List of academicians educated at the United States Military Academy

The United States Military Academy (USMA) is an undergraduate college in West Point, New York that educates and commissions officers for the United States Army. This list is drawn from alumni of the Academy who became university educators or administrators, such as Dennis Hart Mahan (class of 1824), George Washington Custis Lee (class of 1854), Dwight D. Eisenhower (class of 1915), and Wesley Posvar (class of 1946).

Academics

Note: "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.

Name Class year Notability References Webster, HoraceHorace Webster 1818 Lieutenant; mathematics professor at the Academy (1818–1825); professor of mathematics, professor of intellectual philosophy, and president at Geneva College (1828–1830, 1835–1836); president Free Academy of New York (1848–1869) [1] Mahan, Dennis HartDennis Hart Mahan 1824 Lieutenant; military theorist, educator, author, and engineer; founding member of National Academy of Sciences; father of American naval historian and theorist Rear Admiral Alfred Thayer Mahan; of his other four children, son Frederick August Mahan graduated from the Academy in 1867 [2] Bache, Alexander DallasAlexander Dallas Bache 1825 Lieutenant; founding president of the National Academy of Sciences; member of the Scientific Lazzaroni and the Royal Society; professor of natural philosophy and chemistry at the University of Pennsylvania (1828–1843) [3] Polk, LeonidasLeonidas Polk 1827 Second Lieutenant USA, Lieutenant General in Confederate States Army; resigned his commission soon after graduating from the Academy to enter Virginia Theological Seminary; founder of University of the South; killed in combat during the Battle of Marietta; Fort Polk named in his honor [4] Humphreys, Andrew A.Andrew A. Humphreys 1831 Major General; American Civil War; topographical and hydrological surveyor of the Mississippi River Delta; Chief of Engineers (1866–1875); an incorporator of the United States National Academy of Sciences [5] Norton, William AugustusWilliam Augustus Norton 1831 Lieutenant; Black Hawk War; professor of natural philosophy and civil engineering (1831–1883); member of the United States National Academy of Sciences [6] Ewell, Benjamin StoddertBenjamin Stoddert Ewell 1832 Colonel in Confederate States Army; professor of mathematics and natural philosophy at Hampden-Sydney College (1839–1846); president of The College of William & Mary (1854–1888); brother Richard S. Ewell, class of 1840, was a Lieutenant General in Confederate States Army [7] Smith, Francis HenneyFrancis Henney Smith 1833 Major General in Confederate States Army; first and longest-serving superintendent of Virginia Military Institute (1839–1889) [8] Meigs, Montgomery C.Montgomery C. Meigs 1836 Major General; Quartermaster General during American Civil War; river and civil engineer; early member of National Academy of Sciences; General Montgomery Meigs (born 1945), class of 1967, is his descendant [9] Gilham, WilliamWilliam Gilham 1840 Colonel in Confederate States Army; Seminole War and Mexican–American War; professor at Virginia Military Institute; author of Manual of Instruction for the Volunteers and Militia of the United States, which was in use for over 145 years [10] Johnson, BushrodBushrod Johnson 1840 Major General in Confederate States Army; Seminole War and Mexican–American War; served with distinction in many key battles such as the Battle of Chickamauga and Siege of Petersburg; professor of philosophy, chemistry, and engineering; co-chancellor of the University of Nashville (1870–1875) [11] Gorgas, JosiahJosiah Gorgas 1841 Captain USA, Brigadier General in Confederate States Army; Mexican–American War; chief of ordnance for the Confederacy; president of University of Alabama (1878-1883); son William C. Gorgas became Surgeon General of the United States Army b[›][12] Eustis, Henry L.Henry L. Eustis 1842 Brigadier General; American Civil War; founded the Lawrence Scientific School, later the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences [13] Hill, Daniel HarveyDaniel Harvey Hill 1842 Lieutenant General in Confederate States Army; professor at Washington and Lee University and Davidson College; later the first president of the University of Arkansas (1877–1884) [14] Smith, Edmund KirbyEdmund Kirby Smith 1845 Major USA, General CSA; Mexican–American War; Confederate commander of the Trans-Mississippi Department; president of University of Nashville (1870-1875); professor of mathematics at Sewanee: The University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee (1875-1893) b[›][15][16] Jackson, StonewallStonewall Jackson 1846 Major in United States Army, Lieutenant General in Confederate States Army; Mexican–American War; professor of natural and experimental philosophy and artillery at Virginia Military Institute (1851–1861); excelled in several battles during the American Civil War, including the First Battle of Bull Run where he received his nickname; accidentally shot by his own troops at the Battle of Chancellorsville and died of complications from pneumonia eight days later [17] Howard, Oliver OtisOliver Otis Howard 1854 Major General; recipient of the Medal of Honor for his actions leading an attack at the Battle of Seven Pines despite wound which resulted in the loss of his right arm; led the campaign against Chief Joseph and the Nez Perce tribe; founder of Howard University; Superintendent of the Academy (1881–1882) b[›][18][19] Lee, George Washington CustisGeorge Washington Custis Lee 1854 First Lieutenant US Army, Major General CSA; graduated first in his class at the Academy; father Robert E. Lee, class of 1829, graduated second in his class; President, Washington and Lee University (1871–1897) a[›][20] Lee, Stephen D.Stephen D. Lee 1854 First Lieutenant USA, Lieutenant General CSA; Seminole Wars, American Indian Wars; youngest Lieutenant General in the Confederate States Army; first president of Agricultural and Mechanical College of Mississippi (1880-1899) b[›][21][22] Webb, Alexander S.Alexander S. Webb 1855 Major General; recipient of the Medal of Honor for his actions at the Battle of Gettysburg for personal bravery and leadership repulsing Pickett's Charge; president of the City College of New York (1869–1902) [23][24] Chaplin, Winfield ScottWinfield Scott Chaplin 1870 Chancellor of Washington University in St. Louis (1891-1907); Dean of the Lawrence Scientific School at Harvard University; Faculty member at Maine State College, Imperial University in Tokyo, and Union College [25] Ruckman, John WilsonJohn Wilson Ruckman 1883 Major General; a founder of the Journal of the United States Artillery; invented several artillery devices used during World War I; instructor at School of Submarine Defense [26] Eisenhower, Dwight D.Dwight D. Eisenhower 1915 General of the Army; trained tank crews in Pennsylvania during World War I; World War II; commander of European Theater of Operations and Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force (1942–1945); 1st Military Governor of American Occupation Zone in Germany (1945); President of Columbia University (1948–1950, 1952–1953); 1st Supreme Allied Commander Europe (1951–1952); 34th President of the United States (1953–1961) [27] McDermott, Robert F.Robert F. McDermott 1943 Brigadier General; World War II fighter pilot; executive of United Services Automobile Association (USAA); first Dean of Faculty at the United States Air Force Academy [28] Posvar, WesleyWesley Posvar 1946 Brigadier General in the Air Force; first US Air Force officer to be granted a Rhodes Scholarship; 15th chancellor of the University of Pittsburgh (1967–1991), where Posvar Hall is named in his honor [29] Allen, James R.James R. Allen 1948 General in the Air Force; fighter pilot in Korean War and Vietnam War; superintendent of United States Air Force Academy (1974–1977) [30] Hamm, Charles R.Charles R. Hamm 1956 Lieutenant General in the Air Force; fighter pilot in Vietnam War; member of the Air Force air demonstration squadron, the Thunderbirds (1964–1966); superintendent of United States Air Force Academy (1987–1991) [31] Ivany, RobertRobert Ivany 1970 Major General; Vietnam War and Gulf War veteran; former president of the U.S. Army War College (2001–2004); president of University of Saint Thomas (2004–present) [32] Mearsheimer, JohnJohn Mearsheimer 1970 Served five years as an Air Force officer; political science professor at University of Chicago (1982–present), where he is the R. Wendell Harrison Distinguished Service Professor of Political Science and the co-director of the Program on International Security Policy; proponent of offensive realism [33]

Dennis Hart Mahan Daniel H. Hill Custis Lee Robert McDermott James Allen Charles Hamm

References

General

^ a: Special Collections: Biographical Register of the Officers and Graduates of the U. S. Military Academy. West Point, NY: United States Military Academy Library. 1950. 

Inline citations

United States Military Academy alumni
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