Murdoch McKenzie was born in Ross-shire, Scotland in 1835. Attracted by the Otago gold rushes, Murdoch immigrated to New Zealand on board the Nelson and arrived in Dunedin in 1862. He worked on the goldfields for some time before moving to Taieri Beach where he acquired land and worked as a farmer and storekeeper. In the early days of European settlement at Taieri Mouth, residents had to make a long journey to get to the store, a journey which required the whole day. Murdoch’s store, which opened around 1870, relieved residents of this burden.
His own journey to obtain goods for his store, however, remained arduous. He had to get up at 3am to cart his produce to Waihola. To make it to Waihola he had to climb the hilltops of ‘Whalan’s Brae’. A pick was required on snowy days to make suitable footing for his horses. Next he had to rail his produce to Dunedin and then collect the groceries that had arrived on the train for his store. When the gully road through Waihola was opened in 1872 he drove a van to Dunedin.
As well as working on the farm and running his store, Murdoch was also a husband and father. He married Jane Sinclair at First Church, Dunedin in 1868. They had six children: Alexander, Donald, Jessie Ann, Christina, Helen and Robina Lily. Murdoch also acquired land in Akatore where his daughter Jessie Ann managed the homestead. Murdoch died at Taieri Beach in 1894 aged 64.
Mr Murdoch McKenzie