Catherine Callbeck

Catherine Sophia Callbeck (born July 25, 1939) is a Canadian politician. She was premier of Prince Edward Island from 1993 to 1996, and the first woman in Canada to lead her party to victory in a provincial election. (There had been two earlier female premiers: Rita Johnston, who became premier by winning the leadership of the governing party but lost the subsequent provincial election, and Nellie Cournoyea, who became premier of the Northwest Te... more

Catherine Sophia Callbeck (born July 25, 1939) is a Canadian politician. She was premier of Prince Edward Island from 1993 to 1996, and the first woman in Canada to lead her party to victory in a provincial election. (There had been two earlier female premiers: Rita Johnston, who became premier by winning the leadership of the governing party but lost the subsequent provincial election, and Nellie Cournoyea, who became premier of the Northwest Territories under a consensus government system.) Born in Central Bedeque, Prince Edward Island, the daughter of Ralph R. Callbeck and Ruth Campbell, she received a Bachelor of Commerce degree from Mount Allison University in 1960 and a Bachelor of Education degree from Dalhousie University in 1962. She took post-graduate courses in business administration from Syracuse University. Callbeck was a business teacher in New Brunswick and Ontario before returning to the island to enter the family retail business. A Liberal, she was first elected to... less