Notable Alumni of Washington and Lee University

John Warner 1927–2021

Senator from Virginia, former Secretary of the Navy

Attended until 1949

Also attended: George Washington University, University of Virginia-Main Campus

Matt Bevin 1967–

62nd governor of Kentucky

Joe Wilson 1947–

US Representative from South Carolina

Bachelor of Arts · Class of 1969

Also attended: University of South Carolina-Columbia

Child: Alan Wilson (Francis Marion University, University of South Carolina-Columbia)

John Breckinridge 1760–1806

US Senator and lawyer from Kentucky

Also attended: College of William and Mary

Child: William L. Breckinridge (Transylvania University)

Child: Cabell Breckinridge (Colby-Sawyer College, Princeton University)

John William Davis 1873–1955

Former Solicitor General and ambassador to the UK

Child: Julia Davis Adams (Wellesley College, Barnard College)

John J. Crittenden 1787–1863

Kentucky statesman and twice US Attorney General

Also attended: College of William and Mary

Child: Thomas Leonidas Crittenden (The United States Military Academy at West Point)

Child: George B. Crittenden (Transylvania University, The United States Military Academy at West Point)

Bill Brock 1930–2021

Former U.S. Senator from Tennessee and RNC chair

James L. Kemper 1823–1895

Confederate general and 37th Governor of Virginia

Robert Latham Owen 1856–1947

One of Oklahoma's first two U.S. senators

Ruby Laffoon 1869–1941

43rd governor of Kentucky

Also attended: George Washington University, Columbia University in the City of New York

Lewis F. Powell Jr. 1907–1998

U.S. Supreme Court associate justice, 1972–1987

Also attended: Harvard University

Neal Dunn 1953–

Republican U.S. Representative and surgeon

Bachelor of Science

Also attended: George Washington University

George Earle Chamberlain 1854–1928

Oregon governor and attorney

J. Bennett Johnston 1932–2025

Former US Senator from Louisiana

Also attended: The United States Military Academy at West Point

Thomas Chipman McRae 1851–1929

26th Governor of Arkansas

Thomas Todd 1765–1826

Associate Justice of the US Supreme Court

Child: Charles Stewart Todd (College of William and Mary)

William Wallace Barron 1911–2002

26th governor of West Virginia

Robert Mosbacher 1927–2010

Businessman, yacht racer and Republican politician

Child: Dee Mosbacher (Pitzer College)

Child: Robert Mosbacher, Jr. (Georgetown University, Southern Methodist University)

Rupert Johnson, Jr. 1941–

Billionaire businessman and philanthropist

Bill Miller

Investor, former chief investment officer of Legg Mason Capital Management

Also attended: Johns Hopkins University

Joseph L. Goldstein 1940–

Biochemist, 1985 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine

Also attended: University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center

William Wilson Morgan 1906–1994

Astronomer known for stellar classification

Also attended: University of Chicago

G. David Low 1956–2008

NASA astronaut and aerospace executive

Also attended: Johns Hopkins University, Harvard University, Cornell University

Father: George Low (Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute)

Robert Paxton 1932–

Historian, professor emeritus at Columbia University

Also attended: Harvard University

William Jackson Humphreys 1862–1949

Physicist and atmospheric researcher

Bachelor of Arts

Also attended: Johns Hopkins University

Archibald Alexander 1772–1851

Theologian, first professor at Princeton Theological Seminary

Child: James Waddel Alexander (Princeton Theological Seminary, Princeton University)

Child: Joseph Addison Alexander (Princeton University)

Samuel C. Lind 1879–1965

Radiation chemist, father of modern radiation chemistry

Also attended: Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Henry Ashby Turner 1932–2008

Yale professor and historian of Germany

Also attended: Princeton University

Tom Wolfe 1930–2018

Author and journalist associated with New Journalism

Also attended: Yale University

Pat Robertson 1930–2023

Televangelist and media mogul

Bachelor of Arts

Also attended: Yale University, New York Theological Seminary

Father: A. Willis Robertson (University of Richmond)

Child: Gordon P. Robertson (Yale University)

Cy Twombly 1928–2011

Painter, sculptor and photographer

Also attended: School of the Museum of Fine Arts at Tufts University

Mike Henry 1965–

American voice actor and writer on Family Guy

Philippe Labro 1936–2025

French author, journalist and film director

Gilbert Shelton 1940–

Cartoonist, key figure in underground comix

Also attended: Texas A & M University-College Station, The University of Texas at Austin

Rebecca Makkai 1978–

Novelist, author of The Great Believers

Also attended: Middlebury College

Father: Ádám Makkai (Harvard University)

Thomas Nelson Page 1853–1922

Writer, lawyer and US ambassador to Italy

Also attended: University of Virginia-Main Campus

Grant Aleksander 1959–

Actor, Phillip Spaulding on Guiding Light

Toon Tellegen 1941–

Dutch writer, poet and physician

Literature

Also attended: University of Virginia-Main Campus

Roger Mudd 1928–2021

Broadcast journalist and anchor for CBS and NBC News

Also attended: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Fielder Cook 1923–2003

Film and television director

Jerry Hopkins 1935–2018

Journalist and author of first Elvis Presley biography

Also attended: Columbia University in the City of New York

George Lynn 1906–1964

Actor and writer

Richard Sale 1911–1993

Screenwriter, film director and pulp writer

Tod Robbins 1888–1949

Author of horror and mystery fiction

Michael Allen 1964–

Co-founder and executive editor of Axios

Father: Gary Allen (California State University--Long Beach, Stanford University)

Harvey Fergusson 1890–1971

Novelist, screenwriter and journalist

Also attended: University of New Mexico-Main Campus

Rob Ashford 1959–

Stage director, choreographer and Tony winner

Also attended: Point Park University

Douglas Clegg 1958–

Horror author and e-publishing pioneer

Mark Richard 1955–

Short story writer, novelist and screenwriter

J. Bowyer Bell 1931–2003

Historian, artist and terrorism expert

Also attended: Duke University

Bill Coffin 1970–

Writer of novels and role-playing games

Charles Gaines 1942–2026

Writer and outdoorsman

Also attended: Birmingham-Southern College, University of Iowa

Child: Greta Gaines (Georgetown University)

Alex S. Jones 1946–

Pulitzer-winning journalist, former Shorenstein Center director

Kate Cordsen 1964–

Photographer and film producer

Kelly Evans 1985–

CNBC journalist and Power Lunch co-anchor

Wyatt C. Hedrick 1888–1964

Architect and engineer active in Texas

Also attended: Roanoke College

Walt Michaels 1929–2019

Former head coach of the New York Jets

Harry Moran 1889–1962

Major League Baseball pitcher

Eustace Mullins 1923–2010

Writer, antisemitic conspiracy theorist and Holocaust denier

Also attended: University of North Dakota

Jesse Evans 1853–

Old West outlaw and gang leader