Michael Margaret Stewart
American lawyer
Michael Margaret Stewart, formerly Michael Cowper, (December 28, 1952 – October 22, 2015) was an American lawyer and literacy advocate. She served as the sixth First Lady of Alaska during the tenure of her former husband, Alaska Governor Steve Cowper. Stewart established and launched the state reading program, "Look to a Book", as First Lady.
Biography
Early life
Michael Margaret Stewart was born in Paris, France, on December 28, 1952, to Margaret and Colonel William Stewart. Colonel Stewart, was a U.S. Air Force military attaché to NATO at the time, had married Margaret, who was British, in 1950, two years before her birth. Her parents named her Michael, an unusual first name for a girl, after a family friend, while her middle name came from her mother. Stewart's mother died from breast cancer when she was young.
The Stewart family returned to the United States and settled in Santa Monica, California, where Michael Stewart attended Lincoln Junior High School and Santa Monica High School. Following her father's retirement, the family relocated to Santa Barbara to manage her grandfather's family orchid horticultural business . Stewart would reside in Santa Barbara for the majority of her life.
The public source identifies “Michael Margaret Stewart” as american lawyer. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Michael, Margaret and Stewart.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Michael Margaret Stewart”, the useful work is to connect “american lawyer” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
Biographical claims are most persuasive when dates, appointments and relationships can be traced to records created close to the events described. The source revision retrieved here is dated Apr 20, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q21593099. VIAF identifies the subject as 76473076. The Library of Congress control number is n90650263. 3 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1952, 2015 and 1950.
Public reputation and documentary evidence do not always develop together; absence from a summary is not evidence of historical absence. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Read biographical claims against dates, named institutions and the cited references. Distinguish a subject’s later reputation from evidence produced during their lifetime.
- Establishing names and roles
- Building a first chronology
- Locating cited institutions
Personal papers, civil or court records, institutional files and the scholarship cited by the source.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Michael Margaret Stewart”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Michael Margaret Stewart primary sources, Michael Margaret Stewart archive and Michael 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 “Michael Margaret Stewart”?
- Which primary records establish identity, chronology and institutional ties?
- Which claims depend on a single source or contested interpretation?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Michael Margaret Stewart” 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.