Barbara Elaine Peterson Burwell (

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Peterson; born November 25, 1953) is an American philanthropist and beauty pageant titleholder. After being crowned Miss Minnesota USA 1976, she competed at Miss USA 1976, becoming the first woman from Minnesota to win the title. Afterwards, she represented the United States at Miss Universe 1976, where she was unplaced. As a philanthropist, Peterson is the president of the Burwell Family Foundation, based in

Bloomington, Minnesota Bloomington is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States. It is located on the north bank of the Minnesota River above its confluence with the Mississippi River, south of downtown Minneapolis and just south of the Interstate 494/Inter ...

Early life and education

Peterson was born in

Edina, Minnesota Edina ( , ) is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States and a first-ring suburb of Minneapolis. The population was 53,494 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the 18th most populous ci ...

to parents C. Donald Peterson and Gretchen Elaine Palen Peterson. Her family is of Swedish and

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

origin. Her father was an

associate justice An associate justice or associate judge (or simply associate) is a judicial panel member who is not the chief justice in some jurisdictions. The title "Associate Justice" is used for members of the Supreme Court of the United States and some ...

of the

Minnesota Supreme Court The Minnesota Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The court hears cases in the Supreme Court chamber in the Minnesota State Capitol or in the nearby Minnesota Judicial Center. History The court was first assemb ...

, while her uncle was P. Kenneth Peterson, a former

mayor of Minneapolis The mayor of Minneapolis is the chief executive officer of the City of Minneapolis, Minnesota, responsible for overseeing the city's administration. As the political and ceremonial leader of the city, the mayor also represents Minneapolis on the ...

. Peterson was raised in Edina, and is one of six children; her four brothers and one sister include Todd Douglas, Scott Jeffrey, Craig Donald, Mark Bradley, and Polly Suzanne. Peterson attended Edina High School, and later received a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree from St. Olaf College in

Northfield, Minnesota Northfield is a city in Dakota County, Minnesota, Dakota and Rice County, Minnesota, Rice counties in the U.S. state, state of Minnesota. It is mostly in Rice County, with a small portion in Dakota County. The population was 20,790 at the 2020 U ...

, with a triple major in

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...

communications Communication is commonly defined as the transmission of information. Its precise definition is disputed and there are disagreements about whether Intention, unintentional or failed transmissions are included and whether communication not onl ...

, and

American studies American studies or American civilization is an interdisciplinarity, interdisciplinary field of scholarship that examines American literature, History of the United States, history, Society of the United States, society, and Culture of the Unit ...

Pageantry

Peterson had previously been crowned Queen of the Minneapolis Aquatennial and Miss Svenskarnas Dag, prior to competing in national pageantry. She later entered Miss Minnesota USA 1976, which she went on to win. As Miss Minnesota USA, Peterson was tasked with representing Minnesota at Miss USA 1976, held in

Niagara Falls, New York Niagara Falls is a City (New York), city in Niagara County, New York, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a total population of 48,671. It is adjacent to the Niagara River, across from the city of Niagar ...

. She advanced through the competition until ultimately being declared the winner, becoming the first woman from Minnesota to win the title. After winning Miss USA, Peterson represented the United States at the Miss Universe 1976 pageant in

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

. In the competition, Peterson became the first American competitor not to advance to the semifinals, which would not be repeated again until Kimberly Pressler represented the United States at

Miss Universe 1999 Miss Universe 1999 was the 48th Miss Universe pageant, held on 26 May 1999 at the Chaguaramas Convention Centre in Chaguaramas, Trinidad and Tobago. Mpule Kwelagobe of Botswana was crowned by Wendy Fitzwilliam of Trinidad and Tobago at the e ...

. Peterson later completed her reign as Miss USA after crowning Kimberly Tomes of

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

as Miss USA 1977, in

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the List of municipalities in South Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint of South Carolina's coastline on Charleston Harbor, an inlet of the Atla ...

on May 14, 1977. In 1987, Peterson authored the book ''Becoming a Beauty Queen: the Complete Guide'' with her sister Polly Peterson Bowles, based on their experiences competing in pageantry. Peterson also served as a judge at the Miss USA 1990 competition.

Personal life

Peterson was married to businessman Rodney P. Burwell until his death in 2015. They had three sons together: Rodney Peter, Blake Palmer, and Michael Craig. As a philanthropist, she and her husband made donations to educational and charitable institutions through the Burwell Family Foundation, which she serves as the president of. Peterson resides in the

Minneapolis–Saint Paul Minneapolis–Saint Paul is a metropolitan area in the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States centered around the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi, Minnesota River, Minnesota, and St. Croix River (Wisconsin–Minnesota), ...

area.

References

External links

Official Miss USA website – Past titleholders
{{DEFAULTSORT:Peterson, Barbara 1953 births 20th-century American philanthropists American people of German descent American people of Swedish descent Living people Miss Universe 1976 contestants Miss USA 1970s delegates Miss USA winners People from Edina, Minnesota Philanthropists from Minnesota St. Olaf College alumni Edina High School alumni 20th-century American women philanthropists