|
During the latter half of the 19th century and the first decades of the 20th, the Naval Academy was the primary source of U.S.
Naval officers. Naval Academy alumni thus represent many of the U.S. Navy's most famous names. Pre-Civil War
- Rear Admiral Alfred Thayer Mahan (1840-1914), Class of
1859 - theorist of sea power
- Rear Admiral Winfield Scott Schley (1839-1911), Class
of 1860 - commander in Spanish-American War
- Rear Admiral William T. Sampson (1840-1902), Class of 1861
- commander in Spanish-American War
Civil War to 1900
- Admiral William Sowden Sims (1858-1936), Class of 1880 -
World War I commander; President of the Naval War College
- Rear Admiral William A. Moffett (1869-1933), Class of 1890
- pioneer of Naval Aviation;
first Chief of the Navy's Bureau of Aeronautics
1900 to World War II
- Fleet Admiral Ernest J. King (1876-1956), Class of 1901 - Chief of Naval Operations in World War II
- Fleet Admiral William Halsey, Jr., (1882-1959), Class
of 1904 - World War II commander
- Fleet Admiral Chester Nimitz (1885-1966), Class of 1905 - World War II commander; post-war Chief of Naval Operations
- Admiral Hyman G. Rickover (1900-1986), Class of 1922 -
Submariner and Engineering Duty Officer; "Father of the Nuclear Navy" as
Director of the Naval Reactors Branch in the Bureau of Ships (1949-1982); served 64 years of active service
- Admiral Arleigh A. Burke (1901-1996), Class of 1923 - World War II carrier commander; Chief of Naval Operations (1955-1961)
- Admiral Elmo R. Zumwalt, Jr. (1920-2000), Class of
1942 - Chief of Naval Operations during Vietnam War (1970-1974)
1945 to Present
- Vice Admiral James Stockdale, (1923- ), Class of 1946 -
Vietnam-era Naval Aviator & POW; Medal of Honor recipient; Vice-presidential candidate (Reform Party, 1992)
- President James Earl Carter, Jr., (1924- ), Class of 1946 - Post-WW II
submariner; Governor of Georgia; 39th President of the United States, 1977-1981
- Admiral William J. Crowe, (1925- ), Class of 1947 - Chairman of
Joint Chiefs of Staff 1985-1989, Ambassador to the United Kingdom 1994-1997.
- Senator John McCain (R-Ariz.), (1936- ), Class of 1958 - Vietnam-era
Naval Aviator & POW; U.S. Senator
- Lt. Col. Oliver North (1943- ), Class of 1968 - U.S. Marine and Vietnam
veteran, White House aide (famous for his role in the Iran-Contra affair), author, host of FOX News' "War Stories," and
talk-radio host
- James H. Webb, Jr., (1946- ), Class of 1968 - U.S. Marine and Vietnam veteran; Assistant Secretary of Defense; Secretary of
the Navy 1987-88; noted American novelist
Graduates famous outside of the Navy
- Roger Staubach (1942- ),
Class of 1964 - NFL Hall of Fame quarterback with the Dallas Cowboys, 6-time Pro Bowler, 2 time Super Bowl winner
(1972, 1978). Awarded both Heisman Trophy and the Maxwell Award in 1963, his junior year at the Naval Academy.
- David Robinson (1965-
), Class of 1987 - Former NBA great with San Antonio Spurs; Rookie of the Year in 1990, MVP in 1995, played on NBA championship teams in 1999 and 2003
|
|