Susan Ann Thompson was the 40th mayor of

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749, ...

Manitoba , image_map = Manitoba in Canada 2.svg , map_alt = Map showing Manitoba's location in the centre of Southern Canada , Label_map = yes , coordinates = , capital = Winn ...

. She was born on 12 April 1947. She was the first woman to serve as mayor of Winnipeg, serving two terms from 1992 to 1998. Thompson graduated with a BA from the

University of Winnipeg The University of Winnipeg (UWinnipeg, UW) is a public research university in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, that offers undergraduate faculties of art, business and economics, education, science and kinesiology and applied health as well as gra ...

in 1971. Thompson worked at Eaton's and

Hudson's Bay Company The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC; french: Compagnie de la Baie d'Hudson) is a Canadian retail business group. A fur trading business for much of its existence, HBC now owns and operates retail stores in Canada. The company's namesake business di ...

in Winnipeg, Calgary, and

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...

. Because of her father's decline in health, she came back to Winnipeg in 1980 and bought the family's business Birt Saddlery. While running Birt Saddlery, she worked hard to promote women in business and became involved in Rotary and the Chamber of Commerce. Thompson's second term saw the 1997 Flood of the Century; she was instrumental in directing the fight against the raging river. She choose not to seek a third term, but in 1999 she became Canada's

Consul General A consul is an official representative of the government of one state in the territory of another, normally acting to assist and protect the citizens of the consul's own country, as well as to facilitate trade and friendship between the people ...

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

, United States - the first woman to have this position in its thirty years of existence. In this role she steadfastly promoted Canadian business and political interests. In 2003, she became first and founding president and CEO of the University of Winnipeg Foundation. She remained in this position until 2011. In 2014, Thompson made local headlines after a 30-minute speech she gave to the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce. In it she outlined her ideas for the city's future which included a laser pyramid

Portage and Main Portage and Main is an intersection in downtown Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, located where Portage Avenue (Route 85) and Main Street (Route 52) intersect. The corner is known as the "crossroads of Canada", due to its relative proximity to the l ...

. In 2017, a building at the Winnipeg City Hall Campus was renamed the Susan A. Thompson Building after her. The City of Winnipeg Archives has th
Susan Thompson Fonds
including of textual records, photograph albums, framed memorabilia, and artifacts.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thompson, Susan Mayors of Winnipeg University of Winnipeg alumni Women mayors of places in Manitoba Living people Macavity Award winners Members of the Order of Manitoba Year of birth missing (living people)