The United States Military Academy at West Point overlooking the Hudson River in Orange County, NY, was founded on March 16, 1802, making it the oldest military service academy in the nation. The United States would ultimately establish four more military service academies: the United States Naval Academy (1845); Coast Guard Academy (1876); Merchant Marine Academy (1943); and Air Force Academy (1954). Every year, thousands of cadets and midshipmen graduate from these service academies receiving bachelor's degrees and commissions as officers in the U.S. Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard, Space Force, or Merchant Marines.
The United States Military Academy at West Point—often referred to as just "West Point"—is the oldest continuously occupied military installation in the United States. During the American Revolution, Continental Army soldiers occupied the site on a plateau overlooking a bend in New York's Hudson River. In 1778, the fortification's soldiers—and a 65-ton metal chain spanning the Hudson River—deterred British ships from using the waterway to move troops and supplies into New York. A year later, General George Washington chose West Point as his headquarters. After the war, military cadets visited West Point for artillery training. Congress authorized and funded the United States Military Academy at West Point with passage of the Military Peace Establishment Act of 1802, which President Thomas Jefferson signed into law on March 16, 1802. The academy officially opened its doors on July 4, 1802. In October 1802, Joseph Gardner Swift became the academy's first graduate. Since that time, some of the nation's most legendary military leaders have attended West Point, including Civil War Union Generals Ulysses S. Grant, George McClellan, George Meade, and William T. Sherman; World War I Commander of the American Expeditionary Forces—and U.S. Census Bureau alumni—John J. "Black Jack" Pershing; World War II Supreme Allied Commander and President of the United States Dwight D. Eisenhower; World War II and Korean War Generals Douglas MacArthur and Omar Bradley; Vietnam War Generals William Westmoreland and Creighton Abrams; and more recently Operation Desert Storm's "Stormin" Norman Schwarzkopf, Jr.
Four decades after the opening of the United States Military Academy at West Point, Secretary of the Navy George Bancroft founded the United States Naval Academy on October 10, 1845. Established without congressional funding, the academy was situated on the grounds of Fort Severn, which had been built to guard Annapolis, MD, during the War of 1812. The academy's earliest midshipmen completed a 5-year course of study involving lessons in the classroom and at sea, including hands-on seamanship lessons aboard the historic USS Constitution. Today, approximately 1,000 midshipmen graduate every year from the Naval Academy with commissions as ensigns in the U.S. Navy or second lieutenants in the U.S. Marine Corps. Notable alumni include the Spanish-American War's Admiral George Dewey; World War II Admirals Chester W. Nimitz and Raymond A. Spruance; more than 50 astronauts including Alan Shepard and Wally Schirra; President Jimmy Carter; and Vietnam War naval aviator, senator, and presidential candidate John McCain.
The United States Coast Guard Academy traces its roots to the founding of the School of Instruction of the Revenue Cutter Service in New Bedford, MA, in 1876. Cadets spent time in the classroom and at sea to prepare for work in the nation's armed customs enforcement service that Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton created in 1790. The school moved to Curtis Bay, MD, in 1900 and then Fort Trumbull in New London, CT, in 1910. Following the 1915 merger of the Revenue Cutter Service and United States Life Saving Service to form the U.S. Coast Guard, the school was renamed the Coast Guard Academy. In 1932, cadets moved from the campus at Fort Trumbull to its present location along the Thames River in New London, CT. In 2023, 247 graduates received degrees and commissions to protect American coasts, provide humanitarian and life-saving services, and patrol international waterways. Just a few of the Coast Guard Academy's notable alumni include astronaut Andre Douglas; martial artist, actor, and professional kickboxer Don "The Dragon" Wilson; U.S. Secretary of the Treasury (1979–1981) G. William Miller; the first African American promoted to flag rank in the U.S. Coast Guard, Rear Admiral Erroll M. Brown; distinguished World War II and Korean War veteran U.S. Marine Corps Brigadier General Donald M. Schmuck; superintendents of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, and numerous commandants of the U.S. Coast Guard.
The United States Merchant Marine Academy originated with the Merchant Marine Act of 1936 that established the U.S. Merchant Marine Cadet Corps on March 15, 1938. Following a brief period of classroom training, the majority of training took place at sea, in shipyards, and working with stevedoring companies. In 1942, Congress appropriated funds to establish a permanent land-based academy in Kings Point, NY. On September 30, 1943, President Franklin D. Roosevelt dedicated the campus as thousands of midshipmen attended an abbreviated course of study to supply much-needed merchant marine officers to direct shipping during World War II. Midshipmen also completed an accelerated course of study during the Korean and Vietnam Wars. Today, the Merchant Marine Academy's midshipmen and graduates continue to play a critical role transporting people and supplies for the U.S. military as well as emergency relief supplies for people in need around the world.
The nation's newest service academy is the United States Air Force Academy. President Dwight D. Eisenhower established the academy when he signed legislation authorizing its construction in El Paso County, CO, on April 1, 1954. Air Force Academy cadets complete a 4-year course of study, earn a Bachelor of Science degree and are commissioned second lieutenants in the U.S. Air Force or U.S. Space Force. In June 2023, more than 900 cadets graduated from the academy in a ceremony held at the famed Falcon Stadium. These newly minted Air Force and Space Force officers joined the ranks of notable alumni that includes dozens of astronauts; professional athletes; business leaders; government leaders; and Air Force generals and chiefs of staff.
You can learn more about our nation's military service academies using census data and records. For example:
The U.S. Census Bureau's History Office published the History of the American Community Survey in January 2024.
The introduction of the American Community Survey (ACS) in 2005 signaled a change in the methodology and design underlying the collection of detailed information about the nation's population and housing characteristics. The survey replaced the long-form decennial census questionnaire used since 1940 with a shorter survey sent to a sample of households every year.
In 2008, the Census Bureau released the first multiyear demographic, social, economic, and housing characteristics estimates for geographic areas with a population of at least 20,000, including the nation, all states and the District of Columbia, all congressional districts, approximately 1,800 counties, and 900 metropolitan and micropolitan statistical areas.
In 2010, the Census Bureau released the first 5-year estimates for areas with a population less than 20,000.
Today, the ACS provides vital information on a yearly basis about our nation and its people. Information from the survey generates data that help inform how trillions of dollars in federal funds are distributed each year.
On March 1, 1790, President George Washington signed the 1790 Census Act into law.
The nation's first census was taken as of the first Monday in August (August 2), 1790. U.S. marshals collected the name of the head of each family and the number of people in each household in the 13 states; the districts of Kentucky, Maine, and Vermont; and the Southwest Territory.
Upon completing the count, marshals forwarded the data for 3,929,214 people to Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson.