John Walter Grant MacEwan was born in 1902 near Brandon, Manitoba, grew up near Melfort, Saskatchewan, and was educated in Guelph, Ontario and Ames, Iowa. He served on the faculties of the Universities of Saskatchewan and Manitoba, as mayor of Calgary, and as lieutenant governor of Alberta.

Renowned across Canada as a livestock judge and lecturer on agricultural topics, he became a tireless advocate of conservation and regional historical awareness, themes which drove his astonishing output of writing.

The man described as “the Western Canadian of the Twentieth Century” died on June 15, 2000.