25 notable alumni U.S. News #111

Notable Alumni of Hampden-Sydney College

Notable alumni of Hampden-Sydney College include William Henry Harrison (9th President of the United States), Stephen Colbert (Comedian and host of CBS The Late Show) and John Phillips (Leader of the Mamas & the Papas).

College data and admissions

Alumni list

Politics and law

William Henry Harrison 1773–1841

9th President of the United States

Also attended: University of Pennsylvania

Father: Benjamin Harrison V (College of William and Mary)

Sibling: Carter Bassett Harrison (College of William and Mary)
Sterling Price 1809–1867

11th governor of Missouri and Confederate general
John S. Mosby 1833–1916

Confederate cavalry commander in the Civil War
George M. Bibb 1776–1859

17th US Secretary of the Treasury

Also attended: College of William and Mary
Robert Hurt 1969–

Former U.S. representative from Virginia

Bachelor of Arts · Class of 1991

Also attended: Mississippi College

Sibling: Charles Hurt (Hampden-Sydney College)
William Cabell Rives 1793–1868

Virginia politician and diplomat

Also attended: College of William and Mary

Child: Alfred L. Rives (Virginia Military Institute)
William Branch Giles 1762–1830

Virginia governor and US senator

Also attended: Princeton University, College of William and Mary
John Wayles Eppes 1773–1823

Virginia lawyer and U.S. representative

Also attended: University of Pennsylvania
John Leighton Stuart 1876–1962

First president of Yenching University, US ambassador to China

Business

Steven T. Huff 1951–

Businessman and inventor, former US Army and CIA

Science and academia

Hardy Cross 1885–1959

Structural engineer who developed the moment distribution method

Also attended: Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Landon Garland 1810–1895

First chancellor of Vanderbilt University

Arts and media

Stephen Colbert 1964–

Comedian and host of CBS The Late Show

Also attended: Northwestern University, Northwest University
John Phillips 1935–2001

Leader of the Mamas & the Papas
Scott Cooper 1970–

Filmmaker, director of Crazy Heart
Francis Schaeffer 1912–1984

Evangelical theologian, co-founder of L'Abri

Also attended: Westminster Theological Seminary

Spouse: Edith Schaeffer (Arcadia University)
Skipp Sudduth 1956–

Actor in Ronin and Third Watch
William Smithers 1927–2026

Actor known for Dallas

Also attended: Catholic University of America
Ewing Mitchell 1910–1988

Character actor known for Sky King
William Hoffman 1925–2009

Writer of thirteen novels and short story collections

Also attended: University of Iowa
William H. Armstrong 1911–1999

Children's author of Newbery-winning novel Sounder
Charles Hurt 1971–

Opinion editor of The Washington Times

Attended until 1995

Sibling: Robert Hurt (Mississippi College, Hampden-Sydney College)

Other fields

J. Dwight Pentecost 1915–2014

Theologian, author of Things to Come
Robert Lewis Dabney 1820–1898

Presbyterian theologian and Confederate chaplain
Thomas Atkinson 1807–1881

Third Episcopal Bishop of North Carolina

Also attended: Yale University

From Wikidata “educated at” records (including people who attended without graduating), ordered by the number of Wikipedia language editions. Degrees and years follow Wikidata and are left out where it has none.

Alumni network

Colleges that share the most alumni with Hampden-Sydney College (people who attended both).