Fonds F1739 - Ralph G. Steinhauer fonds

Ralph Steinhauer, 1905-1987, a treaty Cree, was born on the Morley reserve, Alberta. He was educated at residential schools near Red Deer, Alberta and in Brandon, Manitoba. In 1928 he married Isabel Davidson, a school teacher originally from Buffalo, NY, USA. They raised five children. In 1929 Steinhauer established a farm on the Saddle Lake reserve near Two Hills, where he farmed for over 50 years.

He led a very active public life. He served 37 years on the Saddle Lake Band Council and was chief from 1966 to 1969. He was a founding member of the Indian Association of Alberta, and served on the boards of Alberta Newstart, Saddle Lake Education Authority, Northern Alberta Development Council, the Indian-Eskimo Association and many other organizations. He was appointed Lieutenant-Governor of Alberta, 1974-1979, becoming Alberta's first and Canada's first native Lieutenant-Governor. He received an honorary doctorate from the University of Calgary in 1979 and was inducted into the Alberta Agriculture Hall of Fame in 1984. Steinhauer was made a member of the Order of Canada in 1984.

For further information see "The Honourable Ralph Garvin Steinhauer, 1974-1979" in On Behalf of the Crown : Lieutenant Governors of the North West Territories and Alberta, 1869-2005 / Sandra E. Perry and Karen L. Powell. - Edmonton: Legislative Assembly of Alberta, 2006, p. 547-565.