The Premier and His Grandmother

An intriguing look at the connections between Alberta premier
Peter Lougheed and his Métis grandmother, Isabella Clark Hardisty
Lougheed, exploring how Métis identity, political activism, and colonial
institutional power shaped the lives and legacies of both.

Combining the approaches of political biography and historical narrative, The Premier and His Grandmother
introduces readers to two compelling and complex public figures. Born
into a prominent fur trading family, Isabella Clark Hardisty Lougheed
(1861–1936) established a distinct role for herself as an influential
Métis woman in southern Alberta, at a time when racial boundaries in the
province were hardening and Métis activists established a firm
foundation for the Métis to be recognized as distinct Indigenous
Peoples.

Isabella’s grandson Edgar Peter Lougheed (1928–2021) served as
premier of Alberta at a time when some of that activism achieved both
successes and losses. Drawing on Peter Lougheed’s personal papers,
family interviews, and archival research, this book analyzes his
political initiatives in the context of his own identity as a person of
Métis ancestry. While there are several publications that refer to Peter
Lougheed in the context of his role as premier, few of those
publications have acknowledged his connection to an important Métis
pioneer family and his connection to his Indigenous ancestors.