59 Notable alumni of Cumberland University
Updated: June 15, 2026 EliteDegrees
Cumberland University is ranked #5,818 in the world and #1,522 in United States by aggregated alumni prominence. Below is the list of 59 notable alumni from Cumberland University sorted by their wiki pages popularity. The directory includes famous graduates and former students along with research and academic staff. Many individuals affiliated with Cumberland University won Nobel Prizes for Peace, in Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, and Economics.
1. J. P. Carnahan
1832-1912 (aged 80)
military officer
Jacob Preston Carnahan was an American Confederate officer, a professor of mathematics, and Populist politician in Arkansas. He ran for governor.
2. Campbell Eben Beaumont
1883-1954 (aged 71)
lawyer
judge
Campbell Eben Beaumont was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of California.
3. Samuel Franklin Wilson
1845-1923 (aged 78)
judge
politician
Samuel Franklin Wilson was an American Confederate veteran, politician and judge.
4. David Alexander Nunn
1833-1918 (aged 85)
diplomat
lawyer
politician
David Alexander Nunn was an American politician and a member of the United States House of Representatives from Tennessee's 8th congressional district.
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5. Morgan Cassius Fitzpatrick
1868-1908 (aged 40)
lawyer
politician
Morgan Cassius Fitzpatrick was an American politician and a member of the United States House of Representatives for the 4th congressional district of Tennessee.
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6. Mounce Gore Butler
1849-1917 (aged 68)
lawyer
politician
Mounce Gore Butler was an American politician and a member of the United States House of Representatives for the 4th congressional district of Tennessee.
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7. Joseph Edgar Brown
1880-1939 (aged 59)
lawyer
politician
Joseph Edgar Brown was a U.S. Representative from Tennessee. He was the son of Foster Vincent Brown and Lula (Farrior) Brown.
8. Horace Elmo Nichols
1912-2000 (aged 88)
lawyer
judge
Horace Elmo Nichols, also known as H. E. "Nick" Nichols, was an American jurist in Georgia who served as chief justice of the Supreme Court of Georgia from 1975 to 1980.
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9. Sidney Lee Christie
1903-1974 (aged 71)
lawyer
judge
Sidney Lee Christie was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia and the United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia.
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10. Wilson S. Hill
1863-1921 (aged 58)
lawyer
politician
Wilson Shedric Hill was an American lawyer and politician who served three terms as a U.S. Representative from Mississippi from 1903 to 1909.
11. John William Ross
1878-1925 (aged 47)
lawyer
judge
John William Ross was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee.
12. Joseph Carlton Loser
1892-1984 (aged 92)
lawyer
politician
Joseph Carlton Loser was an American politician and a United States representative from Tennessee.
13. Anthony F. Tauriello
1899-1983 (aged 84)
lawyer
politician
Anthony Francis Tauriello was an American politician and attorney who represented New York's 43rd congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 1949 to 1951.
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14. Edward Isaac Golladay
1830-1897 (aged 67)
lawyer
politician
Edward Isaac Golladay was an American politician and a member of the United States House of Representatives for Tennessee's 5th congressional district.
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15. John Kyle
1851-1913 (aged 62)
banker
lawyer
politician
John Curtis Kyle was an American attorney and Democratic politician from Mississippi during the late 19th century. He was most notable for his service as mayor of Sardis, Mississippi (1879-1881), a member of the Mississippi State Senate (1881-1885), member of the Mississippi Railroad Commission (1886-1890) and member of the U.S. House of Representatives (1891-1897).
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16. Isaac Goodnight
1849-1901 (aged 52)
lawyer
judge
politician
Isaac Herschel Goodnight was a United States representative from Kentucky.
17. Henry C. Snodgrass
1848-1931 (aged 83)
lawyer
politician
Henry Clay Snodgrass was an American politician and a member of the United States House of Representatives for the 3rd congressional district of Tennessee.
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18. John Edgerton
1879-1938 (aged 59)
American football player
John Emmett Edgerton was an industrialist who gained prominence as the president of the National Association of Manufacturers from 1921 to 1931. Edgerton was also an All-Southern college football fullback for the Vanderbilt Commodores of Vanderbilt University.
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19. Brady P. Gentry
1896-1966 (aged 70)
lawyer
judge
politician
Brady Preston Gentry was a U.S. Representative from Texas.
20. Lucien C. Gause
1836-1880 (aged 44)
lawyer
politician
Lucien Coatsworth Gause was an American lawyer, politician and military veteran who served in the Confederate Army during the Civil War. From 1875 to 1879, he served two terms in the U.S. House of Representatives, representing an Arkansas congressional district.
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21. Charles K. Wheeler
1863-1933 (aged 70)
lawyer
politician
Charles Kennedy Wheeler was a U.S. Representative from Kentucky.
22. Wynne F. Clouse
1883-1944 (aged 61)
lawyer
politician
Wynne F. Clouse was a U.S. representative from Tennessee.
23. Fletcher B. Swank
1875-1950 (aged 75)
lawyer
judge
politician
Fletcher B. Swank was an American politician and a U.S. representative from Oklahoma.
24. Luther Alexander Johnson
1875-1965 (aged 90)
lawyer
judge
politician
Luther Alexander Johnson was a United States Congressman from the U.S. state of Texas.
25. Risden Tyler Bennett
1840-1913 (aged 73)
lawyer
judge
politician
Risden Tyler Bennett was a Democratic U.S. congressman from North Carolina between 1883 and 1887. He was also an attorney and judge.
26. Thomas U. Sisson
1869-1923 (aged 54)
lawyer
politician
Thomas Upton Sisson was an American lawyer and politician who served seven terms as a U.S. Representative from Mississippi from 1909 to 1923.
27. Sam Lumpkin
1908-1964 (aged 56)
lawyer
politician
Samuel Edgerton Lumpkin was an American politician from Tupelo, Mississippi. A Democrat, he served as the 21st Lieutenant Governor of Mississippi from 1948 to 1952 under Governor Fielding L. Wright. He was born in Hudsonville in 1908.
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28. Sam D. McReynolds
1872-1939 (aged 67)
lawyer
judge
politician
Samuel Davis McReynolds was an American politician and judge who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives for the 3rd congressional district of Tennessee.
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29. Morgan M. Moulder
1904-1976 (aged 72)
lawyer
judge
politician
Morgan Moore Moulder was a U.S. representative from Missouri.
30. John T. Watkins
1854-1925 (aged 71)
lawyer
judge
politician
John Thomas Watkins was an American lawyer, jurist and politician who served eight terms as a U.S. representative for Louisiana's 4th congressional district from 1905 to 1921.
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31. Ira Landrith
1865-1941 (aged 76)
independent politician
Ira Landrith was an American Presbyterian minister and temperance activist. A known orator, Landrith was part of the Flying Squadron of America, which traveled the United States advocating for temperance.
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32. Lon A. Scott
1888-1931 (aged 43)
politician
Lon Allen Scott was an American politician who served as a United States representative from Tennessee as a Republican.
33. Thetus Willrette Sims
1852-1939 (aged 87)
lawyer
politician
Thetus Willrette Sims was an American lawyer and politician who served several terms in the United States House of Representatives for the 8th congressional district of Tennessee. He was a Democrat.
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34. James Patrick Sutton
1915-2005 (aged 90)
broker
politician
James Patrick Sutton was an American politician and a member of the United States Congress from Tennessee.
35. Thomas Jefferson Murray
1894-1971 (aged 77)
district attorney
lawyer
politician
Thomas Jefferson Murray, usually known as Tom J. Murray, was an American politician and a Democratic U.S. Representative from Tennessee from 1943 to 1966.
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36. Cale Young Rice
1872-1943 (aged 71)
poet
writer
Cale Young Rice was an American poet and dramatist. He was professor of English at Cumberland University. His opera, Yolanda of Cyprus, was widely received.
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37. Bert H. Miller
1879-1949 (aged 70)
lawyer
judge
politician
Bert Henry Miller was an American politician from Idaho and a member of the Democratic Party.
38. George Abram Miller
1863-1951 (aged 88)
university teacher
mathematician
historian of mathematics
George Abram Miller was an American mathematician, an early group theorist.
39. Antonio M. Fernández
1902-1956 (aged 54)
court stenographer
lawyer
politician
Antonio Manuel Fernández was a United States representative from New Mexico, elected to seven consecutive terms from 1942 to 1956.
40. Orland K. Armstrong
1893-1987 (aged 94)
lawyer
politician
Orland Kay Armstrong was an American Republican politician and member of the United States House of Representatives, journalist and social activist.
41. Oren Harris
1903-1997 (aged 94)
lawyer
politician
Oren Harris was a United States representative from Arkansas and a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas and the United States District Court for the Western District of Arkansas.
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42. William H. Hardy
1837-1917 (aged 80)
lawyer
judge
politician
William Harris Hardy was an American businessman who founded the Mississippi cities of Hattiesburg, Laurel, and Gulfport.
43. Thomas Abernethy
1903-1998 (aged 95)
lawyer
politician
Thomas Gerstle Abernethy was an American lawyer and politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Mississippi for 15 terms from 1943 to 1973.
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44. William J. Holloway
1888-1970 (aged 82)
lawyer
politician
William Judson Holloway was an American principal, lawyer, and politician who served as the fourth lieutenant governor of Oklahoma from 1927 to 1929. Following Henry S. Johnston's impeachment and removal from office, Holloway became the eighth governor of Oklahoma.
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45. Jere Cooper
1893-1957 (aged 64)
lawyer
politician
Jere Cooper was a Democratic United States representative from Tennessee.
46. Harry E. Claiborne
1917-2004 (aged 87)
lawyer
judge
politician
Harry Eugene Claiborne was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Nevada from 1978 until his impeachment and removal in 1986. Appointed by President Jimmy Carter in 1978, Claiborne was only the fifth person in United States history to be removed from office through impeachment by the United States Congress and the...
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47. Joe L. Evins
1910-1984 (aged 74)
lawyer
politician
Joseph Landon Evins was an American lawyer and politician who served 15 terms as a Democratic U.S. Representative from Tennessee from 1947 to 1977.
48. Robert H. Hatton
1826-1862 (aged 36)
lawyer
politician
Robert Hopkins Hatton was a lawyer and politician from Tennessee. He was a state legislator and US Representative, and a Confederate general during the American Civil War.
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49. Cave Johnson
1793-1866 (aged 73)
lawyer
banker
judge
politician
Cave Johnson was an American politician who served the state of Tennessee as a Democratic congressman in the United States House of Representatives. Johnson was the 12th United States Postmaster General in the administration of James K. Polk from 1845 to 1849.
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50. John Burgess
1844-1931 (aged 87)
university teacher
political scientist
historian of Modern Age
John William Burgess was an American political scientist. He spent most of his career at Columbia University where he in 1880 created the first graduate school in Political Science. He has been described as "the most influential political scientist of the period" and "the father of American political science."
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51. Myles Horton
1905-1990 (aged 85)
educator
teacher
Myles Falls Horton was an American educator, socialist, and co-founder of the Highlander Folk School, famous for its role in the Civil Rights Movement (Movement leader James Bevel called Horton "The Father of the Civil Rights Movement"). Horton taught and heavily influenced most of the era's leaders. They included Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks (who studied with Horton shortly...
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52. James B. McCreary
1838-1918 (aged 80)
lawyer
politician
James Bennett McCreary was an American lawyer and politician from Kentucky. He represented the state in both houses of the U.S. Congress and served as its 27th and 37th governor of Kentucky. Shortly after graduating from law school, he was commissioned as the only major in the 11th Kentucky Cavalry, serving under Confederate Brigadier General John Hunt Morgan during the...
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53. John Bell
1796-1869 (aged 73)
lawyer
politician
John Bell was an American politician, attorney, and planter who was a candidate for President of the United States in the election of 1860.
54. Thomas Gore
1870-1949 (aged 79)
peace activist
lawyer
politician
Thomas Pryor Gore was an American politician who served as one of the first two United States senators from Oklahoma, from 1907 to 1921 and again from 1931 to 1937. He first entered politics as an activist for the Populist Party, and continued this affiliation after he moved to Texas. In 1899, just before moving to Oklahoma Territory to practice...
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55. LeRoy Collins
1909-1991 (aged 82)
military officer
lawyer
politician
Thomas LeRoy Collins was an American politician who served as the 33rd governor of Florida from 1955 to 1961. Collins began his governorship after winning a special election in 1954, and was elected to a four-year term in 1956.
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56. Benjamin A. Enloe
1848-1922 (aged 74)
lawyer
politician
Benjamin Augustine Enloe was an American politician and a member of the United States House of Representatives for the 8th congressional district of Tennessee.
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57. James Allred
1899-1959 (aged 60)
lawyer
judge
politician
James Burr V. Allred was the 33rd governor of Texas. He later served, twice, as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas.
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58. Omar Truman Burleson
1906-1991 (aged 85)
secretary
lawyer
special agent
politician
Omar Truman Burleson was an attorney, judge, FBI agent and veteran of World War II when he was first elected in 1946 as a Democratic U.S. Representative from Texas's 17th congressional district. He was re-elected to Congress from this rural district for more than 30 years, resigning on December 31, 1978 after having decided not to run again for office.
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59. John Duncan
1919-1988 (aged 69)
lawyer
politician
John Stewart Duncan OBE is a British diplomat. He was Ambassador for Multilateral Arms Control and Disarmament and UK Permanent Representative to the Conference on Disarmament, Geneva, 2006–11. In June 2013, he was appointed by Queen Elizabeth II on the advice of the British government, to represent the Queen as Governor of the British Virgin Islands, and to act as...
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