Past Chancellors | WashU
Source: https://washu.edu/about-washu/history-and-traditions/past-chancellors
Archived: 2026-04-23 17:16
Past Chancellors | WashU
Skip to content
Skip to search
Skip to footer
About WashU
Our Mission and Vision
University Leadership
History and Traditions
Past Chancellors
Nobel Prize Winners
University Policies
Our Campuses
University Facts
Updates on Federal Impacts
Audited Financial Statements
Contact
Past Chancellors
Please explore the brief biographical sketches of the chancellors within the historical context of the challenges and accomplishments of their eras.
Joseph Gordon Hoyt
First Chancellor, 1858-62
William Chauvenet
Second Chancellor, 1862-69
William Greenleaf Eliot
Third Chancellor, 1870-87
Winfield Scott Chaplin
Fourth Chancellor, 1891-1907
David F. Houston
Fifth Chancellor, 1908-17
Frederic Aldin Hall
Sixth Chancellor, 1913-23
Herbert S. Hadley
Seventh Chancellor, 1923-27
George R. Throop
Eighth Chancellor, 1927-44
Arthur Holly Compton
Ninth Chancellor, 1945-53
Ethan A.H. Shepley
Tenth Chancellor, 1953-61
Carl Tolman
Eleventh Chancellor, 1961-62
Thomas H. Eliot
Twelfth Chancellor, 1962-71
William H. Danforth
Thirteenth Chancellor, 1971-95
Mark S. Wrighton
Fourteenth Chancellor, 1995 – 2019
Skip to content
Skip to search
Skip to footer
About WashU
Our Mission and Vision
University Leadership
History and Traditions
Past Chancellors
Nobel Prize Winners
University Policies
Our Campuses
University Facts
Updates on Federal Impacts
Audited Financial Statements
Contact
Past Chancellors
Please explore the brief biographical sketches of the chancellors within the historical context of the challenges and accomplishments of their eras.
Joseph Gordon Hoyt
First Chancellor, 1858-62
William Chauvenet
Second Chancellor, 1862-69
William Greenleaf Eliot
Third Chancellor, 1870-87
Winfield Scott Chaplin
Fourth Chancellor, 1891-1907
David F. Houston
Fifth Chancellor, 1908-17
Frederic Aldin Hall
Sixth Chancellor, 1913-23
Herbert S. Hadley
Seventh Chancellor, 1923-27
George R. Throop
Eighth Chancellor, 1927-44
Arthur Holly Compton
Ninth Chancellor, 1945-53
Ethan A.H. Shepley
Tenth Chancellor, 1953-61
Carl Tolman
Eleventh Chancellor, 1961-62
Thomas H. Eliot
Twelfth Chancellor, 1962-71
William H. Danforth
Thirteenth Chancellor, 1971-95
Mark S. Wrighton
Fourteenth Chancellor, 1995 – 2019