Interview with Dr. George Mackenzie
https://search.bvmuseum.org/link/descriptions12283
- Date Range
- July 17, 1993
- Collection
- BVM Oral History collection
- Description Level
- File
- GMD
- sound recording
- electronic record
- Scope and Content
- Interview with Dr. George Mackenzie, recorded on July 17th 1993 by Erin Candela. Includes raw and edited .WAV files, .MP3 access file, and .jpg release form.
- Collection
- BVM Oral History collection
- Description Level
- File
- Creator
- Erin Candela
- Fonds No.
- C5
- Item No.
- 2021.21.58
- Accession No.
- 2021.21
- Physical Description
- 1.28 GB of digital records
- Date Range
- July 17, 1993
- Scope and Content
- Interview with Dr. George Mackenzie, recorded on July 17th 1993 by Erin Candela. Includes raw and edited .WAV files, .MP3 access file, and .jpg release form.
- Type of Record
- Archival Description
Audio Tracks
Interview with Dr. George McKenzie - July 17, 1993
Interview with Dr. George McKenzie - July 17, 1993
https://search.bvmuseum.org/media/Digital%20Fonds%20and%20Collections/C5%20BVM%20Oral%20History%20collection/2021.21.58_McKenzie,%20Dr%20George/McKenzie,%20George%201993_07_17.ACCESS.mp3
George McKenzie discusses his early years in the Bulkley Valley, including what his parents did for a living and why they moved to Smithers (from Moricetown/Witset).
Hazelton; Moricetown; section foreman; Smithers Hotel; station house
birth; childhood; moving; school
McKenzie describes the education he received during his elementary school days in Smithers.
discipline; literature; readers; school subjects; teachers
education; school
McKenzie describes what he would do for fun as a young boy in Smithers.
bear cub; curling rink; skating rink; softball
animals; athletics; childhood; entertainment; recreation; sports; wildlife
McKenzie describes how he was orphaned shortly after leaving Smithers and had to find a job as a young teenager during the Depression. He was eventually able to attend medical school in preparation for World War II.
anatomy; dissection; Great Depression; hotel clerk; John Gray; medical school; Vancouver; World War II
death of parents; education; employment; jobs; working
McKenzie describes the type of clothing worn during his younger days in Smithers, as well as how children would get into fights on the schoolyard.
knickers; schoolyard fights; winter wear
clothing
McKenzie describes the type of appliances and amenities available for cooking and food preservation during his childhood in Smithers.
amenities; appliances; electricity; refrigeration; wood stoves
cooking; food
McKenzie tells a story about policeman Anthony 'Big Mac' MacDonald, and describes the 1913 and 1929 bank robberies in Hazelton and Smithers respectively.
Andy Fairburn; butcher shop; Charlie Morris; George Heffernan; Hazelton bank robbery; jail; Pioneer Building; planting potatoes; Royal Bank
Anthony MacDonald; bank robbery; crime; law and order; policemen
McKenzie describes sports and other forms of outdoor recreation in Smithers during his childhood.
baseball; Chris Dahlie; fishing; Fujio Aida; hiking; hockey; ski competitions; ski jump; soccer; swimming
athletics; Lake Kathlyn; recreation; skiing; sports
McKenzie describes a bathhouse run by a Japanese family (presumably the Katsuro family) in Smithers during the 1920s. He also discusses prices during the Depression in Vancouver.
bathhouse; bathing; hygiene; money; prices
McKenzie discusses various aspects of his life after leaving Smithers, including living in Vancouver, suffering from eye problems, training to be a doctor, joining the military, and specializing in pediatrics.
eye problems; iritis; lead-swingers; marriage; pediatrics; Vancouver
air force; army; medical school; medical training; military; military training; World War II
McKenzie describes various forms of entertainment and recreation in Smithers during his childhood, including popular culture such as movies and music.
band; films; fishing; Fujio Aida; John Gray; Lake Kathlyn; Main Street ditches; movie theater; movie theatre; movies; scat singing; shells; silent films; singers; singing; skates; skating; Tommy Hetherington; town hall; violin lessons
activities; concerts; dancing; entertainment; music; recreation
Discussion of Sargent's Store and the types of candy and junk food available at the time.
Al Finnerty; cent candy; Moran's Corner; Sargent's Store; soda fountain
candy; drinks; junk food; shopping
McKenzie describes men riding the rails during the Great Depression, looking for jobs.
Great Depression; railway; riding the rails
McKenzie mentions how he used to love cross-country skiing by moonlight, and compares Smithers' winters to those in other places in Canada/the U.S.
McKenzie expresses his belief that Canadian youth should get to know their country and its history better.
Canada; history; travel; weather
McKenzie talks about leaving Smithers and losing his mother all before entering his teens.
hardships; homesickness
McKenzie discusses living in Montreal and gives his perspectives on Quebecois independence, the right to preserve one's culture, and the importance of French-Canadian history.
culture; history; Quebec; Quebecois
After signing off, interview begins again with discussion of boyhood Halloween pranks in Smithers. (Note: tape cuts off and comes back again around 42:28).
Andy McNaughton; Chong Kee Laundry; Evelyn Hotel; firecrackers; tipping outhouses
childhood; Halloween; holidays; pranks
McKenzie relates the story of how three Knockholt railway workers would sometimes find old socks in their stewed rhubarb.
Danny Matheson; Houston; Knockholt
rhubarb stew
McKenzie names the doctors and dentists who practiced in Smithers while he was a boy, and describes the methods and quality of health care available at the time.
appendicitis; barbers; castor oil; child mortality; cod liver oil; diseases; Dr. Alexander; Dr. R.B. Brummitt; Dr. R.C. Bamford; Dr. Vere Agnew; meningitis; pain relief; patent medicines; quack medicines; Sandy Gazely; World War II
dental care; dentists; doctors; health care
McKenzie gives his views on Americans and compares American and Canadian society.
AIDS; capital punishment; gun control; hanging; public health care
American vs. Canadian society; Americans
McKenzie's closing thoughts and comments.
'Ksan; child safety; hitchhiking; Michael Dunahee (kidnapped boy)