Kenora Great War Project

 

Personal Details
Date of BirthSeptember 27, 1896
Place of BirthKenora, Ontario
CountryCanada
Marital StatusSingle
Next of KinAndrew D. McKenzie (Father), Sarah Jane McKenzie (Mother), 210 North Main St. , Kenora, Ontario
Trade / CallingLabourer
ReligionPresbyterian
Service Details
Regimental Number439273
Service Record Link to Service Record
Battalion1st Depot Battalion, Manitoba Regiment
ForceCanadian Expeditionary Force
BranchCanadian Infantry
Enlisted / ConscriptedEnlisted
Place of EnlistmentKenora, Ontario
Address at EnlistmentKenora, Ontario
Date of EnlistmentMay 25, 1915
Age at Enlistment18
Theatre of ServiceCanada
Prisoner of WarNo
Survived WarYes
Death Details
Date of DeathMarch 30, 1935
Age at Death38
Buried AtBrookside Cemetery, Winnipeg, Manitoba
PlotMLTY-0947-0

McKenzie, Lawrence James

Birth date and location:  Lawrence James McKenzie was born on September 27,1896 in Kenora, Ontario, son of Andrew Dallas McKenzie and his wife, Sarah Jane Mitchell.  Andrew was born of United Empire Loyalist parentage in Orillia, Ontario in 1857. He  moved to Rat Portage (later known as Kenora) in 1888, working as a carpenter.  He and Sarah were married in St. Andrews, Manitoba, January 4,1893 and moved permanently to Rat Portage shortly after, where they began to raise their family.  A daughter, Jessie was born in 1895 and died the following year. She is buried in the Lake of the Woods Cemetery.

When Lawrence was born, Andrew was recorded as a Machinist; however, five years later, at the time of the 1901 Census, he was working as a Pump Repairman with the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR). He and Sarah (aged 31) were recorded as having three children: daughter, Florence Mabel (born about 1893); Lawrence James; and another son, Dallas M. (born 1900). All children were born in Ontario. The family was Presbyterian.

Early Life:  The McKenzie family appear in the 1911 Census living at 210 Main Street, Kenora.  The children are: Lawrence, Dallas, Edgar, Gordon, (Florence) Mabel, Kate and Grace. Andrew continues as a Pump Repairer with the CPR.   There is evidence of tragedy with the deaths of possibly two daughters since the last census: Mary Jane, born in 1901, died in 1908. She and Jessie are buried in the same plot in the Lake of the Woods Cemetery in Kenora.  A daughter, Catherine, born 1903, also appears to have passed away.

At the time of his enlistment, Lawrence was residing in Kenora with his parents. He was recorded as being a labourer and also a ranchman, suggesting he was working on a farm, in the area.

War experience:  Lawrence’s military record is, at times, confusing. On some records, the spelling of the surname is MacKenzie There are also three different dates given for his enlistment, and variations of his Regimental Number. For example, one document states he first enlisted with the 1st Depot Battalion, Manitoba Regiment, on December 1,1914;  however, there is no Attestation Paper to this effect and no further mention of this date in Lawrence’s record.

There are, however, two sets of Attestation Papers in his file. The first is for his enlistment on May 25, 1915, in Kenora, with the 52nd Battalion. His Regimental Number was 439273. By August 9th of 1915, Lawrence was reported missing from duty and on October 26, 1915, he was posted as a deserter. There is no record of where Lawrence may have gone or where he may have been living during or after this date.  Lawrence re-attested on November 19, 1917, in Winnipeg, with the 1st Depot Battalion, Manitoba Regiment. In this document, he indicated he had served 4 months with the 52nd Battalion.  His new Regimental Number was given as 39273; however, it is used interchangeably in his record with 439273. On both enlistment occasions, 1915 and 1917, Lawrence was declared medically fit to serve.

After this final enlistment, Lawrence travelled with his Manitoba unit to St. John, New Brunswick, and was staying in the armouries, prior to embarkation to England. By June 8th, 1917, however, a series of reports expressed concern about his well-being: he was being unresponsive to commands, leaving the barracks without permission and not always returning on time. Further, the reports indicated he would have outbursts of laughter during the day and also at night time. On June 10, 1918, Lawrence was transferred to the Provincial Hospital of New Brunswick in St. John where further observations were made. He was diagnosed as having “mental deficiency” and was declared medically unfit to serve. Lawrence was discharged from service, July 12, 1918. He returned to live with his parents in Kenora and to work as a ranch hand.

Life after the war: Although it is not known how long Lawrence remained living or working in Kenora, it is known that by the 1921 Canadian Census, he was a patient at the “Selkirk Asylum”, in Selkirk, Manitoba. He was 25 years old at the time and working as a ranchman.

Meanwhile, in the 1921 census, Lawrence’s parents and several siblings continued to reside in Kenora at 210 North Main Street. The household included his parents, Andrew  and Sarah and five children:  Mabel (working as a teacher); Kate (born about 1904, student); Edgar (born about 1906, student); Gordon (born about 1908, student); and Grace (born about 1911, student).

Date of death and burial location: Lawrence died young, at the age of 39 years, on March 30, 1935. His death, at the Selkirk Institution, was attributed to epilepsy.  He was buried on April 8, 1935, in the Military Field of Honour (Lot 947 Grave 0) at Brookside Cemetery in Winnipeg, Manitoba, “Where all Veterans receive the same level of recognition, regardless of rank, race, religion or creed, while being commemorated individually.”

Lawrence’s parents are both buried in the Lake of the Woods Cemetery in Kenora.  Andrew died January 28,1936. Sarah died many years later on January 15, 1964.

Prepared with respect by Susan [Hillman] Brazeau for the Kenora Great War Project

McKenzie-Lawrence-James-2

Sources:
Ancestry.ca (Canadian Census Records, 1891, 1901, 1911, 1916, 1921; Birth, Deaths and Marriages-Canada; Individual name searches; Find-a-Grave)
Kenora Daily Miner and News (Great War articles; Obituaries)
Kenora Great War Project File (Photographs, newspaper articles, obituaries, and other gathered resources)
Library and Archives Canada (first World War Personnel Records; Canadian Census Records)
Northern Ontario Gravemarker Gallery (Lake of the Woods Cemetery)
Brookside Cemetery


« Back To Soldier Biographies