Notable Alumni of Beloit College [Sorted List]

1. John Thorn

1947-. (aged 79)

journalist author

John Abraham Thorn is a German-born American sports historian, author, and publisher. Since 2011, he has served as the Official Baseball Historian for Major League Baseball.

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2. Walter S. Greene

1834-1891 (aged 57)

businessperson politician

Walter S. Greene was an American businessman, Democratic politician, and Wisconsin pioneer. He served six years in the Wisconsin State Senate and one year in the State Assembly, representing Jefferson County.

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3. John D. Wickhem

1888-1949 (aged 61)

lawyer judge

John Dunne Wickhem was an American lawyer and jurist from Beloit, Wisconsin. He was a justice of the Wisconsin Supreme Court from 1930 until his death in 1949. Prior to joining the court, he worked as a professor at the University of Wisconsin Law School.

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4. William Eich

lawyer judge

William Eich is an American lawyer and retired judge. He was Chief Judge of the Wisconsin Court of Appeals from 1989 to 1998. Earlier in his career, he served as a county judge and Wisconsin circuit judge in Dane County, Wisconsin.

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5. Samuel James Campbell

1892-1981 (aged 89)

businessperson

Samuel James Campbell was a prominent banker, businessman and civic leader in Mount Carroll, Illinois, in the first half of the 20th century. He operated several farms that raised Angus cattle and owned the Kable News Company of Mount Morris, Illinois, a national distributor of magazines. He headed the boards of trustees of Shimer College for more than 20 years,...

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6. Philo A. Orton

1837-1919 (aged 82)

judge politician

Philo Atwood Orton, Jr., was an American lawyer, politician, judge, and banker. He was a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly and held several local and county offices in Lafayette County, Wisconsin.

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7. Charles Winter Wood

1869-1953 (aged 84)

head coach actor

Charles Winter Wood was an American educator and actor who graduated from Beloit College in Beloit, WI. He was the second head football coach at Tuskegee University in Tuskegee, Alabama and he held that position for four seasons, from 1897 until 1901. His coaching record at Tuskegee was 1–3. Wood spent 30 years at the Tuskegee Institute in the English...

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8. Edwin R. Heath

1839-1932 (aged 93)

explorer physician

Edwin Ruthven Heath was an American physician and explorer. He is best known for his exploration and mapping of the rivers of the Madre de Dios region in Peru and Bolivia. The Heath River on the Peru/Bolivia border and Puerto Heath, Bolivia bear his name.

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9. Henry Barnard Kümmel

1867-1945 (aged 78)

geologist

Henry Barnard Kümmel was a State Geologist for the State of New Jersey during the 20th century who worked extensively in the management of the Morris Canal after its acquisition by New Jersey.

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10. Robert Hall Baker

1839-1882 (aged 43)

businessperson politician

Robert Hall Baker Sr. was an American businessman and Republican politician from Racine, Wisconsin. He was the 21st mayor of Racine, Wisconsin, and represented Racine County for three years in the Wisconsin Senate (1873, 1875, 1876). He also served as chairman of the Republican Party of Wisconsin in 1880 and 1881. In business, he was one of the four principal...

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11. Walker M. Curtiss

1852-1917 (aged 65)

farmer politician

Walker M. Curtiss was an American farmer and politician.

12. Frank A. Hutchins

1851-1914 (aged 63)

librarian

Frank Avery Hutchins was an American educator and librarian. He was one of the founders of the Wisconsin Library Association and the Wisconsin Free Library Commission.

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13. Leverett S. Lyon

1885-1959 (aged 74)

economist manager jurist university teacher

Leverett Samuel Lyon was an American economist, lawyer and business executive, known for his works on education, government, marketing, and economic life, and particularly on the National Recovery Administration.

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14. Jean Trounstine

1946-. (aged 80)

activist

Jean Trounstine is an activist, author and professor emerita at Middlesex Community College in Lowell, Massachusetts, USA.

15. Suzanna W. Miles

1922-1966 (aged 44)

anthropologist archaeologist

Suzanna Whitelaw Miles (June 7, 1922 in Mount Carroll, Illinois – April 10, 1966 in Boston) was an American ethnohistorian, anthropologist and archaeologist. Miles was known for her work among the Maya peoples of the North-western Guatemalan highlands, her analyses of early-colonial sources on Pre-Hispanic Maya culture and society (particularly her study of 16th-century Poqom social structure), and her pioneering...

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16. George Perring

1884-1960 (aged 76)

baseball player

George Wilson Perring was a Major League Baseball third baseman who played for five seasons. He played for the Cleveland Naps from 1908 to 1910 and the Kansas City Packers of the Federal League from 1914 to 1915.

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17. Bob Blewett

1877-1958 (aged 81)

baseball player

Bob Blewett was a Major League Baseball player for the New York Giants in 1902 as a pitcher.

18. Charles W. Woodford

1931-2009 (aged 78)

politician

Charles W. Woodford was an American businessman and Illinois Treasurer from 1970 to 1971.

19. Tully Sparks

1874-1937 (aged 63)

baseball player

Thomas Frank "Tully" Sparks was an American professional baseball player who played pitcher in the Major Leagues from 1897 to 1910. Sparks played for the Philadelphia Phillies, Pittsburgh Pirates, Milwaukee Brewers, New York Giants, and Boston Americans. He was an alumnus of Beloit College.

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20. John S. Samuel

1913-2002 (aged 89)

military officer

John Spoor Samuel was a major general in the United States Air Force. Samuel was born in St. Louis, Missouri. He attended Beloit College from 1932 to 1935.

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21. H. W. Wilson

1868-1954 (aged 86)

businessperson publisher

Halsey William Wilson was the creator of the Readers' Guide, the Cumulative Book Index, and the Book Review Digest and founder of the H. W. Wilson Company, a publisher. In 1999, American Libraries named him one of the "100 Most Important Leaders We Had in the 20th Century".

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22. Doc Adkins

1872-1934 (aged 62)

baseball player

Merle Theron Adkins was an American pitcher in Major League Baseball who played for the Boston Americans (1902) and New York Highlanders (1903). Adkins batted and threw right-handed.

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23. Lyle Gramley

1927-2015 (aged 88)

economist

Lyle Elden Gramley was an American economist who served as a member of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors from 1980 to 1985. He previously served as a member of the Council of Economic Advisers from 1977 to 1980.

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24. Otto T. Bannard

1854-1929 (aged 75)

lawyer

Otto Tremont Bannard was an American attorney, banker, businessman and philanthropist who donated to Yale University, his alma mater. He stood for mayor of New York in 1909 but lost. He died at sea while on a cruise to the Philippines.

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25. Robert A. Buethe

1939-. (aged 87)

obstetrician military officer gynecologist

Robert A. Buethe is a retired major general and former Acting Surgeon General of the United States Air Force.

26. Lucien B. Caswell

1827-1919 (aged 92)

lawyer politician

Lucien Bonaparte Caswell was an American lawyer, Republican politician, and Wisconsin pioneer. He served 14 years in the U.S. House of Representatives between 1875 and 1891, representing parts of southeast Wisconsin. Before his time in Congress, he served as district attorney of Jefferson County, Wisconsin, and represented the Fort Atkinson area for three terms in the Wisconsin State Assembly.

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27. Joseph Pipal

1874-1955 (aged 81)

basketball coach American football coach athletic director baseball manager track and field coach

Joseph Amos Pipal was an American football, basketball, and track and field coach and athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at Doane College in 1902, Bellevue College from 1903 to 1904, Huron College (later known as Huron University) in 1905, Dickinson College in 1907, the University of South Dakota in 1910, Occidental College from 1911 to 1915...

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28. Walter Knox

1878-1951 (aged 73)

athletics competitor

Walter Renwick Knox was a Canadian track and field athlete.

29. John Strange

1852-1923 (aged 71)

businessperson politician

John Strange was an American businessman and Republican politician from Winnebago County, Wisconsin. He was the 21st lieutenant governor of Wisconsin, serving from 1909 to 1911.

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30. Alden Sanborn

1899-1991 (aged 92)

rower military officer

Alden Ream "Zeke" Sanborn was an American rower who competed in the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp. He won a gold medal in men's eight. He also served as a United States Naval Aviator.

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31. Peter Tufo

1938-. (aged 88)

diplomat lawyer

Peter Francis Tufo is an American former diplomat who served as the U.S. Ambassador to Hungary from 1997 to 2001, and helped found the law firm Tufo, Johnston & Zuccotti in 1970.

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32. Amby McConnell

1883-1942 (aged 59)

baseball player

Ambrose Moses McConnell was an American baseball second baseman who played four seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). Nicknamed "Midget" due to his 5 feet 5 inches (1.65 m) stature, he played for the Boston Red Sox and Chicago White Sox from 1908 to 1911. He batted left-handed but threw right-handed.

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33. Tommy Mills

1883-1944 (aged 61)

basketball coach American football player

Thomas Emmet Mills was an American football player, coach of football, basketball, and baseball, and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at Creighton University (1915–1919), Beloit College (1920–1925), Georgetown University (1930–1932), and Arkansas State College (1934–1935), compiling a career college football record of 63–45–12. Mills was the head baseball coach at the University of Notre Dame...

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34. Jacob Falconer

1869-1928 (aged 59)

politician

Jacob Alexander Falconer was a one-term congressman from the state of Washington, elected at-large in 1912.

35. Rollin D. Salisbury

1858-1922 (aged 64)

geologist

Rollin Daniel Salisbury was an American geologist and educator.

36. Judith A. Miller

1950-. (aged 76)

legal scholar

Judith Ann Miller is an American attorney and government official who served as General Counsel of the United States Department of Defense from 1994 to 1999, and in the private sector as general counsel for Bechtel Group.

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37. John Lorenzo Griffith

1877-1944 (aged 67)

athletics competitor baseball player basketball coach

John Lorenzo Griffith was an American football, basketball, and baseball player, track athlete, coach, and college athletics administrator. He served as the first commissioner of the Big Ten Conference from 1922 until his death in 1944.

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38. Heidi Bigknife

1967-. (aged 59)

artist

Heidi BigKnife is a Native American artist living in Oklahoma. She is well known for her unique jewelry, a talent she developed at the Institute of American Indian Art.

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39. Fred Ascani

1917-2010 (aged 93)

engineer military officer

Fred J. Ascani was an American major general and test pilot of the United States Air Force. He was one of the "Men of Mach 1" and was considered the father of systems engineering at Wright Field.

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40. Horace White

1834-1916 (aged 82)

writer businessperson journalist

Horace White was a United States journalist and financial expert, noted for his connection with the Chicago Tribune, the New York Evening Post, and The Nation.

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41. John Anson Ford

1883-1983 (aged 100)

politician

John Anson Ford was an American journalist, advertising executive and Democratic Party politician. He was a long-serving member of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors.

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42. James A. Blaisdell

1867-1957 (aged 90)

academic university president

James Arnold Blaisdell was an American minister, theologian, and academic administrator. He was the fourth president of Pomona College (1910–1927) and founder and "head fellow" of the Claremont Colleges (1927–1935).

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43. John Hailer

1960-. (aged 66)

businessperson

John Thomas Hailer is an American financial services executive. He is the Chairman of F/m Managers Group and President of 1251 Asset Management of 1251 Capital Group.

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44. Robyn Gabel

1953-. (aged 73)

politician

Robyn Gabel is the Majority Leader of the Illinois House of Representatives. A Democrat, she has represented the 18th District since April 19, 2010. The district includes the suburbs of Evanston, Wilmette, Kenilworth, Northbrook, Northfield, Winnetka and Glencoe.

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45. William H. McMaster

1877-1968 (aged 91)

politician

William Henry McMaster was an American politician who served as the tenth governor of South Dakota from 1921 until 1925. A member of the Republican Party, he went on to serve as a member of the United States Senate from South Dakota from 1925 to 1931.

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46. Walter V. Bingham

1880-1952 (aged 72)

psychologist

Walter Van Dyke Bingham was an applied and industrial psychologist who made significant contributions to intelligence testing. A pioneer in applied psychology, Bingham got his start in experimental psychology, receiving his Ph.D. at the University of Chicago under James R. Angell. Bingham went from Dartmouth in 1915 to organize the Division of Applied Psychology at the Carnegie Institute of Technology....

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47. Edward R. Burke

1880-1968 (aged 88)

lawyer politician

Edward Raymond Burke was an American Democratic Party politician. Burke moved to Sparta, Wisconsin with his parents and then Beloit, Wisconsin, where he went to Beloit College. Burke graduated in 1906, moved to Chadron, Nebraska, where he taught school until 1908. He graduated from Harvard Law School and was admitted to the bar in 1911. Afterwards, he set up shop...

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48. Ginger Beaumont

1876-1956 (aged 80)

baseball player

Clarence Howeth "Ginger" Beaumont was an American center fielder in Major League Baseball who spent most of his career with the Pittsburgh Pirates (1899–1906) and Boston Braves (1907–1909).

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49. David Johnson

1950-. (aged 76)

politician

David Johnson was the Iowa State Senator from the 1st District and served as assistant minority leader. A former Republican and currently independent, he served in the Iowa Senate from 2003 to 2019 and served in the Iowa House of Representatives from 1999 to 2003.

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50. Marca Bristo

1953-2019 (aged 66)

nursing activist

Marca Bristo was an American disability rights activist.

51. Cerridwen Fallingstar

1952-. (aged 74)

writer novelist poet journalist

Cerridwen Fallingstar, is an American Wiccan priestess, shamanic witch, and author. Since the late 1970s she has written, taught, and lectured about magic, ritual, and metaphysics, and is considered a leading authority on pagan witchcraft.

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52. Roberta Cordano

1963-. (aged 63)

academic administrator lawyer medical administrator

Roberta "Bobbi" Cordano is the 11th president of Gallaudet University, serving since 2016. Cordano is the first deaf woman and the first LGBTQ person to become president of Gallaudet University; she is lesbian.

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53. Greg Stafford

1948-2018 (aged 70)

shaman role-playing game designer writer

Francis Gregory Stafford was an American game designer, publisher, and practitioner of shamanism.

54. Zainab al-Khawaja

1983-. (aged 43)

human rights defender

Zainab Abdulhadi al-Khawaja is a Bahraini human rights activist, and a participant in the Bahraini uprising. She rose to prominence after posting tweets online about the protests under the name AngryArabiya as well as for protesting her father Abdulhadi al-Khawaja's detention during his hunger strike.

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55. William Wohlforth

1959-. (aged 67)

political scientist

William Curti Wohlforth is an American political scientist. He is the Daniel Webster Professor of Government in the Dartmouth College Department of Government, of which he was chair for three academic years (2006-2009). Wohlforth was Editor-in-chief of Security Studies from 2008 to 2011. He is linked to the Neoclassical realism school and known for his work on American unipolarity.

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56. Al Gerhardstein

1951-. (aged 75)

lawyer

Alphonse A. "Al" Gerhardstein is a civil rights attorney in Ohio who has been litigating since 1976. He was lead counsel for James Obergefell in the Supreme Court's same-sex marriage decision Obergefell v. Hodges. He has also been an advocate on behalf of prisoners, alleged victims of police misconduct, and abortion and LGBTQ-related causes. He has recovered millions of dollars...

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57. Chris Fleming

1967-. (aged 59)

television presenter

Christopher Fleming is an American medium, paranormal researcher, television personality, and public speaker. He has written numerous articles and produced various print and online publications on the topics of paranormal activity and psychic phenomena.

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58. Jay Norwood Darling

1876-1962 (aged 86)

editorial cartoonist conservationist journalist

Jay Norwood Darling, better known as Ding Darling, was an American cartoonist who won two Pulitzer Prizes. He was an important figure in the 20th century conservation movement and founded the National Wildlife Federation. In addition, he was known to be close friends with Walt Disney.

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59. Emma Bull

1954-. (aged 72)

blogger science fiction writer novelist writer

Emma Bull is an American science fiction and fantasy author. Her novels include the Hugo- and Nebula-nominated Bone Dance and the urban fantasy War for the Oaks. She is also known for a series of anthologies set in Liavek, a shared universe that she created with her husband, Will Shetterly. As a singer, songwriter, and guitarist, she has been a...

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60. Raj Fernando

1971-. (aged 55)

businessperson

Rajiv K. "Raj" Fernando is an American businessman, political fundraiser and donor, and philanthropist. He is the current chairman and CEO of Workstorm.com and the former CEO of Chopper Trading.

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61. Frank M. Robinson

1926-2014 (aged 88)

novelist science fiction writer writer

Frank Malcolm Robinson was an American science fiction and techno-thriller writer. He was a speechwriter for gay politician Harvey Milk and Milk's designated successor in the event of his death but declined to be appointed to or run for office.

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62. Madeleine Roux

1985-. (aged 41)

writer

Madeleine Roux is an American fiction author. She has written several young adult paranormal and horror fiction series, including the Asylum series. She has also written two standalone adult science fiction novels along with several novels for licensed properties such as World of Warcraft and Dungeons & Dragons.

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63. W. Willard Wirtz

1912-2010 (aged 98)

jurist

William Willard Wirtz was a U.S. administrator, cabinet officer, attorney, and law professor. He served as the Secretary of Labor between 1962 and 1969 under the administrations of Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson. Wirtz was the last living member of Kennedy's cabinet.

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64. William Ambrose Hulbert

1832-1882 (aged 50)

baseball player

William Ambrose Hulbert was an American professional baseball executive who was one of the founders of the National League, considered by many to be baseball's first major league, and was also the president of the Chicago White Stockings franchise.

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65. Arthur Henderson Smith

1845-1932 (aged 87)

missionary

Arthur Henderson Smith was a Christian missionary and a member of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions, noted for spending 54 years as a missionary in China and writing books that presented China to foreign readers. These books include Chinese Characteristics, Village Life in China, The Uplift of China and China in Convulsion (1901), which describes his time...

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66. David Davis Walker

1840-1918 (aged 78)

businessperson politician

David Davis Walker was an American businessman. He started his career as a dry goods wholesaler in St. Louis, Missouri. He was the co-founder of Ely & Walker, which remains a clothing brand to this day.

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67. John Sall

1948-. (aged 78)

businessperson

John P. Sall is an American billionaire businessman and computer software developer, who co-founded SAS Institute, an analytics software company, and created the JMP statistical software.

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68. Troy Denning

1958-. (aged 68)

writer science fiction writer novelist role-playing game designer

Troy Denning is an American fantasy and science fiction author and game designer who has written more than two dozen novels.

69. Stanley Nelson Jr

1951-. (aged 75)

film producer screenwriter film director

Stanley Earl Nelson Jr. is an American documentary filmmaker and a MacArthur Fellow known as a director, writer and producer of documentaries examining African-American history and experiences. He is a recipient of the 2013 National Humanities Medal from President Obama. He has won three Primetime Emmy Awards.

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70. Red Grammer

1952-. (aged 74)

singer-songwriter singer

Robert Crane "Red" Grammer is an American singer and songwriter.

71. Derek Carrier

1990-. (aged 36)

American football player

Derek Carrier is a former professional football player who was a tight end in the National Football League (NFL). Carrier played college football for the Beloit Buccaneers.

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72. Larry MacPhail

1890-1975 (aged 85)

lawyer sports executive

Leland Stanford "Larry" MacPhail Sr. was an American lawyer and an executive in Major League Baseball. He served as a high-ranking executive, including club president and general manager, with the Cincinnati Reds, Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Yankees, and was a one-third owner of the Yankees from 1945 through 1947. MacPhail's sons and grandsons were also sports executives. He was...

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73. Ellsworth Huntington

1876-1947 (aged 71)

geographer economist geopolitical analyst university teacher

Ellsworth Huntington was a professor of geography at Yale University during the early 20th century, known for his studies on environmental determinism/climatic determinism, economic growth, and economic geography. He served as president of the Ecological Society of America in 1917, the Association of American Geographers in 1923 and president of the board of directors of the American Eugenics Society from...

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74. Matt Tolmach

1964-. (aged 62)

film producer

Matthew Tolmach is an American film producer and former co-president of production at Sony Pictures Entertainment.

75. Charles Eastman

1858-1939 (aged 81)

ombudsman writer autobiographer folklorist physician

Charles Alexander Eastman was an American physician, writer, and social reformer. He was "one of the most prolific authors and speakers on Sioux ethnohistory and American Indian affairs" in the early 20th century.

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76. Roy Chapman Andrews

1884-1960 (aged 76)

botanical collector explorer writer zoologist paleontologist

Roy Chapman Andrews was an American explorer, adventurer, and naturalist who became the director of the American Museum of Natural History. He led a series of expeditions through the politically disturbed China of the early 20th century into the Gobi Desert and Mongolia. The expeditions made important discoveries and brought the first-known fossil dinosaur eggs to the museum. Chapman's popular...

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77. Don Bolles

1928-1976 (aged 48)

journalist

Donald Fifield Bolles was an American investigative reporter for The Arizona Republic newspaper who was known for his coverage of organized crime in and around Phoenix, Arizona, especially by the Chicago Outfit. His murder in a car bombing was suspected to have been mob-related but was later found to be connected to his reporting on real estate fraud by local...

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78. James Arness

1923-2011 (aged 88)

television actor producer television producer actor film actor

James Arness was an American actor, best known for portraying Marshal Matt Dillon for 20 years in the series Gunsmoke. He has the distinction of having played the role of Dillon in five decades: 1955 to 1975 in the weekly series, then in Gunsmoke: Return to Dodge (1987) and four more made-for-television Gunsmoke films in the 1990s. In Europe, Arness...

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79. Tom Hulce

1953-. (aged 73)

singer television actor film actor voice actor stage actor

Thomas Edward Hulce is an American actor and theatre producer. He is best known for his portrayal of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in the Academy Award-winning film Amadeus (1984), as well as the roles of Larry "Pinto" Kroger in Animal House (1978), Larry Buckman in Parenthood (1989), and Quasimodo in Disney's animated film The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996). Hulce's awards...

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80. Jameson Parker

1947-. (aged 79)

television actor stage actor film producer actor

Francis Jameson Parker Jr. is an American actor, best known for his roles as the first Brad Vernon in the soap opera One Life to Live, and as A.J. Simon on the 1980s television series Simon & Simon.

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81. Kerwin Mathews

1926-2007 (aged 81)

television actor stage actor actor film actor

Kerwin Mathews was an American actor best known for playing the titular heroes in The 7th Voyage of Sinbad (1958), The Three Worlds of Gulliver (1960), and Jack the Giant Killer (1962).

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82. Todd Blanche

1974-. (aged 52)

lawyer

Todd Wallace Blanche is an American lawyer and former prosecutor who has served as the fortieth United States deputy attorney general since 2025. Blanche defended U.S. president Donald Trump during his 2024 criminal trial for business fraud in New York City. Trump was found guilty on 34 felony charges. Blanche worked for several years at New York City's oldest law...

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