Category: McKenzie – Edith Emily 1895-1991

Doreen Hector Tanner story

A reminiscence from Jennifer Lang about her grandmother Doreen Lang (nee McKenzie) I’m the oldest daughter of an oldest daughter of an oldest daughter – at least that far back, and possibly further. For that reason, I’ve always been more interested in my distaff ancestors (there is probably a technical term for that). But when my cousin (my father’s sister’s daughter) came to visit this year, she commented that she had always been proud of coming […]

Earliest Memories

Reminiscences by Donald Lang What is the earliest event of your life that you can distinctly remember, and assign an approximate date? The subject can be a useful conversation starter, or stopper, with a new acquaintance. Over a string of occasions numerous events from my own life have surfaced, unsorted. Placing them on a time line is not as easy as calling them forth. For some people, “It was when we were living in…” does […]

Four generations including TPN Hewlett

The following photograph, taken in 1899, shows four generations of TPN Hewlett and his descendants in the same place. TPN Hewlett is seated on the left of the front row. His daughter Emily sits beside him and beside her sits her daughter Emily Maude Wilson holding her daughter Marjorie. Maude’s other daughter, Doreen, stands between her grandmother and great-grandfather. Back Row, left to right:- Arthur Pickmere; with Marguerite; Hector McKenzie; Marguerita (1879) Pickmere (Arthur’s sister)? […]

Getting to Know Them

Reminiscence about Kitty McLennan and Doreen McKenzie by Donald Lang My mother when she married came to live in a bungalow near the beach. It was some time before she got rid of a reflex at dusk to reach out and switch on the lights. I don’t know if the fairy penguins knew that house then. Certainly years later they used to come in under it and squabble during the night. A year or two […]

Highland Games

Every year in Waipu, on New Years Day, there is a Highland Games. More Scottish than the Scots, the descendants of the big migrations celebrate their scottishness with a festival of bagpipes, highland dancing, tossing the caber, throwing the wheatsheaf, etc. etc.   It’s also often a family reunion, as the family who have left come back for summer at the Beach, and to see each other. In 1933, on New Year’s Day, one such […]

McKenzie – Edith Emily 1895-1991

Edith Emily (Doreen) McKenzie was born in 1895 in Hora Hora in rural New Zealand (which I think is now part of Whangarei). Because she was the 7th Edith in her small rural district, and as she said “Emily was a cow’s name”, she was called Doreen all her life. That district was full of scottish immigrants, and very into patronymic nicknames, so she was called Doreen Hector Tanner most of her life, even though […]

Memories by Doreen Lang

Doreen Lang was the grand-daughter of “Tanner” McKenzie. Murdock McKenzie and two older brothers were given some money by the Chief of the Clan and told to go to Canada. There was money for their fare and some to start off on. The two older brothers went to Canada and did well. One was Knighted (or so we heard!). Murdock went to Nova Scotia and met Margaret Sutherland and married her. When they had four […]

Memories from Doreen Lang, written by daughter Anne

The Tanner McKenzies Murdock McKenzie and two older brothers were given money and their passage to Canada by the Clan Chief who was a relation and embarrassed by his young cousins‘ teenage pranks–—some quite serious like cattle rustling and deer poaching The two older brothers took ALL the money and went across Canada They stayed there and later did very well. One may have been Knighted! Murdock teamed up with the Nova Scotians. There he […]