Mountain Commemorative
 * George McClellan, on 1937 Battle of Antietam Half Dollar Commemorative,10¢ 1863 Searsport Bank, Maine, $1 1862 Chicopee Bank, Mass., $2 1861 Merchants Bank, N.J., $20 1862 Rutland County Bank, Vt.
 * Stonewall Jackson, on U.S. coin, the 1925 Stone Mountain Commemorative, $500 17 Feb. 1864, Confederate note
 * William T. Sherman, 15¢ fractional currency (proof notes), fourth issue, never circulated
 * Winfield Scott Hancock, $2 Silver Certificates 1880s-90s
 * Ulysses S. Grant, Class of 1843. On 1922 Grant Memorial Half Dollar and current U.S. $50 bill.
 * Philip Sheridan, $5 1896 silver certificate (back), $10 1890, 1891 Treasury or coin notes
 * Douglas MacArthur, 2500 piso gold, 1980, Philippines
 * Dwight D. Eisenhower, $1 Coin from 1971–78, and 1990 Eisenhower Centennial Dollar
 * Fidel V. Ramos, 2000 piso gold, 1996, Philippines

Graduates depicted on postage stamps

 * Alden Partridge, Class of 1806. Appears on 11¢ Great Americans series stamp (1985).
 * Sylvanus Thayer, Class of 1808. Appears on 9¢ Great Americans series stamp (1985).
 * Jefferson Davis, Class of 1828. Appears on 6¢ Stone Mountain Memorial commemorative stamp (1970), 32¢ Civil War commemorative stamp (1995) and eight Confederate stamps.
 * Joseph E. Johnston, Class of 1829. Appears on 32¢ Civil War commemorative stamp (1995)
 * Robert E. Lee, Class of 1829. Appears on 4¢ Army commemorative stamp (1937), 30¢ Liberty series stamp (1955 and 1957), 6¢ Stone Mountain Memorial stamp (1970), and 32¢ Civil War commemorative stamp (1995).
 * Montgomery Blair, Class of 1835. Appears on 15¢ airmail stamp (1963) and on one Belgian stamp.
 * William Tecumseh Sherman, Class of 1840. Appears on 8¢ stamps (1893 and 1895), 3¢ Army commemorative stamp (1937), 32¢ Civil War commemorative stamp (1995), and on stamps from Guam, the Philippines, and Puerto Rico.
 * Ulysses S. Grant, Class of 1843. Appears on 5¢ stamps (1890, 1895, 1898), 4¢ stamp (1903), 8¢ stamp (1922), 3¢ Army commemorative stamp (1937), 18¢ Presidential series stamp (1938), 32¢ Civil War commemorative stamp (1995).
 * Winfield Scott Hancock, Class of 1844. Appears on 32¢ Civil War commemorative stamp (1995).
 * Stonewall Jackson, Class of 1846. Appears on 4¢ Army commemorative stamp (1937) and 6¢ Stone Mountain Memorial stamp (1970).
 * Phillip Sheridan, Class of 1853. Appears on 3¢ Army commemorative stamp (1937)
 * George Washington Goethals, Class of 1880. Appears on 3¢ Panama Canal commemorative stamp (1939) and on stamps issued for the Panama Canal Zone.
 * John J. Pershing, Class of 1886. Appears on 8¢ Liberty series stamp (1961) and on French stamps.
 * John L. Hines, Class of 1891. Appears on 33¢ Distinguished Soldiers commemorative stamp (2000).
 * Douglas MacArthur, Class of 1903. Appears on 6¢ commemorative stamp (1971) and on stamps from Korea and the Philippines.
 * Joseph Stilwell, Class of 1904. Appears on 10¢ Distinguished Americans series stamp (2000).
 * Henry H. Arnold, Class of 1907. Appears on 65¢ Great Americans series stamp (1988).
 * George S. Patton Jr., Class of 1909. Appears on 3¢ commemorative stamp (1953) and on stamps from Belgium and Luxembourg.
 * Omar Bradley, Class of 1915. Appears on 33¢ Distinguished Soldiers commemorative stamp (2000)
 * Dwight D. Eisenhower, Class of 1915. Appears on 6¢ commemorative stamp (1969), 6¢ (1970) and 8¢ (1971) Prominent Americans series stamps, and on stamps of other countries.
 * Frank Borman, Class of 1950. Appears on ten stamps of Haiti, Hungary, and Senegal.
 * Fidel V. Ramos, Class of 1950. Appears on numerous Philippine Stamps since 1990s
 * Buzz Aldrin, Class of 1951. Appears on foreign stamps.

Graduates selected as Time Magazine's Person of the Year

 * Hugh Samuel Johnson, Class of 1903. Man of the Year - 1933
 * Dwight D. Eisenhower, Class of 1915. (twice) Man of the Year - 1944, 1959
 * General William Westmoreland, Class of 1936. Man of the Year - 1965
 * Col. Frank Borman, Apollo 8. Men of the Year - 1968 (Shared honor with U.S. Naval Academy graduates James Lovell and Col. William Anders)

Other
Gen. Keith Alexander, Class of 1974
 * Major General Samuel Ringgold, Class of 1818. The "Father of Modern Artillery"
 * David Moniac, Class of 1822
 * Dennis Hart Mahan, Class of 1824
 * Gen. Albert Sidney Johnston, Class of 1826
 * Lt. Gen. Leonidas Polk, Class of 1827
 * Gen. Jefferson Davis, Class of 1828
 * Gen. Robert E. Lee, Class of 1829
 * Gen. Joseph E. Johnston, Class of 1829
 * Maj. Gen. Francis Henney Smith, Class of 1835
 * Gen. George Meade, Class of 1835
 * Maj. Gen. Montgomery C. Meigs, Class of 1836
 * Gen. Braxton Bragg, Class of 1837
 * Lt. Gen. Jubal Early, Class of 1837
 * Maj. Gen. Joseph Hooker, Class of 1837
 * Gen. Pierre Gustave Toutant (P.G.T.) Beauregard, Class of 1838
 * Maj. Gen. E.R.S. Canby, Class of 1839
 * Maj. Gen. Henry Wager Halleck, Class of 1839
 * Lt. Gen. Richard S. Ewell, Class of 1840
 * Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman, Class of 1840
 * Col. Abner Doubleday, Class of 1842
 * Gen. James Longstreet, Class of 1842
 * Maj. Gen. William Rosecrans, Class of 1842
 * Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, Class of 1843
 * Lt. Gen. and Gov. Simon Bolivar Buckner, Sr., Class of 1844
 * Maj. Gen. Winfield Scott Hancock, Class of 1844
 * Gen. Stonewall Jackson, Class of 1846
 * Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan, Class of 1846
 * Maj. Gen. George Pickett, Class of 1846 (graduated last in the class)
 * Maj. Gen. Ambrose Burnside, Class of 1847
 * Lt. Gen. A. P. Hill, Class of 1847
 * Maj. Gen. John Buford, Class of 1848
 * Jerome Napoleon Bonaparte II, Class of 1848
 * Brig. Gen. Eugene Asa Carr, Class of 1850
 * Maj. Gen. Alvan Cullem Gillem, Class of 1851
 * Maj. Gen. George Crook, Class of 1852
 * Gen. John Bell Hood, Class of 1853
 * Lt. Gen John Schofield, Class of 1853
 * Gen. Philip Sheridan, Class of 1853
 * Maj. Gen. Oliver O. Howard, Class of 1854
 * Gen. Jeb Stuart, Class of 1854
 * Sen. Henry A. du Pont, Class of 1861-05-06 (graduated 1st in class)
 * Gen. George Armstrong Custer, Class of 1861-06-24 (graduated last in class)
 * Brig. Gen. William Louis Marshall, Class of 1868
 * Gen. Tasker H. Bliss, Class of 1875
 * Brig. Gen. Willard Young Class of 1875; first Mormon graduate and son of Brigham Young.
 * Maj. Gen. Hugh L. Scott, Class of 1876
 * Henry O. Flipper, Class of 1877 (first black American cadet )
 * Maj. Gen. J. Franklin Bell, Class of 1878
 * Lt. Gen. Hunter Liggett, Class of 1879
 * George Washington Goethals, Class of 1880
 * Maj. Gen. John Wilson Ruckman, Class of 1883
 * General of the Armies John J. Pershing, Class of 1886
 * General Peyton C. March, Class of 1888
 * General John L. Hines, Class of 1891
 * General Charles Pelot Summerall, Class of 1892
 * Maj. Gen. Fox Conner, Class of 1898
 * Robert E. Wood, Class of 1900
 * General of the Army Douglas MacArthur, Class of 1903 (graduated 1st in class)
 * Thomas Selfridge, Class of 1903. The first person to die in a crash of a powered airplane.
 * Gen. Lesley J. McNair, Class of 1904
 * Gen. Joseph W. "Vinegar Joe" Stilwell, Class of 1904
 * Gen. Jonathan Mayhew Wainwright IV, Class of 1906
 * General of the Air Force Henry "Hap" Arnold, Class of 1907
 * Lt. Gen. Simon Bolivar Buckner, Jr., Class of 1908
 * Gen. Jacob L. Devers, Class of 1909
 * Gen. Robert L. Eichelberger, Class of 1909
 * Gen. George S. Patton, Class of 1909
 * Lt. Gen. William Hood Simpson, Class of 1909
 * Gen. Wade H. Haislip, Class of 1912
 * Lt. Gen. Walton Walker, Class of 1912
 * Gen. Alexander Patch, Class of 1913
 * Maj. Gen Junius Wallace Jones, Class of 1913
 * Brig. Gen. Vicente Lim, Class of 1914
 * Gen. Brehon B. Somervell, Class of 1914
 * Gen. Carl Andrew Spaatz, Class of 1914
 * General of the Army Omar Bradley, Class of 1915
 * General of the Army Dwight Eisenhower, Class of 1915
 * Gen. Hubert Harmon, Class of 1915
 * Gen. Joseph T. McNarney, Class of 1915
 * Lt. Gen. George E. Stratemeyer, Class of 1915
 * Gen. James Van Fleet, Class of 1915
 * Gen. Robert Neyland, Class of 1916
 * Gen. Mark W. Clark, Class of 1917
 * Gen. J. Lawton Collins, Class of 1917
 * Maj. Gen. Norman Cota, Class of 1917
 * Maj. Gen. Ernest N. Harmon, Class of 1917
 * Gen. Matthew B. Ridgway, Class of 1917
 * Maj. Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf, Sr., Class of 1917
 * Gen. Lucius D. Clay, Class of June 1918
 * Lt. Gen Leslie Groves, Class of November 1918
 * Gen. Alfred Gruenther, Class of 1919
 * Gen. Anthony McAuliffe, Class of 1919
 * Gen. Williston B. Palmer, Class of 1919
 * Earl Blaik, Class of 1920
 * Gen. Maxwell D. Taylor, Class of 1922
 * Col. Mickey Marcus, Class of 1924
 * Gen. James Edward Moore, Class of 1924
 * Lt. Gen. James M. Gavin, Class of 1929
 * Gen. Harold K. Johnson, Class of 1933
 * Lt. Gen. Leighton I. Davis, Class of 1935
 * Gen. Creighton Abrams, Class of 1936
 * Lt. Gen. Benjamin O. Davis, Jr., Class of 1936
 * Gen. William Westmoreland, Class of 1936
 * Gen. Rafael Ileto, Class of 1943
 * Gen. Bernard W. Rogers, Class of 1943
 * Gen. Anastasio Somoza Debayle, Class of 1946
 * Col. Thomas L. Gatch, Jr., Class of 1946
 * Gov. Warren E. Hearnes, Class of 1946
 * Lt. Gen. Brent Scowcroft, Class of 1947
 * Gen. Alexander Haig, Class of 1947
 * John G. Hayes, Class of 1949
 * Col. Frank Borman, Class of 1950
 * Gen. Fidel V. Ramos, Class of 1950
 * Col. Buzz Aldrin, Class of 1951
 * Gen. Roscoe Robinson, Jr., Class of 1951
 * Michael Collins, Class of 1952
 * Lt. Col. Edward H. White, Class of 1952
 * Col. Richard Vander Meer, Class of 1954
 * Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf, Jr., Class of 1956
 * John Block, Class of 1957
 * Brig. Gen. Pete Dawkins, Class of 1959
 * Col. Jim Nicholson, Class of 1961
 * Maj. James Kimsey, Class of 1962
 * Gen. Barry McCaffrey, Class of 1964
 * Gen. Eric K. Shinseki, Class of 1965
 * Gen. Wesley Clark, Class of 1966
 * Brig. Gen. Thomas E. White, Class of 1967
 * Capt. Mike Krzyzewski, Class of 1969
 * Capt. Roy Moore, Class of 1969
 * Capt. Jack Reed, Class of 1971
 * Col. William S. McArthur, Class of 1973
 * Col. Frank E. Weiss, Class of 1973

Gen. Martin Dempsey, Class of 1974 Gen Walter Sharp, Class of 1974
 * Col. Lee Van Arsdale, Class of 1974 (Delta Force)
 * Gen. David Petraeus, Class of 1974
 * Capt. Louis Caldera, Class of 1978
 * José María Figueres, Class of 1979
 * Andrea Lee Hollen, Class of 1980 (1st female graduate of West Point)
 * Capt. Geoff Davis, Class of 1981
 * Brig. Gen. Hun Manet, Class of 1999 (Son of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen)
 * Lt. Dan Choi, Class of 2003 (founding member and spokesperson of Knights Out, an organization of West Point alumni who support the rights of LGBT soldiers to serve openly)

Non-graduates

 * As these alumni did not graduate, their class year represents the year they would have graduated if they had completed their education at the Academy.