Menzies, John Henry
Date of birth
1839
Date of death
1919
Gender
Male
Place Of death
Biography
John Henry Menzies (1840-1919) emigrated to New Zealand in 1860, arriving in Lyttelton on the "Matoaka". Unable to find land or a position in Canterbury he journeyed south and purchased farming properties in Southland. He and his wife and young family left their farm "Ringway", near Riverton, in 1878. Menzies had purchased land at what was then known as McIntosh's Bay (now Menzies Bay) on Banks Peninsula, and he farmed sheep there for a number of years.
Menzies was an accomplished amateur carver and cabinet maker. He became interested in Maori art and made studies of Maori patterns, publishing a book on the subject in 1910. He included Maori designs in the carved and painted decorations of all his homesteads, including the only surviving one, "Rehutai", at Menzies Bay, and within the Anglican church of St Lukes at Little Akaloa, which he designed and built in 1906.
Menzies was an accomplished amateur carver and cabinet maker. He became interested in Maori art and made studies of Maori patterns, publishing a book on the subject in 1910. He included Maori designs in the carved and painted decorations of all his homesteads, including the only surviving one, "Rehutai", at Menzies Bay, and within the Anglican church of St Lukes at Little Akaloa, which he designed and built in 1906.