People who were born in, residents of, or otherwise closely associated with Princeton include:
Note: this list does not include people whose only time in Princeton was as a student. Only selected faculty are shown, whose notability extends beyond their field into popular culture. See Faculty and Alumni lists above. •
Matthew Abelson,
hammered dulcimer player •
Robert Adrain (1775–1843), Irish-born mathematician known for his formulation of the
method of least squares •
George Akerlof (born 1940), economist who shared the 2001
Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences •
Archibald Alexander (1772–1851), Presbyterian theologian and first professor at the
Princeton Theological Seminary •
James Waddel Alexander (1804–1859), Presbyterian minister and theologian •
Joseph Addison Alexander (1809–1860), biblical scholar •
William Cowper Alexander (1806–1874), lawyer, politician and insurance executive, who served as President of the
New Jersey Senate and as President of the
Equitable Life Assurance Society •
Svetlana Alliluyeva (1926–2011), daughter of
Joseph Stalin, defected to United States and lived in Princeton •
Lylah M. Alphonse (born 1972), journalist •
Saul Amarel (1928–2002), professor of computer science at
Rutgers University, best known for his pioneering work in
artificial intelligence •
Trey Anastasio (born 1964), of the band
Phish, lived in Princeton with his family and attended
Princeton Day School • Rose Allen (1885–1977), actress •
William H. Angoff (–1993), research scientist who worked for the
Educational Testing Service, where he helped improve the
SAT •
James Isbell Armstrong (1919–2013), academic who was President of
Middlebury College from 1963 to 1975 •
Milton Babbitt (1916–2011), composer and Princeton University professor •
William Bainbridge (1774–1833),
Commodore in the
United States Navy •
Molly Bang (born 1943), children's book illustrator •
George Barna (born 1954), founder of
The Barna Group, a market research firm specializing in studying the religious beliefs and behavior of Americans •
Chris Barron (born 1968), lead singer of the
Spin Doctors •
Leonard E. Baum (1931–2017), mathematician and cryptographer •
Charles Clinton Beatty (1800–1880), Presbyterian minister, seminary founder and academic philanthropist •
Saul Bellow (1915–2005), author and Princeton University professor •
Paul Benacerraf (1930–2025), philosopher and Princeton University professor •
Peter Benchley (1940–2006), author and screenwriter,
Jaws,
The Island, lived and died in Princeton •
Wendy Benchley (born 1941), marine and environmental conservation advocate and former Princeton Borough councilwoman who was the wife of author
Peter Benchley •
Ed Berger (1949–2017), librarian, discographer, author, editor, historian, photographer, educator, jazz producer and record label owner •
Stanley S. Bergen Jr. (1929–2019),
physician,
university president, and professor, who was President of the
University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey from 1971 to 1998 •
Laurie Berkner (born 1969), musician best known for her work as a
children's musical artist •
Geoffrey Berman (born 1959), lawyer currently serving as the Interim
United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York •
Garrett Birkhoff (1911–1996),
mathematician best known for his work in
lattice theory •
Cyril Edwin Black (1915–1989), professor of history and international affairs, specializing in the modern history of Eastern Europe and, in particular, Russian history since 1700 •
William E. Bonini (1926–2016), geologist and
geophysicist •
Michael Bradley (born 1987), soccer player •
Avery Brooks (born 1948), actor, singer and educator •
George Harold Brown (1908–1987), research engineer at RCA, lived in Princeton •
Cameron Brink (born 2001),
WNBA player for the
Los Angeles Sparks •
Aaron Burr (1756–1836), third Vice President of the United States (under
Thomas Jefferson); killed
Alexander Hamilton in a duel, grew up in Princeton and is buried there •
Aaron Burr Sr. (1715–1757), co-founder of
Princeton University and its second president •
Lesley Bush (born 1947),
diver who represented the United States at the
1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, where she received a gold medal in the
10 meter platform •
Sim Cain (born 1963), drummer for
Rollins Band, grew up in Princeton •
Marsha Campbell (born 1946), politician who served in the
Missouri House of Representatives •
Melisa Can (born 1984 as Michelle Marie Campbell), professional
basketball player at the
power forward position who plays for
Adana ASKİ •
Mary Chapin Carpenter (born 1958), country/folk singer, born and grew up in Princeton •
William Ashburner Cattell (1863–1920), civil engineer and railroad company president; born in Princeton •
Damien Chazelle (born 1985), film director, producer, and writer. Youngest winner of the
Academy Award for Best Director •
Blair Clark (1917–2000), journalist and political activist who was general manager / vice president of
CBS News and Senator
Eugene McCarthy's national campaign manager for the
1968 presidential nomination •
Patrick Clark (1955–1998), chef •
Frances Folsom Cleveland (1864–1947),
First Lady, died in and is buried in Princeton •
Grover Cleveland (1837–1908), 22nd and 24th President of the United States, retired to, died in, and buried in Princeton •
Ruth Cleveland (1891–1904), daughter of Grover and Frances Cleveland born between Cleveland's two terms in office, died at age 12 and is buried at
Princeton Cemetery •
Chris Conley (born 1980), lead singer of
Saves the Day, born and grew up in Princeton •
Archibald Crossley (1896–1985), pollster, statistician and pioneer in public opinion research •
John Crowley (born 1967), biotechnology executive and entrepreneur and the chairman and CEO of
Amicus Therapeutics •
Kelly Curtis (born 1989),
skeleton racer who competed at the
2022 Winter Olympics and
2026 Winter Olympics •
Whitney Darrow Jr. (1909–1999), cartoonist at
The New Yorker •
Frederic Lansing Day (1890–1981), playwright •
Jon Drezner, architect and designer •
Howard Duffield (1854–1941),
Presbyterian minister •
Freeman Dyson (1923–2020), theoretical physicist and fellow at the
Institute for Advanced Study •
Jonathan Edwards (1703–1758),
Congregationalist Church theologian, Princeton University's third president •
Albert Einstein (1879–1955), physicist, fellow at the
Institute for Advanced Study •
Maria (Maja) Einstein (1881–1951), German Romanist and the younger sister of Albert Einstein •
Kate Elderkin (1897–1962), art historian and archaeologist •
T. S. Eliot (1888–1965), author •
Daniel Errico, children's book author and children's media content creator who is the creator and executive producer of Hulu's kids TV series
The Bravest Knight •
Katherine Ettl (–1993), sculptor best known for her monumental bronzes •
Charles Evered (born 1964), playwright, screenwriter and director, resident of Princeton •
Henry B. Eyring (born 1933), Second Counselor in the
First Presidency of
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and president of
Ricks College, born in Princeton •
Robert Fagles (1933–2008), professor, poet, and academic, best known for his many translations of ancient Greek and Roman classics, especially his translations of the epic poems of Homer •
Mervin Field (1921–2015), public opinion pollster whose career in polling began with a poll of Princeton High School students in a class election •
Abner S. Flagg (1851–1923), businessman and politicians, served in the
Wisconsin State Assembly and as Mayor of
Edgerton, Wisconsin •
Richard Ford (born 1944), writer, taught at Princeton University, wrote several books set in a fictionalized Haddam, New Jersey, based in part on Princeton •
Colette Fu, photographer, book artist and paper engineer •
N. Howell Furman (1892–1965), professor of
analytical chemistry who helped develop the electrochemical
uranium separation process as part of the
Manhattan Project •
George Gallup (1901–1984), statistician and creator of the
Gallup poll, lived and is buried in Princeton •
George Gallup Jr. (1930–2011), pollster and author •
Evan Gershkovich (born 1991), journalist for
The Wall Street Journal who was detained by Russia as a spy •
Donald Gips (born 1960), Chief Domestic Policy Advisor to Vice President
Al Gore who was appointed
United States Ambassador to South Africa by Barack Obama •
Kurt Gödel (1906–1978), Austrian-American logician, mathematician and philosopher, fellow at the
Institute for Advanced Study •
Rona Goffen (1944–2004), art historian who specialized in Italian Renaissance art •
Caroline Gordon (1895–1981), novelist, lived in Princeton from 1956 to 1975 •
Michael Graves (1934–2015), architect, lived and worked in Princeton •
Fred Greenstein (1930–2018),
political scientist •
Ariela Gross (born 1965), historian who is the John B. and Alice R. Sharp Professor of Law and History at the
University of Southern California Gould School of Law •
Chris Harford, self-taught singer, songwriter, guitarist and painter •
Ethan Hawke (born 1970), actor •
Sarah Hay (born 1987), actress and
ballet dancer with the
Semperoper in
Dresden •
Seth Herzog (born 1970), comedian •
Joseph Hewes (1730–1779), signer of the
United States Declaration of Independence, born in Princeton •
James Hillier (1915–2007), scientist and inventor who designed and built the first successful high-resolution
electron microscope in
North America •
James Robert Hillier (born 1937), architect, developer and educator •
Charles Hodge (1797–1878), theologian and Principal of
Princeton Theological Seminary •
Herbert Huffman (1905–1968), musician and choir director, founder of the
American Boychoir School •
Harold L. Humes (1926–1992), novelist who was the originator of
The Paris Review literary magazine •
Guy Hutchinson (born 1974), author, broadcaster, theme park historian and comedian •
Micky James (born 1993), singer, songwriter and musician •
Barbara Piasecka Johnson (1937–2013), Polish-born American humanitarian, philanthropist, art connoisseur and collector •
Hallett Johnson (1888–1968), career diplomat who served as the
United States Ambassador to Costa Rica •
Robert Wood Johnson II (1893–1968), Chairman of
Johnson & Johnson lived in
Morven •
John Katzenbach (born 1950), author of popular fiction •
Nick Kovalakides (born 1939/1940),
javelin thrower •
George F. Kennan (1904–2005), diplomat, historian, fellow at the Institute for Advanced Study •
Bernard Kilgore (1908–1967). managing editor of
The Wall Street Journal and president and chairman of
Dow Jones & Company •
Gina Kolata (born 1948), reporter for
The New York Times •
Barbara Krauthamer (born 1967), historian and author •
Paul Krugman (born 1953), Nobel Prize winner, economist, professor of economics and international affairs at Princeton University •
Matt Lalli (born 1986), professional lacrosse player for the
Boston Cannons of
Major League Lacrosse •
Chang-Rae Lee (born 1965), writer, Princeton University professor •
Frank Lewin (1925–2008), composer of concert music, film and television scores, and opera •
Arthur Lithgow (1915–2004), actor, director, educator, and managing director of Princeton's
McCarter Theatre •
John Lithgow (born 1945), actor, lived in Princeton in his late teens •
Emily Mann (born 1952), artistic director of Princeton's
McCarter Theatre •
Thomas Mann (1875–1955), author •
Jumana Manna (born 1987),
Palestinian visual artist •
Henry Martin (1925–2020), cartoonist at
The New Yorker, who lived and worked in Princeton •
Alpheus T. Mason (1899–1989), legal scholar and biographer •
John McPhee (born 1931), writer, lives in Princeton •
Brad Mays (born 1955), screenwriter, award-winning stage and film director •
Rachel Lambert Mellon (1910–2014), horticulturalist, gardener, philanthropist and art collector •
Lyle and Erik Menendez (born 1968 and born 1970), two brothers convicted of murdering their parents in 1989 •
Steve "Buddy" Miller (born 1952), Nashville session musician, grew up in Princeton and attended Princeton High School •
E. Spencer Miller (1817–1879), Dean of the
University of Pennsylvania Law School •
Jeannette Mirsky (1903–1987), author who was awarded a
Guggenheim Fellowship in 1947 for her biographical writings on the history of exploration •
Toni Morrison (1931–2019), author, Nobel Laureate, Princeton University professor •
Paul Muldoon (born 1951), Irish poet •
Jeanette Mundt (born 1982), painter, best known for her works in the 2019
Whitney Biennial •
James Murray (born 1976), improvisational comedian, author and actor who has starred on
Impractical Jokers •
John Forbes Nash Jr. (1928–2015), mathematician, Nobel Prize winner, subject of
A Beautiful Mind, Princeton University professor •
Charles Neider (1915–2001), author, Twain scholar; resided on Southern Way •
John von Neumann (1903−1957), Hungarian-American mathematician at
Princeton University and
Institute for Advanced Study •
Bebe Neuwirth (born 1958), actress, grew up in Princeton •
Joyce Carol Oates (born 1938), writer, Princeton University professor •
John O'Hara (1905–1970), author, lived in and is buried in Princeton •
Charles Smith Olden (1799–1876), Governor of New Jersey during the
American Civil War •
A. Dayton Oliphant (1887–1963), Associate Justice of the
New Jersey Supreme Court from 1945 to 1946, and from 1948 to 1957 •
Gregory Olsen (born 1945), entrepreneur, engineer and scientist who, in October 2005, became the third private citizen to make a self-funded trip to the
International Space Station •
J. Robert Oppenheimer (1904–1967), theoretical physicist, director of the Institute for Advanced Study •
Alicia Ostriker (born 1937), poet and scholar who writes Jewish
feminist poetry •
Jeremiah P. Ostriker (1937–2025), astronomer •
Unity Phelan (born 1994 or 1995), ballet dancer who joined the
New York City Ballet in 2013 and was promoted to soloist in 2017 •
John Popper (born 1967), lead singer of the band
Blues Traveler •
Andy Potts (born 1976), triathlete who represented the United States in
triathlon at the 2004 Summer Olympics •
Pete Raymond (born 1947), former
rower who competed in the
1968 Summer Olympics and in the
1972 Summer Olympics •
Christopher Reeve (1952–2004), actor, grew up in Princeton, attended
Princeton Day School •
Paul Robeson (1898–1976), singer, actor, athlete, civil rights activist, born and raised in Princeton •
Henry A. Rosso (1917–1999), leader in the formal development of the
fundraising profession in the United States •
Arnold Roth (born 1929), cartoonist, longtime Princeton resident •
William E. Schluter (1927–2018), politician who served in the
New Jersey General Assembly and the
New Jersey Senate •
Ralph Schoenstein (1933–2006), writer, lived in Princeton up to his death •
John Schneider (born 1980),
professional baseball coach for the
Toronto Blue Jays •
Bill Schroeder (born 1958),
Major League Baseball player for the
Milwaukee Brewers and
California Angels, Brewers commentator for
Fox Sports Wisconsin •
Roger Sessions (1896–1985), composer, Princeton University professor •
Tsutomu Shimomura (born 1964), Japanese-American scientist and computer security expert •
Andrew Shue (born 1967), actor and professional soccer player, grew up in northern New Jersey with sister, actress
Elisabeth Shue, lives in Princeton •
Michael Showalter (born 1970), comedian, actor, writer, and director, born in Princeton, attended Princeton High School •
Barbara Boggs Sigmund (1939–1990), mayor of Princeton •
Peter Singer (born 1946), moral philosopher, bioethicist and Princeton University professor •
Shelley Smith (1952–2023), actress •
Tom Snow (born 1947), musician •
Gennady Spirin (born 1948), artist •
Doreen Canaday Spitzer (1914–2010), archaeologist •
Betsey Stockton (–1865), educator and missionary, manumitted from slavery and later retired to and died in Princeton •
John P. Stockton (1826–1900), U.S. senator from New Jersey, lived in Princeton •
Richard Stockton (1730–1781), signer of the
United States Declaration of Independence, lived in and is buried in Princeton •
Richard Stockton (1764–1828), U.S. senator from New Jersey, lived in Princeton •
Robert F. Stockton (1795–1866),
United States Navy commodore, U.S. Military
Governor of California, lived in Princeton •
Janet Sorg Stoltzfus, (1931–2004), educator, who established the Ta'iz Cooperative School, the first non-religious school in north Yemen •
Robert Stone (born 1958, class of 1976), director and
documentary filmmaker •
Jon Tenney (born 1961), actor, born and raised in Princeton •
Paul Tulane (1801–1887), benefactor and namesake of
Tulane University •
Shawn Tully (born 1948). business journalist at
Fortune magazine •
Immanuel Velikovsky (1895–1979), controversial theorist and acquaintance of Albert Einstein •
Brandon Wagner (born 1995), professional baseball player •
Susie Ione Brown Waxwood (1902–2006), clubwoman and
YWCA official in Princeton •
Andrew Wiles (born 1953), mathematician who proved
Fermat's Last Theorem, Princeton University professor •
Woodrow Wilson (1856–1924), 28th President of the United States, 13th president of Princeton University,
Governor of New Jersey •
John Witherspoon (1723–1794), signer of the
United States Declaration of Independence, president of Princeton University •
Edward Witten (born 1951), mathematician and physicist, fellow at the Institute for Advanced Study •
Richard L. Wright (born 1943), political leader who held a number of positions at both the state and national level •
Sarah Zelenka (born 1987), rower at the
2012 Summer Olympics •
Vladimir K. Zworykin (1888–1982), Russian-American engineer, inventor and television pioneer ==In popular culture==