Graduates and Former Cadets

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As of August 31, 1997: 78,399 people have entered the United States Military Academy 54,734 have graduated 40,207 graduates are living 15,189 graduates are on active duty in the military
Two U.S. presidents have been USMA graduates: Ulysses S. Grant, USMA 1843, and Dwight D. Eisenhower, USMA 1915.
Some famous graduates of USMA, including Lee, Grant, MacArthur, Eisenhower, Patton, and Schwarzkopf are profiled on a site maintained by the Department of Military Instruction. This site also has "voices" (mostly .wav files), pictures, and movies (.avifiles) about West Point and the Army.
Several West Point graduates and former cadets have won the Medal of Honor. Some of them are John C. Robinson, ex-USMA 1839 Orlando Willcox, USMA 1847 John M. Schofield, USMA 1853 (Schofield's Definition of Discipline) USMA Class of May, 1861 -- four Medals of Honor Henry A. du Pont (graduated first in his class) 1LT Adelbert Ames (for Bull Run, just 3 months after graduation!) Samuel Benjamin Guy V. Henry John G. Bourke, USMA 1869 (for Civil War, before he was a cadet) Ira C. Wellborn, USMA 1898 (graduated April 26th, MOH for actionon July 2, 1898) GEN Douglas MacArthur, USMA 1903 Calvin P. Titus, USMA 1905 (awarded for action in the Philippines, before he was a cadet, President Theodore Roosevelt presented the medal to Cadet Titus at West Point) Johnathan M. Wainwright IV, USMA 1906 COLLeon W. Johnson, USMA 1926 (picture) 2LTAlexander R. Nininger, USMA 1941 1LT Richard T. Shea, USMA 1952 CPT Robert F. Foley, USMA 1963 (picture) CPT Paul W. Bucha, USMA 1965 (he presented his MOH to USMA) (note: ranks given are the ranks held at time of action for which the MOH was awarded)
Thirteen USMA graduates have been NASA astronauts: Frank Borman, USMA 1950, was the commander of Gemini 7 and Apollo 8, the first manned lunar orbital mission. Buzz Aldrin, USMA 1951, was the pilot of Gemini 12 and the Lunar Module Pilot of Apollo 11. He was the second man on the moon -- meaning we BEAT NAVY! to the moon's surface! Here's a picture of Aldrin; note the West Point ring on his finger. Michael Collins, USMA 1952 (and the son of a 1907 USMA graduate), flew on Gemini 10 and was the Command Module Pilot for Apollo 11. He orbited the moon while Armstrong and Aldrin were on the lunar surface. He later became the first director of the National Air and Space Museum. Edward H. White, USMA 1952 (and the son of a 1924 USMA graduate), was the pilot of Gemini 4, during which he performed NASA's first Extra Vehicular Activity operatoin (EVA, more commonly known as a space walk). Roger Chaffee, Virgil "Gus" Grissom, and White died in a tragic fire that occurred during a launch pad test in 1967. He is buried in the West Point Cemetery. David R. Scott, USMA 1954, was a member of the Gemini 8, Apollo 9, and Apollo 15 missions. Donald H. Peterson, USMA 1955, was a Mission Specialist on STS-6. Alfred M. Worden, USMA 1955, was aboard Apollo 15 with Scott. Richard M. Mullane, USMA 1967, was a Mission Specialist on STS41-D,STS-27,and STS-36. Sherwood C. Spring, USMA 1967, flew on STS61-B. James C. Adamson, USMA 1969, was a Mission Specialist on STS-28and STS-43. William S. McArthur, Jr., USMA 1973, was aboard STS-58and STS-74. Michael R. Clifford, USMA 1974, served as a Mission Specialist on STS-53,STS-59,and STS-76. Charles D. (Sam) Gemar, USMA 1979, flew with STS-38,STS-48,and STS-62.
Six of the fourteen men who have served as Chairman of the Joint Chiefsof Staff (CJCS) have been West Point graduates: General of the Army Omar N. Bradley, USMA 1915; the first CJCS, from August 1949 to August 1953 General Nathan F. Twining, USMA 1919; August 1957 to September 1960 General Lyman L. Lemnitzer, USMA 1920; October 1960 to September 1962 General Maxwell D. Taylor, USMA 1922; October 1962 to July 1964 General Earle G. Wheeler, USMA 1932; had longest tenure of any CJCS, from July 1964 to July 1970 General George S. Brown, USMA 1941; July 1974 to June 1978
Mike Krzyzewski, the coachof the Duke University men's basketball team, is a member of the USMA Class of 1969. He played for Bobby Knight at Army and was the head coach at Army before going to Duke.
Abner Doubleday, the "Father of Baseball", graduated from West Point in 1842. Doubleday Field, where the Army baseball team plays, is named for him. Many people don't know that he fought in both the Mexican and Civil Wars, including at Fort Sumter and Gettysburg.
The University of Tennessee's football stadium is named for Robert Neyland, a West Point graduate, Class of 1916. He also served in WWII.
Mark Valley, who formerly played Jack Devereaux on the soap opera Days of Our Lives, is a 1987 graduate of USMA.
Famous (sometimes infamous) former cadets who did not graduate include Timothy Leary James Abbott McNeill Whistler, whose most famous painting is commonly known asWhistler's Mother. (Whistler's father and uncle were were both USMA graduates; classes of 1819 and 1817, respectively) Edgar Allan Poe
Scott A. Tackett, Sr., the proud father of two recent West Point graduates, has a wonderful web site called A Tribute to West Point. Among many other things, he has a page which features biographies and photos of 60famous West Point graduates.