| Name | Dates | Achievement | At WWHS |
|---|---|---|---|
| A. David Abrams | 1919-1999 | Member of W. Va. House of Delegates | Graduated from WWHS |
| George T. Arnold | ? | Author of Media Writer's Handbook: A Guide to Common Writing and Editing Problems, a textbook used by journalism students in about 80 colleges and universities nationwide | Graduated from WWHS in 1958 |
| Robert Ash | 1939-2004 | Founder of Winterplace Ski Resort and manager of several other ski resorts; held several patents including one for a new type of snow gun currently used on many slopes; an expert water skier, snow skier, windsurfer, and sail boater | Graduated in 1957 |
| Dwight Billings | ? | Professor of sociology at the University of Kentucky, teaches in a number of areas of sociology, including the sociology of religion and Appalachian studies. He has been a visiting scholar at Harvard Divinity School and the University of Rome. | Graduated from WWHS in 1966 |
| Donald Edward Boyd | 1921-2005 | Played trombone for the Glen Gray, Harry James, and Les Brown orchestras | Graduated from WWHS in 1939 |
| Robert C. Brown | 1939- | West Virginia's most decorated Vietnam veteran | Class of 1957, enlisted in the Army in December 1956 |
| Mark Carman | 1960- | Grammy nominated and award winning music producer, musician and writer | Attended WWHS in 1976 and 1977 |
| H. Stan Cavendish | ? | President of West Virginia Verizon Communications. Previously was editor of the Weston Indepenent and (Buckhannon) Republican Delta newspapers | Graduated from WWHS in 1965, taught English at WWHS |
| Gayle Connelly | ? | Is married to West Virginia Governor Joe Manchin III | Graduated from WWHS in 1965 |
| Robbie Davis | ? | Now known as Rob Ashford, he won the 2002 Tony award for best choreographer for Thoroughly Modern Millie | Graduated from WWHS in 1978 |
| Henry Dickerson | ? | Played four years of professional basketball, including a year each with the Detroit Pistons and Atlanta Hawks; named head basketball coach at University of Tennesseee-Chattanooga in 1997 | Graduated from WWHS in 1969 |
| Howard Hurt | 1938- | Starter on the Duke basketball team in 1959, 1960, and 1961; drafted by Los Angeles Lakers in 1961 | Played basketball for WWHS |
| James C. "Jimmy" Justice II | 1951- | President of Bluestone Coal Corp. and Bluestone Farms, which farms over 30,000 acres in several states; purchased the Greenbrier in 2009; became the 36th Governor of West Virginia in 2017 | Graduated from WWHS in 1969 |
| R. Fred Lewis | 1947- | Appointed to Florida Supreme Court in 1998 | Graduated from WWHS 1965; was president of student body, received All State and All American recognition for athletic achievement |
| Arnys Clifton Lilly | 1934 - 2011 | Bachelor’s Degree in Geological Engineering from Virginia Tech, a Master’s Degree in Physics from Carnegie-Mellon University and a Ph. D. in Physics from Virginia Tech. Retired as Vice-President of Technology Assessment at Philip Morris USA after 38 years of service. | WWHS Class of 1952; voted "Most Likely to Succeed" when he was a senior. |
| David Lee Lilly | 1945-1975 | A Beckley police officer, Sgt. Lilly was shot and killed in the line of duty on May 12, 1975. He was 30 years old. | Graduated from WWHS 1963 |
| Edna Earle Lilly | 1908-1992 | Joined WWHS faculty in 1936; in 1939 married Dr. Hamil Clark Kessel and continued on the faculty under her married name | Graduated from WWHS in 1923 |
| James Garfield Lilly | 1921-1997 | Oak Hill Red Devils basketball coach for 27 years, third winningest (591-291) basketball coach in state history | Attended WWHS |
| Tom Maddox | 1945- | Wrote science fiction stories published in Omni and the novel Halo (1991); co-wrote two X-Files episodes | Attended WWHS 1960-61, before family moved to Virginia |
| Capt. Jon A. McBride | 1943- | Astronaut, piloted Challenger in Oct. 1984; in 1987 became NASA's Acting Administrator for Congressional Relations; candidate for Governor of W. Va. in 1996 | Graduated from WWHS in 1960 |
| Lewis Nichols McManus | 1929-2002 | Served six terms in the House of Delegates, was Speaker from 1971 to 1976 | Graduated from WWHS in 1947 |
| Clarence Meadows | 1904-1961 | Elected Governor of West Virginia in 1944 | Graduated from Beckley High School, predecessor to WWHS, in 1920, at age 16 |
| Brig. Gen. Lawrence A. Mitchell | 1941- | Commander, Second Air Force, Beale AFB, Calif., until retirement in 1993 | Graduated from WWHS |
| William A. "Bill" O'Brien | 1947- | The Voice of the Flying Eagles on WJLS since 1969; he and his wife Lynn became owners of the radio station in 1996; served as Mayor of Beckley | Graduated from WWHS in 1965 |
| Dr. Linda S. Powers | ? | Director of National Center for the Design of Molecular Function at Utah State University; author of over 100 technical publications in refereed journals; several patents | Graduated from WWHS in 1966 |
| Bob Pruett | 1943- | Named head football coach at Marshall University in 1996; named MAC Coach of the Year in 1998; named W. Va. Coach of the Year three consecutive times | Graduated from WWHS in 1961; played football, basketball, ran track and wrestled at WWHS |
| Emmett Pugh | 1950-2018 | Was Mayor of Beckley for a longer period than other mayor in the city's history | Graduated from WWHS in 1968 |
| N. Joe Rahall | 1913-1993 | Founded Rahall Communications, Inc., which operated several radio stations and a television station in Florida; owned several clothing stores and auto dealerships and a bus line | Graduated from WWHS in 1931; played trumpet in the band and was manager of the football team |
| Nick J. Rahall, II | 1949- | Elected to Congress in 1976 and in subsequent elections | Graduated from WWHS in 1967; President of Key Club; attended Boys' State; played Mortimer Neff in senior class play Double Door; lettered in golf; named "Most Considerate" in 1967 Yearbook |
| Chris Sarandon | 1942- | Nominated for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Dog Day Afternoon in 1976; has also appeared in Fright Night, The Princess Bride, and the Child's Play movies. | Graduated from WWHS in 1960 |
| Lorna Scott | ? | A character actress. She has appeared in numerous movies and TV shows, including Days of Our Lives and Desperate Housewives. More info is here. | Graduated from WWHS in 1973 |
| Tamar Slay | 1980- | Played basketball for the New Jersey Nets in '02-'03 and '03-'04; later a guard for the Charlotte Bobcats. | |
| Hulett Carlson Smith | 1918-2012 | Governor of West Virginia, 1965-69 | Attended Institute Elementary; was water boy and manager of the WWHS 1933 football team; was salutatorian of the WWHS Class of 1934 |
| Joe L. Smith Jr. | 1915-1985 | Founded the first radio station in Beckley (WJLS) and the first TV station in Charleston | Graduated from WWHS with the class of 1931 |
| Morgan Spurlock | 1970- | His documentary film Super Size Me was nominated for an Academy Award in 2005 | Graduated from WWHS in 1989 |
| Clarence E. "Red" Underwood | ? - about 1986/87 | After coaching football at WWHS and at Kentucky under Bear Bryant, he became a highly successful coach at Thomas Jefferson H. S. in Port Arthur, Texas. Known as "Red" and "Buckshot." | Graduated from WWHS in 1933 |
| Leo Arthur Vecellio Sr. | 1915-1996 | Established, in 1938, with his father and brother-in-law one of the country's largest highway construction firms, Vecellio and Grogan. | Graduated from WWHS in 1932; played center on the football team |
| Dr. Paul L. Walker | ? | Was pastor of 12,000-member Mount Paran Church of God in Atlanta for 37 years; later became presiding bishop of the Church of God | Graduated from WWHS |
| Lewis McKinney Webb | ? | Owned Webb Automotive Group, of Irvine, California, which included eight car dealerships; the company was sold in 1998 for $112 million | Graduated from WWHS in 1952; attended WVU on a football scholarship |
| Beatrice "Jackie" (Neubert) Withrow | d. 2010 | Elected to the West Virginia House of Delegates in 1960, served for 18 years | Graduated from WWHS in 1936 |