This is a list of prominent people who were born in the state of Rhode Island or who spent significant periods of their lives in the state.

Academia

James Burrill Angell (1829–1916) – educator, academic administrator, and diplomat
Glen Bowersock (born 1936) – scholar of the ancient world and the history of ancient Greece, Rome, and the Near East
David Carlin (born 1938) – professor of sociology and philosophy at Community College of Rhode Island
Robert Carothers (born 1942) – president of the University of Rhode Island
Ronald Champagne – president of Elmira College, Merrimack College, and Shimer College^[1]
Sarah Doyle (1830–1922) – educator and reformer
Paula Fredriksen (born 1951) – historian and scholar of religious studies
Henry Giroux (born 1943) – radical educator and cultural critic
Neil Lanctot (born 1966) – historian
Francis Leo Lawrence (1937–2013) – educator, scholar of French literature, and university administrator
Edward T. Lewis (also known as Ted Lewis) – president of St. Mary's College of Maryland, president of the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, writer, and poet
Helen Adelia Rowe Metcalf (1830–1895) – founder and director of the Rhode Island School of Design
Barry Mills (born 1950) – fourteenth president of Bowdoin College
Salvatore D. Morgera (born 1946) – Professor of Electrical Engineering at University of South Florida
Wilfred Harold Munro (1849–1934) – historian
Richard Vangermeersch (born 1940) – economist, Emeritus Professor of Accounting at the University of Rhode Island
Minton Warren (1850–1907) – classical scholar

Activism, civil rights, and philanthropy

Susan Hammond Barney (1834-1922) — social activist
Josephine Byrd — civil rights activist in Woonsocket, RI
Zechariah Chafee (1885–1957) – judicial philosopher, civil rights advocate
Elizabeth Buffum Chace (1806–1899) – activist in the anti-slavery, women's-rights, and prison-reform movements of the mid-to-late 19th century
Ann Keefe – social activist and nun (1952–2015)
Richard Holcomb (born 1976) — human rights advocate, street outreach worker, HIV prevention counselor, and co-founder of Project Weber/Renew
Cornelia Bryce Pinchot (1881–1960) – Newport native who became a conservationist, Progressive politician, women's rights activist, and First Lady of Pennsylvania
Mary Reilly (born 1930) — teacher, leader, advocate for girls and women living in poverty
Abby Aldrich Rockefeller (1874–1948) – philanthropist
Marvin Ronning (1961–2022) — education and environmental advocate; senior administrator at the Rhode Island Free Clinic
Juanita Sánchez (died 1992) — social worker and social activist
Robert Ellis Smith (1940–2018) – publisher and consumer activist, Privacy Journal; civil rights journalist in Alabama
Marjorie van Vliet (1923–1990) – teacher and aviator

Art, literature, and design

Jacob M. Appel (born 1973) – novelist
John Noble Barlow (1861–1917) – painter
Lee Bontecou (born 1931) – sculptor and printmaker
Mary Hannah Gray Clarke (1835-1892) — author, correspondent, and poet
George M. Cohan (1878–1942) – playwright, composer, and vaudeville performer
Paul Di Filippo (born 1954) – science fiction author and critic
Denise Duhamel (born 1961) – poet
Judith Dupré – author
C. M. Eddy Jr. (1896–1967) – author
Jeanpaul Ferro – poet, short fiction author, novelist
F. Burge Griswold (1826–1900) — author
John Hawkes (1925–1998) – novelist
Greta Hodgkinson – ballet dancer
Ann Hood (born 1956) – novelist and short story writer
Raymond Mathewson Hood (1881–1934) – architect
Galway Kinnell – poet
Eleanor Kirk (1831–1908) — author, publisher
Christopher La Farge –novelist and poet
Jhumpa Lahiri – Pulitzer Prize-author
H. P. Lovecraft (1890–1937) – author
Maxwell Mays (1918–2009) – painter
David Macaulay (born 1946) – author
Cormac McCarthy (born 1933) – novelist
Don McGregor (born 1945) – comic book writer
Edwin O'Connor (1918–1968) – novelist
S.J. Perelman (1904–1979) – humorist, critic
Peter Pezzelli (born 1959) – author
David Plante (born 1940) – novelist
George Schuyler (1895–1977) – author
Bert Shurtleff (1897–1967) – author
Gilbert Stuart (1755–1828) – painter
Philemon Sturges (1929–2005) – architect and children's author
Cynthia Taggart (1801–1849) — poet
Thomas Alexander Tefft (1826–1859) – architect
Chrysanthemum Tran — poet
Don Winslow (born 1953) – author

Athletics

A–G

Lou Abbruzzi (1917–1982) – football player
Pat Abbruzzi (1932–1998) – football player
Noel Acciari (born 1991) – ice hockey player
Gary Albright (1963–2000) – wrestler
Bill Almon (born 1952) – baseball player
Deon Anderson (born 1983) – football player
Billy Andrade (born 1964) – golfer
Demetrius Andrade (born 1988) – boxer
Earl Audet (1921–2002) – football player
Rocco Baldelli (born 1981) – baseball player, manager
Marvin Barnes (1952–2014) – basketball player
Elizabeth Beisel (born 1992) – Olympic swimmer (2008, 2012)
Jeff Beliveau (born 1987) – baseball player
Curt Bennett (born 1948) – ice hockey player
Harvey Bennett (born 1952) – ice hockey player
John Bennett (born 1950) – ice hockey player
Bryan Berard (born 1977) – ice hockey player
Will Blackmon (born 1984) – football player
Brian Boucher (born 1977) – ice hockey player
Pedro Braz (born 1985) – soccer player
Paul Briggs (1920–2011) – football player
Ellison "Tarzan" Brown (1913–1975) – two-time Boston Marathon champion and U.S. Olympian
Brian Burke (born 1955) – ice hockey executive
Ernie Calverley (1924–2003) – basketball player
Dave Capuano (born 1968) – ice hockey player
Jack Capuano (born 1966) – ice hockey player, head coach
Keith Carney (born 1970) – ice hockey player and U.S. Olympian (1998)
Marissa Castelli (born 1990) – Olympic pairs figure skater (2014)
Tom Cavanagh (1982–2011) – hockey player
Malcolm Chance (1875–1955) – Hall of Fame tennis player
Mike Cloud (born 1975) – football player
Fred Corey (1855–1912) – baseball player
Miguel Cotto (born 1980) – boxer
Jill Craybas (born 1974) – tennis player
Sara DeCosta (born 1977) – Olympic ice hockey champion and silver medalist (1998, 2002)
Al Del Greco (born 1962) – football player, radio personality
Ernie DiGregorio (born 1951) – basketball player
Clark Donatelli (born 1967) – ice hockey player and U.S. Olympian (1988, 1992)
Allen Doyle (born 1948) – golfer
Pat Duff (1875–1925) – baseball player
David Duke Jr. (born 1999) – basketball player
Anthony Durante (1967–2003) – professional wrestler
Joe Exter (born 1978) – ice hockey player
Brad Faxon (born 1961) – golfer
Claire Waters Ferguson (born 1936) – ice skating executive
Melissa Fiorentino (born 1977) – boxer
Steve Furness (1950–2000) – football player, coach
Tom Garrick (born 1966) – basketball player
Rob Gaudreau (born 1970) – ice hockey player
Dave Gavitt (1937–2011) – basketball coach
Billy Gonsalves (1908–1977) – soccer player
Lou Gorman (1929–2011) – baseball executive
Paul Guay (born 1963) – ice hockey player

H–Z

Gabby Hartnett (1900–1972) – baseball player
Joe Hassett (born 1955) – basketball player
Tom Healey (1853–1891) – baseball player
Anne Hird (born 1959) — pioneering marathon runner
P. H. Horgan III (born 1960) – golfer
Tony Horton (born 1958) – physical fitness expert
Robert Howard (1975–2004) – 1996 and 2000 U.S. Olympic Track & Field Team
John Hynes (born 1975) – ice hockey head coach
Matt Hyson (born 1970) – wrestler
Chris Iannetta (born 1983) – baseball player
Drew Inzer (born 1979) – football player
Jeff Jillson (born 1980) – ice hockey player
Steven King (born 1969) – ice hockey player
Paul Konerko (born 1976) – baseball player
Clem Labine (1926–2007) – baseball player
Nap Lajoie (1874–1959) – Hall of Fame baseball player
Clara LaMore (1926–2021) – International Swimming Hall of Fame inductee
Lou Lamoriello (born 1942) – ice hockey executive
Rick Lancellotti (born 1956) – baseball player
John LaRose (1951–2021) – baseball player
Brian Lawton (born 1965) – hockey player
Ricky Ledo (born 1992) – basketball player
Ed Lee (born 1961) – ice hockey player
David Littman (born 1967) – ice hockey player
Davey Lopes (born 1945) – baseball player and coach
Peter Manfredo (born 1980) – boxer
Ken McDonald (born 1970) – basketball player, coach
John Mellekas (1933–2015) – football player
Tom Mellor (born 1950) – hockey player and U.S. Olympian (1972)
Ray Monaco (1918–2002) – football player
Chet Nichols Jr. (1931–1995) – baseball player
Bill Osmanski (1915–1996) – College Football Hall of Fame inductee
Chuck Palumbo (born 1971) – wrestler
Don Panciera (1927–2012) – football player
Les Pawson (1905–1992) – two-time Boston Marathon winner
Kwity Paye (born 1998) – football player
Vinny Paz (born 1962) – boxer, five-time world champion
Gerry Philbin (born 1941) – football player
David Quinn (born 1966) – ice hockey player
Joe Reed (born 1948) – football player
Aileen Riggin (1906–2002) – swimmer
Bill Sandeman (born 1942) – football player
Mathieu Schneider (born 1969) – professional ice hockey player
Bobby Sewall (born 1988) – football player
Bert Shurtleff (1897–1967) – football player
Jamie Silva (born 1984) – football player
Jim Siwy (born 1958) – baseball player
A.J. Smith (born 1949) – football executive
Hank Soar (1914–2001) – football player
Joe Soares – rugby player
Sean Soriano – mixed martial artist
Andre Soukhamthath – mixed martial artist
Mike Stefanik (1958–2019) – NASCAR driver
Bill Summers (1895–1966) – Major League Baseball umpire
Chris Terreri (born 1964) – NHL goalie, two Stanley Cups and U.S. Olympian (1988)
Mark Van Eeghen (born 1952) – NFL Pro Bowl running back
Dan Wheeler (born 1977) – baseball player
Cody Wild (born 1987) – ice hockey player
Mason Williams (born 1991) – baseball player
Ron Wilson (born 1955) – ice hockey player, head coach
Jeff Xavier (born 1985) – basketball player

Business

Zachariah Allen (1795–1882) – textile manufacturer, scientist, lawyer, writer, inventor and civil leader
Everett M. "Busy" Arnold (1899–1974) – comic book publisher
F. Nelson Blount (1918–1967) – industrialist and railroad enthusiast, founder of the Blount Seafood Corporation and Steamtown, USA
John Brown (1736–1803) – merchant and slave-trader, original owner of the John Brown House, co-founder of the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations (Brown University)
Moses Brown (1738–1836) – co-founder of the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations (Brown University)
Nicholas Brown Jr. (1769–1841) – businessman and philanthropist for whom Brown University is named
Robert Crandall (born 1935) – former president and chairman of American Airlines
Glenn Creamer – senior managing director of Providence Equity Partners
Marcel Desaulniers (born 1945) – chef and director emeritus of the Culinary Institute of America
Wylie Dufresne (born 1970) – celebrity chef, owner of wd~50 restaurant in Manhattan^[2]
Ann Smith Franklin (1696–1763) – publisher
Darius Goff (1809–1891) – Pawtucket textile mill owner
Catherine Littlefield Greene (1755–1814) – wife of Nathanael Greene
Daniel Harple (born 1959) – entrepreneur, investor, inventor
Bradley S. Jacobs (born 1956) – chairman and chief executive officer of XPO Logistics
Laura Lang – former chief executive officer of Time Inc.
Aaron Lopez (1731–1782) – slave merchant and philanthropist, wealthiest person in Newport
Edward J. McElroy (born 1941) – labor union executive
James McNerney (born 1949) – business executive
David Nason (born 1970) – president and CEO of GE Energy Financial Services
Jonathan M. Nelson (born 1956) – businessman and investor, founder of Providence Equity Partners
Carolyn Rafaelian – designer, philanthropist, and business woman, founder of Alex and Ani
Samuel Slater (1768–1835) – industrialist, "father of the industrial revolution"
Henry J. Steere (1830–1889) – textile industrialist, philanthropist
Judah Touro (1775–1854) – businessman
William Kissam Vanderbilt (1849–1920) – member of the prominent American Vanderbilt family, original owner of Marble House in Newport
William Vernon (1719–1806) – trader

Crime

Thomas Tew (?–1695) – pirate

Film and television

A–L

Norm Abram (born 1950) – carpenter and television performer
Robert Aldrich (1918–1983) – film director
Gianna Amore (born 1968) – model and actress
Harry Anderson (1952–2018) – actor, Night Court
David Angell (1946–2001) – television producer
Nadia Bjorlin (born 1980) – actress
Billy Bush (born 1971) – radio and TV host, Access Hollywood, Today
Ruth Buzzi (born 1936) – comedian, Laugh-In
Sean Callery (born 1964) – film and television composer
Robert Capron (born 1998) – actor
Marilyn Chambers (1952–2009) – pornographic film actress
Zoë Chao (born 1985) - actress
Harry Cicma (born 1982) – Emmy Award-winning sports anchor, professional tennis player
Amanda Clayton (born 1981) – actress, City on a Hill
Nicholas Colasanto (1924–1985) – actor and director, Cheers
Michael Corrente (born 1959) – film director and producer
Olivia Culpo (born 1992) – Miss Rhode Island USA 2012, Miss USA 2012, Miss Universe 2012
Sam Daly (born 1984) – actor
Viola Davis (born 1965) – Academy Award-winning actress
Charlie Day (born 1976) – actor, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
Vin Di Bona (born 1944) – television producer
Eddie Dowling (1895–1976) – actor
Alice Drummond (1929–2016) – actress
Jack Duffy (1882–1939) – film actor
Nelson Eddy (1901–1967) – actor and singer
Susan Eisenberg (born 1964) – voice actress
Mark Famiglietti (born 1979) – actor
Bobby Farrelly (born 1958) – film director
Peter Farrelly (born 1956) – film director
Mat Franco (born 1988) – magician, America's Got Talent winner
Matt Fraser (born 1991) – psychic and television personality
Peter Frechette (born 1956) – actor
Peter Gerety (born 1940) – actor
Joanna Going (born 1963) – actress
Spalding Gray (1941–2004) – actor and writer
Richard Hart (1915–1951) – actor
Elisabeth Hasselbeck (born 1977) – television personality
Sam Hyde – comedian
Richard Hatch (born 1961) – reality television contestant
Jason Hawes (born 1971) – television actor
David Hedison (1927–2019) – actor
Brian Helgeland (born 1961) – screenwriter, film producer and director
Ruth Hussey (1911–2005) – Academy Award-nominated actress
Thomas Harper Ince (1882–1924) – film producer, director, actor
Richard Jenkins (born 1947) – Academy Award-nominated actor
Joyce Jillson (1946–2004) – actress, author, and astrologer
Van Johnson (1916–2008) – actor, The Caine Mutiny, Brigadoon
Claudia Jordan (born 1973) – Miss Rhode Island Teen USA 1997
Ted Knight (1923–1986) – actor, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Caddyshack
Geoffrey Lewis (1935–2015) – actor
Eric Lutes (born 1962) – actor

M–Z

Seth MacFarlane (born 1973) – voice actor, creator of Family Guy, American Dad!, The Cleveland Show, and Ted
George Macready (1899–1973) – actor
Mike Maronna (born 1977) – actor
Jason Marsden (born 1975) – actor
Louis B. Mayer (1884–1957) – film producer and MGM studio mogul
Matt McCarthy (born 1979) – comedian, actor
Ron McLarty (1947–2020) – actor, playwright, novelist
Michaela McManus (born 1983) – actress, Law & Order: SVU, One Tree Hill
Caroline McWilliams (1945–2010) – actress
Debra Messing (born 1968) – actress, Will and Grace
Shanna Moakler (born 1975) – Miss Rhode Island Teen USA 1992, Miss New York USA 1995, Miss USA 1995
Mark Morettini (born 1962) – actor, Prison Break
Christopher Murney (born 1943) – actor
Arden Myrin (born 1973) – actress
Brendan O'Malley (born 1969) – actor and writer^[3]
Vincent Pagano (born 1967) – actor
Pauly D (born 1980) – television personality, DJ, cast member of Jersey Shore
David Petrarca (born 1962) – film, television and theatre director
Ben Powers (1950–2015) – actor, Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In
Ford Rainey (1908–2005) – actor
Don Reo – television producer
Kali Rocha (born 1971) – actress
Charles Rocket (1945–2005) – actor
Josh Schwartz (born 1976) – television producer
Dave Shalansky (born 1973) – actor
Chris Sparling (born 1977) – screenwriter and director
Christopher Stanley (born 1965) – actor, Henry Francis on Mad Men
Mena Suvari (born 1979) – actress, American Beauty
Aimee Sweet (born 1977) – model and actress
Saucy Sylvia (1921–2017) – comedian, singer, radio personality
Erika Van Pelt – American Idol finalist
Meredith Vieira (born 1953) – television personality
David S. Ward (born 1945) – film director, Academy Award-winning screenwriter (The Sting)
Desiree Washington (born 1973) – model
James Woods (born 1947) – Academy Award-nominated actor

Journalism

Allen Bestwick (born 1961) – sportscaster
Angelo Cataldi – sportscaster
David Hartman (born 1935) – actor, television personality
Irving R. Levine (1922–2009) – journalist
Walter Mossberg (born 1947) – columnist
Al Rockoff – photographer
George Schuyler (1895–1977) – author, journalist
A. O. Scott (born 1966) – film critic
Jeff Stein (born 1944) – columnist, blogger
Doug White (1944–2006) – television newscaster
Jack White (1942–2005) – journalist

Military

William Henry Allen (1784–1813) – Navy officer
John Nicholas Brown II (1900–1979) – United States Assistant Secretary of the Navy (AIR)
Ambrose Burnside (1824–1881) – Army officer
Stephen Champlin (1789–1870) – Navy officer
Godfrey Chevalier (1889–1922) – Navy officer
Nathanael Greene (1742–1786) – Continental Army officer, considered George Washington's most gifted officer
Esek Hopkins (1718–1802) – Commander in Chief of the Continental Navy during the American Revolutionary War
Leon J. LaPorte (born 1946) – Army officer, former U.S. Forces Korea commander
George Luz (1921–1998) –- member of famed Easy Company 506th, 101st.
Matthew C. Perry (1794–1858) – Navy officer
Oliver Hazard Perry (1785–1819) – Navy officer
Elisha Hunt Rhodes (1842–1917) – Army
Isaac P. Rodman (1822–1862) – Army officer
James Mitchell Varnum (1748–1789) – general in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War
Samuel Ward Jr. (1756–1832) – American Revolutionary War soldier and delegate to the secessionist Hartford Convention
Frank Wheaton (1833–1903) – Army officer
Abraham Whipple (1733–1819) – Continental Navy commander-in-chief
David B. Champagne (1932-1952) – Medal of Honor recipient

Music

Greg Abate (born 1947) – jazz musician
Stevie Aiello (born 1983) – founding member of Monty Are I, and touring musician with Thirty Seconds to Mars
AraabMuzik (born 1989) – record producer and DJ
Dicky Barrett (born 1964) – popular musician, frontman of The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, announcer for Jimmy Kimmel Live!
David Blue (1941–1982) – singer-songwriter
John Cafferty – musician known for work with The Beaver Brown Band and for the Eddie and the Cruisers soundtrack
Blu Cantrell (born 1976) – musician
Wendy Carlos (born 1939) – composer and electronic music pioneer
George M. Cohan (1878–1942) – entertainer, singer, dancer, subject of the film, Yankee Doodle Dandy
Bill Conti (born 1942) – film music composer, Rocky
Bill Cowsill (1948–2006) – musician
Tanya Donelly (born 1966) – musician
John Dwyer (born 1974) – multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, songwriter, visual artist, and record label owner
Eileen Farrell (1920–2002) – opera singer
Sage Francis (born 1976) – musician
Billy Gilman (born 1988) – musician
Al Gomes (born 1960) – record producer and songwriter
Lukasz Gottwald (born 1973) – songwriter
Bobby Hackett (1915–1976) – jazz musician
Scott Hamilton (born 1954) – jazz tenor saxophonist
Kristin Hersh (born 1966) – musician
Jon B. (born 1974) – musician
Jesse Leach (born 1978) – popular musician
Mapei (born 1983) – recording artist
Alexis S.F. Marshall – vocalist for the experimental rock band Daughters
Dave McKenna (1930–2008) – jazz pianist
Paul Motian (1931–2011) – jazz drummer, composer, bandleader
Nico Muhly (born 1981) – contemporary classical music composer
David Narcizo (born 1966) – musician
David Olney (1948–2020) – musician
Jeffrey Osborne (born 1948) – musician
Mike Renzi (born 1946) – pianist
Duke Robillard (born 1948) – blues musician
Kim Schifino – musician
Carol Sloane (born 1937) – jazz singer
Mike Stud (born 1988) – rapper, former athlete
Erika Van Pelt (born 1985) – singer
Leon Wilkeson (1952–2001) – bassist for Lynyrd Skynyrd
Don Wise (born 1942) – tenor saxophonist, music producer, songwriter
Arizona Zervas (born 1995) – rapper, composer, singer

Politics and government

A–L

Lincoln Almond (born 1936) – former governor
Thomas Angell (1618–1694) – co-founder of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations
Jonathan Earle Arnold (1814–1869) – member of the Wisconsin Territorial Council
Peleg Arnold (1751–1820) – lawyer, tavern-keeper, jurist, and statesman
Joshua Babcock (1707–1783) – physician, American Revolution general, state Supreme Court justice, and postmaster
Latimer Whipple Ballou (1812–1900) – member of the House of Representatives
Sullivan Ballou (1829–1861) – state representative and Army officer
Oliver Belmont (1858–1908) – charter member of the Rhode Island Society of Sons of the Revolution, Representative for New York
Charles R. Brayton (1840–1910) – politician and lobbyist whom The New York Times called the "Blind Boss of Rhode Island"
Samuel W. Bridgham (1776–1740) – first mayor of Providence
Frank Caprio (born 1936) – judge and television performer
John Chafee (1922–1999) – U.S. Senator
Lincoln Chafee (born 1953) – U.S. Senator, governor of Rhode Island, presidential candidate
Vincent "Buddy" Cianci Jr. (1941–2016) – former mayor of Providence
David Cicilline (born 1961) – Representative and Mayor of Providence
William Coddington (1601–1678) – magistrate of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, Judge of Portsmouth, Judge of Newport, Governor of Portsmouth and Newport, Deputy Governor of the entire colony, and governor of the colony
Thomas Corcoran (1900–1981) – member of President Franklin Roosevelt's "Brain Trust" during the New Deal and an advisor to President Lyndon B. Johnson
Percy Daniels (1840–1916) – Populist politician
Edward D. DiPrete (born 1934) – former governor of Rhode Island
Thomas Donilon – National Security Adviser under President Barack Obama
Thomas A. Doyle (1827–1886) – Mayor of Providence for eighteen years
Job Durfee (1790–1847) – Congressman
Elisha Dyer Jr. (1839–1906) – 45th Governor of Rhode Island, mayor of Providence
William Ellery (1727–1820) – a signer of the United States Declaration of Independence as a representative of Rhode Island
Arthur Fenner (1745–1805) – fourth governor of Rhode Island
Michael Flynn (born 1958) – retired Army lieutenant general and National Security Advisor
Theodore Foster (1752–1828) – one of the first two United States senators from Rhode Island
Samuel Gorton (1593–1677) – settled Warwick
Daniel L. D. Granger (1852–1909) – Representative and mayor of Providence
Theodore F. Green (1867–1866) – United States Senator, 57th Governor of Rhode Island, and namesake of T. F. Green Airport
Christopher R. Hill (born 1952) – diplomat, Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs
Stephen Hopkins (1707–1785) – Governor of Rhode Island, RI Supreme Court justice, Signatory of the Declaration of Independence
Joseph B. Keenan – Chief Prosecutor in the International Military Tribunal for the Far East
Ambrose Kennedy (1875–1967) – Congressman
Kat Kerwin (1997) – former politician who served as the youngest member of the Providence City Council from 2019 until 2023
Pat LaMarche (born 1960) – Green Party presidential candidate
William C. Lovering (1835–1910) – Congressman

M–Z

Tiara Mack (1993) – State Senator
James McAndrews (1862–1942) – Congressman
William McCormick (born 1939) – diplomat, United States Ambassador to New Zealand
J. Howard McGrath (1903–1966) – Governor of Rhode Island, Solicitor General, Senator, chairman of the Democratic National Committee, and Attorney General of the United States
Edwin D. McGuinness (1856–1901) – first Irish-Catholic mayor of Providence
Florence K. Murray (1916–2004) – officer in Women's Army Corps, first female state senator in Rhode Island, first female judge in Rhode Island, and first female member of the Rhode Island Supreme Court
Dee Dee Myers (born 1961) – White House Press Secretary
Annette Nazareth (born 1956) – commissioner of the Securities and Exchange Commission
Joseph R. Paolino Jr. – U.S. Ambassador to Malta, former Mayor of Providence
John O. Pastore (1907–2000) – Governor of Rhode Island, Senator
Claiborne Pell (1918–2009) – Senator, diplomat, sponsor of Pell grants
Aram J. Pothier (1854–1928) – Governor of Rhode Island, banker
Jack Reed (born 1949) – Senator
Dennis J. Roberts (1903–1994) – 63rd Governor of Rhode Island
Christopher Robinson (1806–1889) – congressman
James Y. Smith (1809–1876) – mayor of Providence and 29th Governor of Rhode Island
Sean Spicer (born 1971) – White House Press Secretary for President Donald Trump
William Sprague (1799–1856) – 14th Governor, a U.S. Representative, and a Senator
William H. Sullivan (1922–2013) – U.S. Ambassador
Bruce Sundlun (1920–2011) – former governor
Charles Tillinghast James (1805–1862) – U.S. Senator
Pat Toomey (born 1961) – Senator for Pennsylvania
Samuel Ward (1725–1776) – RI Supreme Court justice, Governor of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, and a delegate to the Continental Congress
William West (1733–1816) – American Revolution general, Lieutenant Governor, RI Supreme Court justice, anti-federalist leader
Sheldon Whitehouse (born 1955) – state Attorney General, Senator
Charles C. Van Zandt (1830–1894) – former governor

Religion

Alfred W. Anthony (1860–1939) – author, Free Will Baptist leader, and religion professor at Bates College
Emeline S. Burlingame (1836-1923) — president, Rhode Island Woman’s Christian Temperance Union; president, Free Baptist Woman‘s Missionary Society
William Ellery Channing (1780–1842) – Unitarian theologian
John Clarke (1609–1676) – Baptist minister, co-founder of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, author of its influential charter, and a leading advocate of religious freedom in America
Maurice Davis (1921–1993) – Rabbi and human-rights activist
Ernest Fortin (1923–2002) – Assumptionist and professor of theology at Boston College
Mark Antony De Wolfe Howe (1808–1895) – Episcopal Church bishop
Anne Hutchinson (1591–1643) – early settler of Newport, catalyst of the Antinomian Controversy
James Manning (1738–1791) – American Baptist minister, co-founder and first president of the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations (Brown University)
Edwards Amasa Park (1808–1900) – theologian
Ezra Stiles (1727–1795) – Congregationalist minister and co-founder of the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations]]
Roger Williams (1603–1684) – founder of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, influential author, considered the first proponent of separation of church and state

Science

Aaron T. Beck (1921-2021) – psychiatrist
George Brayton (1830–1892) – mechanical engineer
Joseph Brown (1733–1785) – astronomer
Rita Charon (born 1949) – physician
Solomon Drowne (1753–1834) – physician, academic, and surgeon during the American Revolution
Sylvester Gardiner (1707–1786) – physician
Stuart Gitlow (born 1962) – psychiatrist
Frederic Poole Gorham (1871–1933) – bacteriologist
Nathanael Herreshoff (1848–1938) – naval engineer
Domina Jalbert (1904–1991) – inventor
Melanie Sanford (born 1975) – chemist
Anne Searls De Groot – physician, immunologist and co-founder and of the immunoinformatics company EpiVax
Sherwood C. Spring (born 1944) – astronaut
Robert Henry Thurston (1839–1903) – first president of the ASME
Frank E. Winsor (1870–1939) – civil engineer

References

^ Contreras, Russell (September 4, 2008). "Champagne Takes the Reins at Merrimack College". The Boston Globe.
^ "wd~50 – The Team". wd~50.
^ "Brendan O'Malley". IMDb.

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