McKINNON, QUINTON (1851-92) was born in Scotland of good family, and well educated. As a young man he volunteered to serve in the French army against the Prussians (1870-71). Having married a Shetlander, he came to New Zealand. He was an enthusiastic athlete in his youth, a good skater and Rugby footballer. He was a member of the Otago team which toured the Colony in the seventies, and played against Canterbury in 1878, 1879, 1880 and 1881, and against Wellington in 1879.

In 1881 McKinnon qualified as a surveyor. He was fond of exploring, and spent some years in the western district of Otago, living in a hut on the shores of Lake Te Anau. Accompanied by G. Tucker, he crossed the pass from the head of Middle fjord, Lake Te Anau, to Caswell sound; and later (with E. Mitchell, of Manapouri) he discovered a practicable route from Te Anau to Milford. In Oct 1888 he crossed the McKinnon pass from Te Anau to Milford. (Descriptions of these journeys appeared in the Otago Daily Times of 6 and 29 Oct 1888.) McKinnon took part in the search for Professor Brown at the end of 1888. About this time he carried out a good deal of work for the government improving the track to Milford Sound for the tourist traffic to the West Coast. In 1892 he had a contract to carry mails from Te Anau to Milford, taking six days for each trip, and he accepted a contract for improving the track. On one of his trips to the coast (Nov 1892) he lost his life. He was not heard of after leaving Te Anau on 29 Nov for Milford to make arrangements for the next party of tourists. Search parties discovered his boat on the lake, and it was concluded that he had fallen overboard.

G.M. Moir, Guide Book to the Tourist Routes of the Great Southern Lakes; N.Z. Railways Magazine, 1 Apr 1933 (p); N.Z. Graphic, 8, 18 Sep 1893 (p); Otago Daily Times, Oct 1888, 11, 23 Jan-21 Feb 1893.

Reference: Volume 2, page 18

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