George Thomas Bathgate was born 26 May 1890, at “Janefield”, West Taieri. He was the youngest of 10 children, with 6 brothers (Alexander, Peter, Charles, John Henry, William David, and James Archibald) and 3 sisters (Jane Eliza, Jessie Brown and Helen Mary).
His parents were John Bathgate (1841-1913) and Ann Grant (1848-1914), both of whom were Otago early settlers, from Scotland. John arrived on the ship ‘Pladda’ and Ann on the ‘Storm Cloud’ – both in 1861. They married in August 1872.
George Bathgate joined the New Zealand Infantry in World War 1, Gallipoli veteran 9/900 (see separate document).
John Bathgate was a farmer and so was George, who ran a dairy farm named ‘Kinfauns’ on Beehive Road, Outram . This farm was later sub-divided, one part remained Kinfauns and was farmed by George jnr, the other section was named ‘Kinfalloch’ and farmed by George snr’s son Donald (Pete) and later by Pete’s son Rob Bathgate).
After the war George met Eleanor Isabella McNee and they were married at Mornington Presbyterian church 23 December 1919.
To provide a home for the newly married couple, a house was purchased on a local property nearby and winched across the paddocks by traction engine to the new site on Beehive Rd.
The photo above shows the homestead a few years later with George & Eleanor’s four sons playing in the garden.
The four sons were, James Robertson Grant (born 1920), John William McNee (born 1922), George Alexander McDonald (born 1923) and Donald Peter Cowan (born 1925), and finally a daughter was born, Elizabeth Eleanor Anne in 1928.
When he retired from farming he and his wife moved to ‘Hope Hill’ in Mornington, Dunedin (the address was at 158 Eglinton Road. After his death, his daughter Elizabeth Sim later reluctantly sold this property and the house was torn down and replaced by a vet clinic, which is still there today.)
George’s wife died at ‘Hope Hill’ on 8 September 1964, and George died at ‘Kinfauns’ on 3 June 1971, aged 81. Cause of death bronco-pneumonia and congestive heart failure.
Jim and John were killed in action during WW 2, both in 1943, Jim being buried in France and John in Italy.
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