James Munro McPherson is an American historian specializing in the American Civil War. He is the George Henry Davis '86 Professor Emeritus of United States History at Princeton University. McPherson received the 1989 Pulitzer Prize for his book, Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era. In 2003, he served as the president of the American Historical Association.

McPherson earned his Ph.D. from Johns Hopkins University in 1963 and his B.A. from Gustavus Adolphus College in 1958. He is also a member of the editorial board of Encyclopædia Britannica.