Roderick McKenzie (1852 – 9 October 1934) was a New Zealand Member of Parliament for Buller and

Motueka Motueka is a town in the South Island of New Zealand, close to the mouth of the Motueka River on the western shore of Tasman Bay. It is the second largest in the Tasman Region, with a population of as of The surrounding district has a numb ...

, in the

South Island The South Island ( , 'the waters of Pounamu, Greenstone') is the largest of the three major islands of New Zealand by surface area, the others being the smaller but more populous North Island and Stewart Island. It is bordered to the north by ...

. He was a member of the

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Biography

Early life and career

He was born in

Ross-shire Ross-shire (; ), or the County of Ross, was a county in the Scottish Highlands. It bordered Sutherland to the north and Inverness-shire to the south, as well as having a complex border with Cromartyshire, a county consisting of numerous enc ...

, Scotland in 1852. He was educated at the

Glasgow Academy The Glasgow Academy is a coeducational private day school for pupils aged 3–18 in Glasgow, Scotland. In 2016, it had the third-best Higher level exam results in Scotland. Founded in 1845, it is the oldest continuously fully private school in ...

and became a builder by trade. He then began two years of employment with the London and Glasgow Engineering and Ironship Building Company before deciding to move to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. He did not reside there long before emigrating to New Zealand in 1869. He sailed on the ship ''City of Dunedin'' and after arriving in

Otago Otago (, ; ) is a regions of New Zealand, region of New Zealand located in the southern half of the South Island and administered by the Otago Regional Council. It has an area of approximately , making it the country's second largest local go ...

he became a miner. McKenzie left his mining job in Otago to move to the West Coast and enter the construction industry as an engineer and bridge builder. He was involved in building infrastructure in the area. His projects included construction of the Westport Staiths at a cost of 22,000 pounds, the railway bridge at Arahura, laying rails to

Hokitika Hokitika is a town in the West Coast region of New Zealand's South Island, south of Greymouth, and close to the mouth of the Hokitika River. It is the seat and largest town in the Westland District. The town's estimated population is as of ...

and years later the Jervois Quay wharf in

Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...

. He became involved in community affairs on the West Coast. He was elected a member of the Westport Harbour Board,

Nelson Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...

Harbour Board and

Kumara Kumara may refer to: Places * Kumara (Mali), a province * Kumara, New Zealand, a town * Kumara (New Zealand electorate), a Parliamentary electorate Other uses * Kumara Illangasinghe, an Anglican bishop in Sri Lanka * Kumara (surname) * The Fo ...

Hospital Board.

Member of Parliament

McKenzie was the MP for Buller between and 1896 and the MP for

from to 1914. He was a "strong supporter of the Seddon administration". In Parliament he helped to pass a Loan Bill which allowed the Westport Harbour Board to borrow £50,000 in order to fund extensive and long overdue improvements. In July 1905 a group of "country" Liberal members formed a

ginger group The Ginger Group was not a formal political party in Canada, but a faction of radical Progressive and Labour Members of Parliament who advocated socialism. The term ginger group also refers to a small group with new, radical ideas trying to ...

and proclaimed their intention to advocate country interests in the Government caucus. MacKenzie was one of the group's members and was elected as their leader. He was Chairman of Committees from 1906 to 1908. He was

Minister of Public Works This list indicates government departments in various countries dedicated to public works or infrastructure. See also * Public works * Ministry or Board of Public Works, the imperial Chinese ministry overseeing public projects from the Tang ...

, Minister of Customs and Minister of Mines from 1909 to 1912 under Sir

Joseph Ward Sir Joseph George Ward, 1st Baronet, (26 April 1856 – 8 July 1930) was a New Zealand politician who served as the 17th prime minister of New Zealand from 1906 to 1912 and from 1928 to 1930. He was a dominant figure in the New Zealand Liber ...

. The practical experience he had as an engineer and builder made him an effective minister as the period featured great activity in public works schemes, particularly in roading improvements. However, in 1912 McKenzie would have nothing to do with

Thomas Mackenzie Sir Thomas Mackenzie (10 March 1853 – 4 February 1930) was a Scottish-born New Zealand politician and explorer who briefly served as the 18th prime minister of New Zealand in 1912, and later served as New Zealand High Commissioner in L ...

's (no relation) Liberal Ministry stating that: John Millar should have been

prime minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

, Mackenzie's ministers were political novices and had forsaken their liberal principles. In 1932, when he was 80 years old, McKenzie contested the Motueka seat once again at the

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, or a bypoll in India, is an election used to fill an office that has become vacant between general elections. A vacancy may arise as a result of an incumben ...

following the death of George Black. Standing as an Independent Liberal–Labour candidate he placed third out of three candidates.

Later life and death

Following his exit from Parliament, McKenzie resumed his career as an engineer and contractor in Wellington. He was also a prominent member of the West Coast Association. McKenzie died on 9 October 1934 in Wellington aged 82.

Notes

References

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External links

The Hon Roddy Nugget
, - {{DEFAULTSORT:McKenzie, Roderick 1852 births 1934 deaths New Zealand Liberal Party MPs Independent MPs of New Zealand Members of the Cabinet of New Zealand Local politicians in New Zealand Businesspeople in construction New Zealand people of Scottish descent People from the West Coast Region People from Motueka Members of the New Zealand House of Representatives New Zealand MPs for South Island electorates Unsuccessful candidates in the 1914 New Zealand general election 19th-century New Zealand politicians 19th-century New Zealand engineers 20th-century New Zealand engineers