The Honourable Grant MacEwan OC, AOE |
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9th Lieutenant Governor of Alberta | |
In office January 26, 1966 – July 2, 1974 |
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Monarch | Elizabeth II |
Governor General |
Georges Vanier Roland Michener Jules Léger |
Premier |
Ernest Manning Harry Strom Peter Lougheed |
Preceded by | John Percy Page |
Succeeded by | Ralph Steinhauer |
Member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta | |
In office June 29, 1955 – June 18, 1959 Serving with Arthur Ryan Smith, Hugh John MacDonald, Frederick C. Colborne, Rose Wilkinson, Arthur J. Dixon |
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Preceded by |
Howard MacDonald Paul Brecken |
Succeeded by | District Abolished |
Constituency | Calgary |
28th Mayor of Calgary | |
In office July 4, 1963 – October 18, 1965 |
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Preceded by | Harry Hays |
Succeeded by | John "Jack" Clifford Leslie |
Personal details | |
Born |
John Walter Grant MacEwan August 12, 1902 Brandon, Manitoba |
Died | June 15, 2000 Calgary, Alberta |
(aged 97)
Nationality | Canadian |
Political party | Liberal |
Spouse(s) | Phyllis W. Cline (m. 1935) |
Children | 1 |
Residence | Calgary, Alberta |
Alma mater |
Ontario Agricultural College University of Toronto University of Iowa University of Saskatchewan University of Manitoba |
Occupation | farmer, agriculturalist, academic, author, and historian |
Profession | politician |
Religion | Presbyterian |
Signature |
John Walter Grant MacEwan, OC AOE (August 12, 1902 – June 15, 2000) was a farmer, Professor at the University of Saskatchewan, Dean of Agriculture at the University of Manitoba, the 28th Mayor of Calgary and both a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) and the ninth Lieutenant Governor of Alberta, Canada. MacEwan University in Edmonton, Alberta and the MacEwan Student Centre at the University of Calgary as well as the neighbourhoods of MacEwan Glen in Calgary and MacEwan in Edmonton are named after him.
MacEwan's grandparents were Highland Scottish. George MacEwen (Grant MacEwan changed his name to "MacEwan"with an "a" sometime in the 1920s), his paternal grandfather, came from Stirling, Scotland to farm in Guelph, Ontario, and married Annie Cowan, another Scot. These two had a son, Alexander MacEwen. After leaving home, Alexander went to Brandon, Manitoba to begin a farm of his own, and was introduced to Bertha Grant (his neighbour James Grant's sister) and soon got married. Bertha and Alexander were MacEwan's parents. Bertha was a devout Presbyterian. This strong Scottish, Presbyterian, and agriculture-driven heritage was influential in MacEwan's life.
MacEwan was born in Brandon, Manitoba, and lived there until the age of thirteen. Because of problems with his father's fire-extinguisher business, the family moved to Melfort, Saskatchewan to begin a life of farming. As a boy, MacEwan was entrepreneurial, entering into many different businesses, especially cattle. Most of his first big investments were in cows, either for entering into shows or for producing calves and milk. MacEwan also delivered newspapers and sold vegetables and various other items. At the age of twelve, he began working at a grocery store. He went to school and spent most of his time helping out on the family farm.