Feature Photo: Wangkun Jia / Shutterstock.com
Watertown, New York, sits along the Black River in Jefferson County, a North Country city whose history extends well beyond its reputation for long, snowy winters and its proximity to Fort Drum. Its downtown Public Square, historic neighborhoods, schools, and local institutions have shaped the lives of people who later made their names in Hollywood, Washington, professional sports, publishing, music, and business.
Some of those connections are surprising. An actor who became a central figure in The Lord of the Rings went to Watertown High School. A family associated with American foreign policy produced a secretary of state, a CIA director, and a diplomat. Two members of Blue Öyster Cult were born in the city before growing up farther north along the St. Lawrence River.
The distinction between the city and the surrounding region matters. These 25 people were born in Watertown or spent meaningful childhood or school years there. This is not simply a list of people who worked in the city, lived elsewhere in Jefferson County, or later developed a connection to the North Country.
1. Viggo Mortensen
Viggo Mortensen was born in Manhattan, but Watertown played a significant role in his teenage years. After his parents separated, he returned to northern New York with his mother and brothers and attended Watertown High School, graduating in 1976. He later studied at St. Lawrence University in Canton before pursuing acting and other artistic interests.
Mortensen became internationally famous as Aragorn in Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings trilogy. His performances in Eastern Promises, Captain Fantastic, and Green Book also earned Academy Award nominations. Beyond acting, he has worked as a writer, photographer, painter, and musician. His Watertown school years make him a genuine member of this city’s roster, even though he was not born here.
2. Allen Welsh Dulles
Allen Welsh Dulles was born in Watertown in 1893 into a family already closely associated with American diplomacy. He later attended Princeton and entered government service, eventually working in intelligence during World War II with the Office of Strategic Services. His wartime assignment in Switzerland made him a significant figure in American intelligence operations.
In 1953, President Dwight D. Eisenhower appointed Dulles director of Central Intelligence. He held the post until 1961, overseeing the CIA during some of the Cold War’s most consequential and controversial episodes, including covert operations abroad. His years in office left a lasting, often debated imprint on American intelligence history.
3. John Foster Dulles
John Foster Dulles was born in Washington, D.C., in 1888, but he spent part of his childhood in Watertown, where his family maintained a home. The city’s connection to the Dulles family is reflected in the Dulles State Office Building and in the historical recognition of the family’s Watertown residence.
After a career in international law and diplomacy, Dulles became secretary of state under President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1953. He helped shape the administration’s Cold War approach, emphasizing alliances and opposition to the spread of Soviet influence. He remained in office until 1959. His Watertown upbringing, rather than his birthplace, is the reason he belongs on this list.
4. Richard Grieco
Actor Richard Grieco was born in Watertown in 1965 and grew up there. Before he became a familiar face on television, he played sports during his school years and later attended Central Connecticut State University, where he played college football. Modeling opened another path and eventually led him into acting.
Grieco’s breakthrough came when he played Detective Dennis Booker on the television series 21 Jump Street. The character proved popular enough to receive a spinoff, Booker, which ran from 1989 to 1990. He subsequently appeared in films including If Looks Could Kill and Mobsters and also pursued painting and music.
5. Mary-Margaret Humes
Mary-Margaret Humes grew up in Watertown and attended Watertown High School. Her early career included pageants and modeling before she began working regularly in television and film. She appeared in Mel Brooks’s History of the World, Part I and went on to accumulate credits in a wide range of television productions.
Her best-known role came on the WB drama Dawson’s Creek, where she played Gail Leery, the mother of Dawson, portrayed by James Van Der Beek. The series introduced her to a generation of viewers during its run from 1998 to 2003. Her Watertown connection comes from her upbringing and schooling, rather than a reliably established Watertown birthplace.
6. Robert Lansing
Robert Lansing was born in Watertown in 1864, graduated from Amherst College, and began his law career in his hometown. He practiced with the Lansing family firm and developed particular expertise in international law, representing the United States in disputes and arbitration proceedings before entering high-level government service.
President Woodrow Wilson appointed Lansing secretary of state in 1915. He served during World War I and took part in American diplomatic efforts surrounding the conflict and the Paris Peace Conference. Lansing’s professional story is unusual because his path to Washington began with a substantial legal career in Watertown itself.
7. Frederick Exley
Writer Frederick Exley was born in Watertown in 1929. The city and its sporting culture became important parts of his personal history and writing, especially through his complicated feelings about his father, a well-known local athlete and coach. Exley’s writing drew heavily on his experiences with ambition, disappointment, identity, and American sports.
His best-known book, A Fan’s Notes, published in 1968, blurred the boundaries between fiction and autobiography. The novel earned critical recognition for its distinctive voice and its depiction of a narrator whose fascination with professional football becomes entangled with his own struggles. Exley remains one of the most notable literary figures associated with Watertown.
8. Joe Bouchard
Joe Bouchard, the bassist and singer best known for his work in Blue Öyster Cult, was born in Watertown in 1948. He has personally described being born in the city and growing up on a farm in nearby Clayton. Music was central to family life, and he and his older brother Albert played together long before either became known to rock audiences.
Joe joined the group that became Blue Öyster Cult in 1970 and performed on many of its best-known records during the 1970s and 1980s. He also wrote songs including “Astronomy” and “Hot Rails to Hell.” While Clayton was his childhood hometown, his documented Watertown birthplace gives him a legitimate connection to this list.
9. Albert Bouchard
Albert Bouchard, Joe’s older brother, was born in Watertown in 1947 and grew up in Clayton. As a young musician, he helped form the group that eventually became Blue Öyster Cult, serving as its drummer and contributing vocals and songwriting to a band that became an important part of 1970s American hard rock.
His work helped shape albums such as Secret Treaties, Agents of Fortune, and Spectres. He later continued recording and performing outside the band’s original lineup. The brothers share both a Watertown birthplace and an important place in the history of a band whose music became a staple of classic rock radio.
10. Maggie Rizer
Fashion model Maggie Rizer grew up in Watertown and graduated from Watertown High School in 1996. In her own writing for Vogue, she recalled playing field hockey, participating in marching band, and enjoying an ordinary North Country childhood before the fashion industry changed the direction of her life.
Rizer became one of the prominent models of the late 1990s, appearing in major fashion magazines and working with leading photographers and designers. She also became involved in AIDS awareness following the death of her father. Her modeling career carried her around the world, but she has repeatedly identified Watertown as the community where she grew up.
11. Mark Neveldine
Filmmaker Mark Neveldine is originally from Watertown. He studied drama and psychology at Hobart and William Smith Colleges before establishing himself in the entertainment industry. His work behind the camera became known for its restless energy, unusual visual choices, and willingness to push the conventions of action filmmaking.
Working with Brian Taylor, Neveldine wrote and directed Crank, the 2006 action film starring Jason Statham, followed by Crank: High Voltage. His credits also include Gamer and Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance. His college’s published accounts identify him as being originally from Watertown, providing a direct hometown connection.
12. Gary M. Rose
Gary Michael Rose was born in Watertown in 1947 before growing up in Southern California. He entered the U.S. Army in 1967, trained as a Special Forces medic, and served during the Vietnam War. His military career eventually placed him on a dangerous, classified mission in Laos.
During Operation Tailwind in September 1970, Rose repeatedly treated and evacuated wounded men while under enemy fire. The secrecy surrounding the operation delayed full public recognition of his actions for decades. In 2017, he received the Medal of Honor. His birthplace connects Watertown to one of the most remarkable stories of battlefield medical service from that war.
13. Eleanor Lansing Dulles
Eleanor Lansing Dulles was born in Watertown in 1895, the younger sister of John Foster Dulles and Allen Welsh Dulles. An economist and scholar, she pursued an independent career in government service rather than simply becoming known through her brothers’ prominent positions.
She worked on economic and diplomatic issues in Europe and became especially closely associated with West Berlin during the Cold War. Her efforts in the State Department helped support the city’s recovery and development during a difficult period of German history. Eleanor Dulles adds another important chapter to Watertown’s unusually strong connection with American foreign affairs.
14. Charles Pierce
Charles Pierce was born in Watertown in 1926 and was educated there. He worked at local radio station WWNY early in his career, gaining experience in broadcasting and performance before heading west to pursue a stage career. Those beginnings eventually led him toward a very distinctive form of comic acting.
Pierce became widely recognized for his impersonations of famous actresses, especially Bette Davis, as well as figures such as Joan Crawford and Carol Channing. His performances earned him national attention in clubs, theaters, and on television. The New York Public Library preserves his papers, providing a record of a career that began in Watertown and later reached major entertainment centers.
15. Mary Gay Scanlon
Mary Gay Scanlon was born in Syracuse in 1959, grew up in the Watertown area, and graduated from Watertown High School in 1976. She later attended Colgate University and the University of Pennsylvania Law School, building a career in law and education advocacy.
Scanlon entered the U.S. House of Representatives in 2018 as a Democrat representing a Pennsylvania district. Her work has focused on civil rights, education, and the federal judiciary. Her official congressional biography specifically documents her graduation from Watertown High School, making her a clear fit for the city’s list.
16. Antonio Blakeney
Professional basketball player Antonio Blakeney was born in Watertown in 1996. He grew up elsewhere and developed into a highly regarded high school basketball prospect in Florida before playing college basketball at Louisiana State University.
Blakeney later played in the NBA with the Chicago Bulls and received NBA G League Rookie of the Year honors for his play with the Windy City Bulls. He continued his professional career internationally. Watertown was the starting point of his life rather than the setting for his basketball development, a distinction worth making when discussing his hometown connection.
17. Tim McCreadie
Tim McCreadie is a Watertown native who followed his father into automobile racing. Known to racing fans as “T-Mac,” he established himself in dirt modified competition before becoming a leading dirt late model driver. His career has taken him from North Country tracks to major racing events throughout the United States.
McCreadie won national championships in the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series in 2021 and 2022. His success is part of a family racing tradition that also includes his father, Bob “Barefoot Bob” McCreadie, another Watertown figure included in this article.
18. John M. McHugh
John M. McHugh was born in Watertown in 1948 and began his public-service career with the city government. He subsequently served on the staff of state senator H. Douglas Barclay and then won a seat in the New York State Senate.
McHugh entered the U.S. House of Representatives in 1993, representing a northern New York district for more than 16 years. In 2009, he became U.S. Secretary of the Army and served until 2015. His career linked the North Country to federal policymaking, particularly on issues involving the military and the communities surrounding Army installations.
19. Rocco Canale
Rocco Canale was born in Boston in 1920 but grew up in Watertown and graduated from Watertown High School in 1939. He became a standout football player and wrestler there before earning a football scholarship to Boston College. His college career included participation in prominent bowl games.
Canale went on to play professional football in the 1940s, including appearances for the Philadelphia Eagles and Boston Yanks. He played on both the offensive and defensive lines during an era when professional football players were often expected to handle multiple roles. His Watertown schooling is the strong local connection, even though some biographical accounts have incorrectly listed him as born in the city.
20. Eric Anzalone
Eric Anzalone was born in Dayton, Ohio, but spent part of his childhood in Watertown before also living in California. Music and theater led him toward professional performance, and his career eventually placed him in one of the most recognizable groups in popular disco music.
Beginning in 1995, Anzalone performed as the Leatherman or Biker character in the Village People, succeeding Glenn Hughes in that role. He remained associated with the group’s performances for more than two decades. Watertown is part of his upbringing, not his birthplace, and accounts of his return to the North Country have described performances there as homecomings.
21. Donald Lutz
Donald Lutz was born in Watertown in 1989 to an American father and a German mother. He moved with his family to Germany as a baby and learned baseball there, making his eventual major-league career particularly unusual.
In April 2013, Lutz debuted with the Cincinnati Reds, becoming the first player developed in Germany to play in Major League Baseball. He spent parts of two seasons with the Reds. His story offers another example of someone born in Watertown whose early life and later achievements unfolded far from Jefferson County.
22. Charles W. Yost
Charles Woodruff Yost was born in Watertown in 1907 and attended Princeton University. He joined the United States Foreign Service and built a long career representing the country during periods of major diplomatic change.
His assignments included serving as ambassador to Laos, Syria, and Morocco. He later served as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations from 1969 to 1971. Alongside Robert Lansing and members of the Dulles family, Yost illustrates how many Watertown connections went on to influential roles in American diplomacy.
23. Zina D. H. Young
Zina Diantha Huntington, later known as Zina D. H. Young, was born in Watertown in 1821. Her family joined the early Latter-day Saint movement, and she subsequently became an important figure in the religious and social life of the movement as it developed in the Midwest and Utah.
Young served as the third general president of the Relief Society from 1888 until her death in 1901. She was involved in women’s religious organizing and public causes, including women’s suffrage. Her life connects early nineteenth-century Watertown with a much wider chapter of American religious and women’s history.
24. Bob McCreadie
Robert “Barefoot Bob” McCreadie was born in Watertown in 1951 and developed a devoted following as a dirt modified race-car driver. His career began at Watertown Speedway and grew into decades of competition at tracks across the United States and Canada.
Driving his familiar number 9 car, McCreadie won hundreds of races and became one of the best-known competitors in Northeast dirt racing. He entered multiple motorsports halls of fame and passed away in Watertown in 2024. His son Tim continued the family’s racing tradition, giving the city two nationally recognized figures from the same motorsports family.
25. Natalie Oliveros
Natalie Oliveros grew up in Watertown in a family whose Italian heritage included making wine at home. After leaving the North Country, she pursued dance and entertainment work and became known professionally as Savanna Samson during a successful career in adult films.
She later built another professional identity in the wine industry, creating the Sogno wine label and owning La Fiorita, a Brunello di Montalcino estate in Tuscany. Her own winery’s account of her background connects that work to the winemaking traditions she encountered in her Watertown childhood. Her career reflects an unusually wide-ranging path from northern New York to international business.
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