The daughter of a prominent legislator, Pamela Gordon (born 1955) used her family name and her own political skills to become Bermuda's first woman premier in 1997.

When Pamela Gordon was sworn in as the premier (prime minister) of Bermuda on March 27, 1997, she became the first woman and the youngest person ever to hold that post. At the age of 41, she had already lived an eventful life--giving birth to a child at the age of 16 and overcoming the economic obstacles posed by early motherhood by working in a variety of jobs. However, Gordon had two things going for her: she was the daughter of one of the founding fathers of Bermuda politics, and she had considerable political skills of her own. She used these resources in steering the United Bermuda Party to victory.

An Unconventional Family

Pamela Gordon was born on September 2, 1955 in Hamilton, Bermuda. She was the youngest of...