R. Tait McKenzie
Encyclopedia
Robert Tait McKenzie was an internationally renowned Canadian-born sculptor, doctor, soldier, physical educator, athlete and Scouter. Born in Mississippi Mills, Lanark County, Ontario
, Canada
, he resided in several cities, including Montreal
and Philadelphia, before finally residing at the Mill of Kintail in Almonte
, Lanark County, Ontario
, Canada
.
, and his childhood friend was James Naismith
, the inventor of Basketball
, with whom he attended McGill University
. As a child, McKenzie did not regard himself as an athlete, saying,
"Looking back with an eye of memory I see a rather delicate child, sensitive at being called pale-faced, a roamer of the woods and fields with a mind filled with romance that Sir Walter Scott
and Fenimore Cooper
alone could instill, going unwillingly to school, distracted by thoughts of the Deerslayer..."
in 1885. Throughout his time at McGill, he developed a great appreciation for athletics and physical training, and discovered they had captured his heart and soul. McKenzie became involved in acrobatics
and gymnastics
, set a five foot nine inch high jump
record, ran hurdles, boxed
, played football
, and was on the tug-of-war
team. In 1889, he won the Wickstead gold medal becoming an acknowledged gymnastic champion. McKenzie found his own athletic abilities focused on sports that did not solely require strength or stamina, but rather skill, coordination, and practice.
During his senior year at McGill, McKenzie was an intern at the University Hospital. He graduated from McGill University
in 1892 Medicinæ Doctorem et Chirurgiæ Magistrum, and then got an internship at Montreal General Hospital
. As McKenzie gained more and more experience as a physician and surgeon, developed his own medical practice and became an anatomy instructor at McGill, he became more and more convinced for the need for preventive medicine. As a result of this idea, he developed a program of physical exercise for the prevention of disease, physical breakdown and accidents through the training and conditioning of the body.
A highlight of McKenzie's career came in 1894 when he was contracted as the personal family physician of the current Governor General of Canada
, the Marquis of Aberdeen
. He spent 15 months in the Governor General's household, and the experience allowed him to mingle with various political figures.
During the 1890s, McKenzie requested McGill invest in physical training for students by developing a department and school of physical education. He wanted to customize the athletic programs for each type of student (3 categories: athletic, sedentary, or bookworm), but McGill denied his request because it was not in the school's budget to create a full department of physical education. As a compromise, in 1898, McGill appointed him as Medical Director of Physical Training and allowed him to start physical examinations for incoming students. McKenzie was the first ever to have such an appointment at a Canadian university.
With both his duties at McGill and his medical practice in Montreal, McKenzie needed an escape: art. He first turned to watercolour sketching, and always kept a small notebook in his pocket in which he would scribble whenever something caught his eye. His interest in sculpting was a result of his extensive knowledge of human anatomy, portraying athletics artistically and the limitations present in portraying musculature in two-dimensional art forms.
McKenzie's first untrained sculptural effort was a series of masks known as Violent Effort, Breatlessness, Fatigue and Exhaustion. To achieve these masks, he had studied facial muscles under conditions of both physical and emotional stress. To complete this series of artistic work, he wrote an article entitled "The Facial Expression of Violent Effort, Breathlessness and Fatigue," which was published circa 1900 in the Journal of Anatomy and Physiology in London.
His first sculptural piece in the round was The Sprinter. The design of the piece involved measurements of limbs and torsos of many athletes, including McGill students. The Sprinter was second in a series of over 200 works that included athletic figures, military figures, busts, masks, friezes and medallions. These works of art are displayed all over Canada
, the United States
, England
and Scotland
.
, McKenzie was offered and accepted a position at the University of Pennsylvania
in Philadelphia in 1904. He saw potential in the offer because it gave him a permanent faculty position, and the university had a new gymnasium, football stadium, running track and other recently constructed facilities. His position as Director of the Physical Education Department came with the opportunity to develop, test and implement his theories on health and athletics.
While in Philadelphia, he also worked closely with Lord Robert Baden-Powell, founder of Scouting
.
During 1907, McKenzie met and married musician and poet Ethel O'Neil, a native of Hamilton
, Ontario
, Canada
, while on a voyage to England
.
As a long time supporter and spectator at the Olympic Games
, McKenzie often participated as an exhibitor during the competition of fine arts
. To commemorate the Olympic Games scheduled for Stockholm in 1912
, the American Olympic Committee
commissioned him to create a sports medallion. The result was one of his most famous works, the Joy of Effort medallion. Later, at the 1924 Paris Olympics
, McKenzie would win a medal for a sculpture.
In 1915, with the outbreak of the First World War
, McKenzie made his way to England to enlist with the Canadian Forces
. Eager to volunteer his services as a physician and surgeon, McKenzie chose instead to enlist with the Royal Army Medical Corps
after encountering some red tape and delays in his paperwork. Given the commission of Lieutenant
(and later becoming Major
), they quickly assigned him to the physical training program for newly arrived soldiers. His first task was to inspect and report on the condition of the training camps. Once the organization of the training camps was completed, he spent six months working out of orthopedic
care centers, with some of his work involving taking individuals disabled by war and designing specific prosthetic apparatus
that would suit their needs. He also spent a large portion of his time helping plastic surgeon Dr. William L. Clark rehabilitate those whose faces had been disfigured by war.
After the war, McKenzie returned to his position at the University of Pennsylvania
. In 1930, he left his post at the University as teaching there was no longer an enjoyable part of his life because of the bureaucracy that had become attached to his job.
to return to his hometown to participate in the celebration of Almonte's 50th Anniversary of Incorporation
. During the celebrations, the mayor offered McKenzie "The Freedom of Almonte" - a local award of recognition. While in town, he decided to explore his old boyhood haunts and came across the old gristmill
known as Baird's Mill. The mayor encouraged McKenzie and his wife to purchase the property. The property had long since become abandoned; however, it was situated in a picturesque setting, making a perfect retirement home that would kindle McKenzie's artistic imagination. After Ethel O'Neil McKenzie's death in 1954The Mill of Kintail, as McKenzie and his wife Ethel renamed the property, passed eventually into management by the local natural resource management office, the Mississippi Valley Conservation Authority, who maintain the museum now open to the public May - October.
During his retirement, McKenzie took advantage of the peaceful surroundings of Almonte
. Being a man who could never sit still for very long, a typical summer's day would find him working in his studio, walking in the woods, swimming, canoeing, going into town or giving presentations to local groups. His spirit refused to allow him to slow down, despite warnings from his physician about his deteriorating heart, and consequently, McKenzie collapsed suddenly and died on April 28, 1938.
with the intent on pursuing a medical career, it was his many other varied endeavours that led to his identification as a remarkable Canadian. His time at McGill saw him pioneering physical fitness programs in Canada. During the war, his methods and inventions that helped restore and rehabilitate those injured by war have since provided a sound basis for the development of modern physiotherapy
practices. He created over two hundred works of art seen around the world today, and even the old gristmill he had lovingly restored, is itself representative of his spirit and a fitting memorial to McKenzie.
A collection of his work can be seen at his former residence, the Mill of Kintail, also known as the R. Tait McKenzie Memorial Museum at the Mississippi Mills Conservation Area in Almonte, Ontario
.
The Joseph B. Wolffe Collection of R. Tait McKenzie Sculpture of Athletes is housed on the campus of the University of Tennessee
.
Near the end of his life, McKenzie expressed a wish that following his death his heart be buried in front of the Scottish-American War Memorial
that he had created in Edinburgh, Scotland. When he died in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
, this request was denied by the "corporation of that city", but his heart was subsequently buried at the nearby St. Cuthbert churchyard. An elementary school in Almonte, Ontario
was named after him in 1998.
, and Gilwell Park
, Australia
.
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, he resided in several cities, including Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
and Philadelphia, before finally residing at the Mill of Kintail in Almonte
Almonte
-People:* Carlos Eduardo Almonte, arrested in 2010 on terrorism-related charges* Danny Almonte , former little league baseball player in the United States* Edwin Almonte , baseball player in the United States...
, Lanark County, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
.
Biography
He was born on May 26, 1867 in Mississippi Mills, Lanark County, OntarioOntario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, and his childhood friend was James Naismith
James Naismith
The first game of "Basket Ball" was played in December 1891. In a handwritten report, Naismith described the circumstances of the inaugural match; in contrast to modern basketball, the players played nine versus nine, handled a soccer ball, not a basketball, and instead of shooting at two hoops,...
, the inventor of Basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
, with whom he attended McGill University
McGill University
Mohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...
. As a child, McKenzie did not regard himself as an athlete, saying,
"Looking back with an eye of memory I see a rather delicate child, sensitive at being called pale-faced, a roamer of the woods and fields with a mind filled with romance that Sir Walter Scott
Walter Scott
Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet was a Scottish historical novelist, playwright, and poet, popular throughout much of the world during his time....
and Fenimore Cooper
James Fenimore Cooper
James Fenimore Cooper was a prolific and popular American writer of the early 19th century. He is best remembered as a novelist who wrote numerous sea-stories and the historical novels known as the Leatherstocking Tales, featuring frontiersman Natty Bumppo...
alone could instill, going unwillingly to school, distracted by thoughts of the Deerslayer..."
McGill University
This attitude changed when he enrolled in pre-med at McGill UniversityMcGill University
Mohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...
in 1885. Throughout his time at McGill, he developed a great appreciation for athletics and physical training, and discovered they had captured his heart and soul. McKenzie became involved in acrobatics
Acrobatics
Acrobatics is the performance of extraordinary feats of balance, agility and motor coordination. It can be found in many of the performing arts, as well as many sports...
and gymnastics
Gymnastics
Gymnastics is a sport involving performance of exercises requiring physical strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, and balance. Internationally, all of the gymnastic sports are governed by the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique with each country having its own national governing body...
, set a five foot nine inch high jump
High jump
The high jump is a track and field athletics event in which competitors must jump over a horizontal bar placed at measured heights without the aid of certain devices in its modern most practiced format; auxiliary weights and mounds have been used for assistance; rules have changed over the years....
record, ran hurdles, boxed
Boxing
Boxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...
, played football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
, and was on the tug-of-war
Tug of war
Tug of war, also known as tug o' war, tug war, rope war or rope pulling, is a sport that directly pits two teams against each other in a test of strength. The term may also be used as a metaphor to describe a demonstration of brute strength by two opposing groups, such as a rivalry between two...
team. In 1889, he won the Wickstead gold medal becoming an acknowledged gymnastic champion. McKenzie found his own athletic abilities focused on sports that did not solely require strength or stamina, but rather skill, coordination, and practice.
During his senior year at McGill, McKenzie was an intern at the University Hospital. He graduated from McGill University
McGill University
Mohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...
in 1892 Medicinæ Doctorem et Chirurgiæ Magistrum, and then got an internship at Montreal General Hospital
Montreal General Hospital
The Montreal General Hospital is a hospital in Montreal, Canada, established on May 1, 1819 and an early teaching hospital. First located on the corner of Craig and St-Lawrence Streets with only 24 beds, it moved in 1822 to a new 72-bed building on Dorchester Street. It is currently situated on...
. As McKenzie gained more and more experience as a physician and surgeon, developed his own medical practice and became an anatomy instructor at McGill, he became more and more convinced for the need for preventive medicine. As a result of this idea, he developed a program of physical exercise for the prevention of disease, physical breakdown and accidents through the training and conditioning of the body.
A highlight of McKenzie's career came in 1894 when he was contracted as the personal family physician of the current Governor General of Canada
Governor General of Canada
The Governor General of Canada is the federal viceregal representative of the Canadian monarch, Queen Elizabeth II...
, the Marquis of Aberdeen
Marquess of Aberdeen and Temair
Marquess of Aberdeen and Temair, in the County of Aberdeen, in the County of Meath and in the County of Argyll, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 4 January 1916 for John Hamilton-Gordon, 7th Earl of Aberdeen. The Gordon family descends from John Gordon, who fought...
. He spent 15 months in the Governor General's household, and the experience allowed him to mingle with various political figures.
During the 1890s, McKenzie requested McGill invest in physical training for students by developing a department and school of physical education. He wanted to customize the athletic programs for each type of student (3 categories: athletic, sedentary, or bookworm), but McGill denied his request because it was not in the school's budget to create a full department of physical education. As a compromise, in 1898, McGill appointed him as Medical Director of Physical Training and allowed him to start physical examinations for incoming students. McKenzie was the first ever to have such an appointment at a Canadian university.
With both his duties at McGill and his medical practice in Montreal, McKenzie needed an escape: art. He first turned to watercolour sketching, and always kept a small notebook in his pocket in which he would scribble whenever something caught his eye. His interest in sculpting was a result of his extensive knowledge of human anatomy, portraying athletics artistically and the limitations present in portraying musculature in two-dimensional art forms.
McKenzie's first untrained sculptural effort was a series of masks known as Violent Effort, Breatlessness, Fatigue and Exhaustion. To achieve these masks, he had studied facial muscles under conditions of both physical and emotional stress. To complete this series of artistic work, he wrote an article entitled "The Facial Expression of Violent Effort, Breathlessness and Fatigue," which was published circa 1900 in the Journal of Anatomy and Physiology in London.
His first sculptural piece in the round was The Sprinter. The design of the piece involved measurements of limbs and torsos of many athletes, including McGill students. The Sprinter was second in a series of over 200 works that included athletic figures, military figures, busts, masks, friezes and medallions. These works of art are displayed all over Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
.
University of Pennsylvania
Because of his unique position at McGill UniversityMcGill University
Mohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...
, McKenzie was offered and accepted a position at the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
in Philadelphia in 1904. He saw potential in the offer because it gave him a permanent faculty position, and the university had a new gymnasium, football stadium, running track and other recently constructed facilities. His position as Director of the Physical Education Department came with the opportunity to develop, test and implement his theories on health and athletics.
While in Philadelphia, he also worked closely with Lord Robert Baden-Powell, founder of Scouting
Scouting
Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement with the stated aim of supporting young people in their physical, mental and spiritual development, that they may play constructive roles in society....
.
During 1907, McKenzie met and married musician and poet Ethel O'Neil, a native of Hamilton
Hamilton, Ontario
Hamilton is a port city in the Canadian province of Ontario. Conceived by George Hamilton when he purchased the Durand farm shortly after the War of 1812, Hamilton has become the centre of a densely populated and industrialized region at the west end of Lake Ontario known as the Golden Horseshoe...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, while on a voyage to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
As a long time supporter and spectator at the Olympic Games
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
, McKenzie often participated as an exhibitor during the competition of fine arts
Art competitions at the Olympic Games
Art competitions formed part of the modern Olympic Games during its early years, from 1912 to 1952. The competitions were part of the original intention of the Olympic Movement's founder, Pierre de Frédy, Baron de Coubertin...
. To commemorate the Olympic Games scheduled for Stockholm in 1912
1912 Summer Olympics
The 1912 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the V Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Stockholm, Sweden, between 5 May and 27 July 1912. Twenty-eight nations and 2,407 competitors, including 48 women, competed in 102 events in 14 sports...
, the American Olympic Committee
United States Olympic Committee
The United States Olympic Committee is a non-profit organization that serves as the National Olympic Committee and National Paralympic Committee for the United States and coordinates the relationship between the United States Anti-Doping Agency and the World Anti-Doping Agency and various...
commissioned him to create a sports medallion. The result was one of his most famous works, the Joy of Effort medallion. Later, at the 1924 Paris Olympics
1924 Summer Olympics
The 1924 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the VIII Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1924 in Paris, France...
, McKenzie would win a medal for a sculpture.
In 1915, with the outbreak of the First World War
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, McKenzie made his way to England to enlist with the Canadian Forces
Canadian Forces
The Canadian Forces , officially the Canadian Armed Forces , are the unified armed forces of Canada, as constituted by the National Defence Act, which states: "The Canadian Forces are the armed forces of Her Majesty raised by Canada and consist of one Service called the Canadian Armed Forces."...
. Eager to volunteer his services as a physician and surgeon, McKenzie chose instead to enlist with the Royal Army Medical Corps
Royal Army Medical Corps
The Royal Army Medical Corps is a specialist corps in the British Army which provides medical services to all British Army personnel and their families in war and in peace...
after encountering some red tape and delays in his paperwork. Given the commission of Lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
(and later becoming Major
Major
Major is a rank of commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every military in the world.When used unhyphenated, in conjunction with no other indicator of rank, the term refers to the rank just senior to that of an Army captain and just below the rank of lieutenant colonel. ...
), they quickly assigned him to the physical training program for newly arrived soldiers. His first task was to inspect and report on the condition of the training camps. Once the organization of the training camps was completed, he spent six months working out of orthopedic
Orthopedics
Orthopedics is the study of the musculoskeletal system. The Greek word 'ortho' means straight or correct and 'pedics' comes from the Greek 'pais' meaning children. For many centuries, orthopedists have been involved in the treatment of crippled children...
care centers, with some of his work involving taking individuals disabled by war and designing specific prosthetic apparatus
Prosthesis
In medicine, a prosthesis, prosthetic, or prosthetic limb is an artificial device extension that replaces a missing body part. It is part of the field of biomechatronics, the science of using mechanical devices with human muscle, skeleton, and nervous systems to assist or enhance motor control...
that would suit their needs. He also spent a large portion of his time helping plastic surgeon Dr. William L. Clark rehabilitate those whose faces had been disfigured by war.
After the war, McKenzie returned to his position at the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
. In 1930, he left his post at the University as teaching there was no longer an enjoyable part of his life because of the bureaucracy that had become attached to his job.
Almonte
In McKenzie's final years, he was an internationally recognized figure and comparatively well off, so that he had the ability to retire anywhere. In 1931, he received an invitation from the Mayor of AlmonteAlmonte, Ontario
Almonte is a Canadian exurb and former mill town located in Lanark County, in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario, Canada. Formerly a separate municipality, Almonte is now a ward of the town of Mississippi Mills, which was created on January 1, 1998 by the merging of Almonte with Ramsay and...
to return to his hometown to participate in the celebration of Almonte's 50th Anniversary of Incorporation
Municipal corporation
A municipal corporation is the legal term for a local governing body, including cities, counties, towns, townships, charter townships, villages, and boroughs. Municipal incorporation occurs when such municipalities become self-governing entities under the laws of the state or province in which...
. During the celebrations, the mayor offered McKenzie "The Freedom of Almonte" - a local award of recognition. While in town, he decided to explore his old boyhood haunts and came across the old gristmill
Gristmill
The terms gristmill or grist mill can refer either to a building in which grain is ground into flour, or to the grinding mechanism itself.- Early history :...
known as Baird's Mill. The mayor encouraged McKenzie and his wife to purchase the property. The property had long since become abandoned; however, it was situated in a picturesque setting, making a perfect retirement home that would kindle McKenzie's artistic imagination. After Ethel O'Neil McKenzie's death in 1954The Mill of Kintail, as McKenzie and his wife Ethel renamed the property, passed eventually into management by the local natural resource management office, the Mississippi Valley Conservation Authority, who maintain the museum now open to the public May - October.
During his retirement, McKenzie took advantage of the peaceful surroundings of Almonte
Almonte, Ontario
Almonte is a Canadian exurb and former mill town located in Lanark County, in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario, Canada. Formerly a separate municipality, Almonte is now a ward of the town of Mississippi Mills, which was created on January 1, 1998 by the merging of Almonte with Ramsay and...
. Being a man who could never sit still for very long, a typical summer's day would find him working in his studio, walking in the woods, swimming, canoeing, going into town or giving presentations to local groups. His spirit refused to allow him to slow down, despite warnings from his physician about his deteriorating heart, and consequently, McKenzie collapsed suddenly and died on April 28, 1938.
Legacy
R. Tait McKenzie's influence was so strong in the fields of physical education, medicine, the arts, and the military that hundreds of individuals expressed sadness and felt personal loss in his passing. These emotions were demonstrated by the condolences sent to his widow, Ethel. He was a prominent Canadian and modern Renaissance man whose international renown stemmed from his passion for physical health, which was incorporated into all of his various talents. Although he enrolled at McGill UniversityMcGill University
Mohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...
with the intent on pursuing a medical career, it was his many other varied endeavours that led to his identification as a remarkable Canadian. His time at McGill saw him pioneering physical fitness programs in Canada. During the war, his methods and inventions that helped restore and rehabilitate those injured by war have since provided a sound basis for the development of modern physiotherapy
Physical therapy
Physical therapy , often abbreviated PT, is a health care profession. Physical therapy is concerned with identifying and maximizing quality of life and movement potential within the spheres of promotion, prevention, diagnosis, treatment/intervention,and rehabilitation...
practices. He created over two hundred works of art seen around the world today, and even the old gristmill he had lovingly restored, is itself representative of his spirit and a fitting memorial to McKenzie.
A collection of his work can be seen at his former residence, the Mill of Kintail, also known as the R. Tait McKenzie Memorial Museum at the Mississippi Mills Conservation Area in Almonte, Ontario
Almonte, Ontario
Almonte is a Canadian exurb and former mill town located in Lanark County, in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario, Canada. Formerly a separate municipality, Almonte is now a ward of the town of Mississippi Mills, which was created on January 1, 1998 by the merging of Almonte with Ramsay and...
.
The Joseph B. Wolffe Collection of R. Tait McKenzie Sculpture of Athletes is housed on the campus of the University of Tennessee
University of Tennessee
The University of Tennessee is a public land-grant university headquartered at Knoxville, Tennessee, United States...
.
Near the end of his life, McKenzie expressed a wish that following his death his heart be buried in front of the Scottish-American War Memorial
Scots American War Memorial
The Scots American War Memorial or Scottish American War Memorial is in Princes Street Gardens in Edinburgh. It was called "The Call", and it was erected in 1927 and shows a kilted infrantyman looking towards Castle Rock. Behind the main statue is a frieze showing queues of men answering the call...
that he had created in Edinburgh, Scotland. When he died in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
, this request was denied by the "corporation of that city", but his heart was subsequently buried at the nearby St. Cuthbert churchyard. An elementary school in Almonte, Ontario
Almonte, Ontario
Almonte is a Canadian exurb and former mill town located in Lanark County, in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario, Canada. Formerly a separate municipality, Almonte is now a ward of the town of Mississippi Mills, which was created on January 1, 1998 by the merging of Almonte with Ramsay and...
was named after him in 1998.
Selected works
- Benjamin Franklin in 1723Benjamin FranklinDr. Benjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat...
(1910–14), University of PennsylvaniaUniversity of PennsylvaniaThe University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Duplicates are at the University of North CarolinaUniversity of North CarolinaChartered in 1789, the University of North Carolina was one of the first public universities in the United States and the only one to graduate students in the eighteenth century...
, Chapel Hill; Philadelphia Free Library, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and Brookgreen GardensBrookgreen GardensBrookgreen Gardens is a sculpture garden and wildlife preserve, located just south of Murrells Inlet, in South Carolina. The property includes several themed gardens with American figurative sculptures placed in them, the Lowcountry Zoo, and trails through several ecosystems in nature reserves on...
, South Carolina. - J. William WhiteJ. William White, Rittenhouse Square]]J. William White was an US surgeon, born in Philadelphia. He was John Rhea Barton Professor of Surgery at the University of Pennsylvania Hospital from 1900 to 1912....
Memorial Drinking Fountain (1919), Rittenhouse SquareRittenhouse SquareRittenhouse Square is one of the five original open-space parks planned by William Penn and his surveyor Thomas Holme during the late 17th century in central Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The park cuts off 19th Street at Walnut Street and also at a half block above Manning Street. Its boundaries are...
, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. - George WhitefieldGeorge WhitefieldGeorge Whitefield , also known as George Whitfield, was an English Anglican priest who helped spread the Great Awakening in Britain, and especially in the British North American colonies. He was one of the founders of Methodism and of the evangelical movement generally...
(1914–19), University of PennsylvaniaUniversity of PennsylvaniaThe University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. - The Homecoming (1922), War Memorial, Hills Road, Cambridge, England.
- The Victor (1925), War Memorial, Woodbury, New Jersey.
- Edgar Fahs SmithEdgar Fahs SmithEdgar Fahs Smith was an American scientist who is best known today for his interests in the history of chemistry...
(1925–26), University of PennsylvaniaUniversity of PennsylvaniaThe University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
, Philadelphia. - Scottish-American MemorialScots American War MemorialThe Scots American War Memorial or Scottish American War Memorial is in Princes Street Gardens in Edinburgh. It was called "The Call", and it was erected in 1927 and shows a kilted infrantyman looking towards Castle Rock. Behind the main statue is a frieze showing queues of men answering the call...
(1927), Princes' Street Gardens, Edinburgh, Scotland. - General James WolfeJames WolfeMajor General James P. Wolfe was a British Army officer, known for his training reforms but remembered chiefly for his victory over the French in Canada...
(1927), Greenwich ParkGreenwich ParkGreenwich Park is a former hunting park in Greenwich and one of the largest single green spaces in south east London. One of the Royal Parks of London, and the first to be enclosed , it covers , and is part of the Greenwich World Heritage Site. It commands fine views over the River Thames, Isle of...
, London, England. - Bust of General John Grubb Parke (1930), Vicksburg National Military ParkVicksburg National Military ParkVicksburg National Military Park preserves the site of the American Civil War Battle of Vicksburg, waged from May 18 to July 4, 1863. The park, in Vicksburg, Mississippi, and Delta, Louisiana, also commemorates the greater Vicksburg Campaign, which preceded the battle. Reconstructed forts and...
, Vicksburg, Mississippi. - World Wars Monument (1932), Girard CollegeGirard CollegeGirard College is an independent boarding school on a 43-acre campus in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States.Girard is for academically capable students, grades one through 12, and awards a full scholarship with a yearly value of approximately $42,000 to every child admitted to the...
, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. - Monument to Jane A. Delano and the Nurses Who Died in Service in World War I (1933), Red Cross HeadquartersAmerican Red Cross National HeadquartersAmerican Red Cross National Headquarters is a building in Washington, D.C. and was built between 1915 and 1917. The building serves both as a memorial to women who served in the American Civil War and as the headquarters building for the American Red Cross....
, Washington D.C. - Highlander Monument (1936), Darien, Georgia.
The Ideal Scout
His most famous sculpture is The Ideal Scout, also known as The Boy Scout. This has been reproduced and sits in front of many U.S. Boy Scout offices across the nation, as well as at the Philadelphia headquarters of the Boy Scouts of AmericaBoy Scouts of America
The Boy Scouts of America is one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with over 4.5 million youth members in its age-related divisions...
, and Gilwell Park
Gilwell Park
Gilwell Park is a camp site and activity centre for Scouting groups, as well as a training and conference centre for Scout Leaders. The 44 hectare site is in Sewardstonebury, Epping Forest, close to Chingford, London....
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
- Philadelphia Museum of Art (1915) 1/4 sized statuette - accession number 42-7-1
- St. Louis, Missouri,
- Ligonier, Pennsylvania (1937)
- Boy Scouts of America HQ, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (1937)
- Kansas City, Kansas (1937)
- University of Pennsylvania (1937)
- Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (1937)
- Jackson, Mississippi (1937)
- Baltimore, Maryland,(1937)
- Sharpsburg, Pennsylvania (1937)
- Fort Worth, Texas (1956)
- Cleveland, Ohio (1962)
- Detroit, Michigan (1965)
- St. Paul, Minnesota (1965)
- Portland, Oregon (1972)
- East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania (1972)
- Allentown, Pennsylvania (1975)
- Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania (1978)
- Irving, Texas (1979)
- Ann Arbor, Michigan (1980)
- Greenburg, Pennsylvania (1982)
- Milwaukee, Wisconsin (1985)
- Indianapolis, Indiana (1990)
- Farmington, Pennsylvania (1991)
- Reedesville, Pennsylvania (1992)
- Lancaster, Pennsylvania (1995)
- Raleigh, North Carolina
Further reading
- Cosentino, Frank. Almonte's Brother's of the Wind: R. Tait McKenzie and James Naismith. General Store Publishing House: Burnstown, 1996.
- Fraquharson Leys, James, Major. "The Life of a Remarkable Man." The Canadian Army Journal. January 1955.
- Goode, James M. The Outdoor Sculpture of Washington D.C., Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington D.C. 1974
- Hanaway, Joseph and Richard L. Cruess. McGill Medicine - 1885 to 1936. McGill-Queen's University Press: Montreal, 1996.
- Hussey, Christopher, Tait McKenzie: A Sculptor of Youth, J.B.Lippencott Company, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1930
- Kozar, Andrew J., R. Tait Mckenzie: The Sculptor of Athletes, University of Tennessee Press, Knoxville, Tennessee, 1975
- Kvaran, Einar Einarsson, Annotated Inventory of Outdoor Sculpture in Washtenaw County, 1989
- McGill, Jean S. The Joy of Effort: A Biography of R. Tait McKenzie. Clay Publishing Co.: Oshawa, 1980.
- Opitz, Glenn B, Editor, Mantle Fielding’s Dictionary of American Painters, Sculptors & Engravers, Apollo Book, Poughkeepsie NY, 1986
- Proske, Beatrice Gilman, Brookgreen Gardens Sculpture, Brookgreen Gardens, South Carolina, 1968
- Rogers, Peter, Gilwell Park, The Scout Association, London, England, 1998.