Jean Barman is a historian of British Columbia

British Columbia

British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...

. Born in Stephen, Minnesota

Stephen, Minnesota

Stephen is a city in Marshall County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 658 at the 2010 census.Stephen was founded between 1875 through 1878. Stephen was the first town founded in Marshall County...

, Barman arrived in British Columbia in 1971. Her work The West Beyond the West: A History of British Columbia has been described as the "standard text on the subject [of British Columbia history]." She has received the Lieutenant Governor's Medal for historical writing, and the 2006 City of Vancouver Book Award

City of Vancouver Book Award

The City of Vancouver Book Award is a Canadian literary award, that has been presented annually by the city of Vancouver, British Columbia to one or more works of literature judged as the year's best fiction, non-fiction, poetry or drama work about the city....

 (for Stanley Park's Secret). She is a professor emerita at the University of British Columbia

University of British Columbia

The University of British Columbia is a public research university. UBC’s two main campuses are situated in Vancouver and in Kelowna in the Okanagan Valley...

, as is her husband, the historian of Brazil Roderick Barman.