Heather Erxleben
Canadian, first female to graduate from a Regular Force infantry trades training course

Heather Erxleben (born 1966) is a former Canadian Forces soldier who was the first female to graduate from a Regular Force infantry trades training course. She graduated from the PPCLI Battle School in CFB Wainwright, Alberta on January 19, 1989. Other women had attempted to pass the 16-week training course, but she was the first to succeed.
Her first assignment after training was to 3rd Battalion Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry, at that time stationed in BC. She was in the military for three years, and left the services after her initial commitment was completed.
Before her time in the Canadian Forces, Erxleben drove a truck for a lumber company. As of 2006, Heather Erxleben is a nurse in British Columbia.
References
Sources
"Woman, 22, Makes history as Canadian combat soldier" The Ottawa Citizen. Ottawa, Ont: Jan 20, 1989. pg.
The public source identifies “Heather Erxleben” as canadian, first female to graduate from a Regular Force infantry trades training course. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Heather, Erxleben and Canadian.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Heather Erxleben”, the useful work is to connect “canadian, first female to graduate from a Regular Force infantry trades training course” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
Vocabulary and entity names are the principal evidence signals here, because they determine the precision of every later search. The source revision retrieved here is dated May 1, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q5693819. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1966, 1989 and 2006.
The absence of detail may reflect summary conventions rather than a lack of surviving documentation. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Heather Erxleben”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Heather Erxleben primary sources, Heather Erxleben archive and Heather research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Heather Erxleben”?
- Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
- What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Heather Erxleben” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.