Thomas Mackenzie

Sir Thomas Mackenzie (10 March 1853 – 14 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 London. Biography Early life and career Mackenzie was born in Edinburgh in 1853. His family emigrated to New Zealand in 1858 when he was four and Mackenzie was educated at Green Island School and at the Stone School, both in Dunedin. After ending his education in his early teens he worked for several years in commercial firms before, aged 20, following his brother James into surveying. He gained employment at the Department of Lands and Survey and worked in several locations including the Hutt Valley, Rangitikei and Manawatu before finally returning to his home area in Dunedin. In 1877 he purchased a general storekeeping business in Balclutha. He managed the business well and it developed well before he sold it in 1886 for a considerable profit. In the Balclutha area he became a well-known man and was accordingly elected a member of the Balclutha Borough Council from 1881 to 1887. During this period he married, on 24 September 1884, to Ida Henrietta Nantes with whom he had five sons and two daughters.