Peter McSkimming

Peter McSkimming was born on 9 March 1872 in Dreghorn, Ayrshire, Scotland, and emigrated from there with his parents Peter McSkimming and Catherine (née Pelling) in 1878. They initially settled in Lawrence before both Peters began work for John Nelson's clay pipe factory in Benhar, near Balclutha in 1881. McSkimming senior was a shrewd but humanitarian businessman, and bought the factory by the 1890s, turning it into a major manufacturer of ceramic sanitary products.[1] The factory was renamed McSkimming Industries in 1917. When he died in 1923, his son took over the factory.

McSkimming represented the Clutha electorate in the New Zealand House of Representatives as an Independent from 1931 until his retirement in 1935.[2][3] In 1935, he was awarded the King George V Silver Jubilee Medal.[4]

McSkimming was chairman of the South Otago Freezing Co., Kaitangata Coal Co., Dominion Fertilizer Co., Bruce Woollen Co. and New Zealand Refrigerating Company[5]

McSkimming married Agnes Jane Lowery in 1904, and they had five children. Three of their sons remained involved in the family business, running it until it was taken over by Ceramco in 1980. Notable among their offspring was Robert McSkimming (1916-1992), who was awarded a DFC for his work with the Royal New Zealand Air Force during World War II.[6]

• Three Party Politics in New Zealand, 1911-1931 by Michael Bassett (1982, Historical Publications, Auckland)
• The Rich List: Wealth and Enterprise in New Zealand 1820-2000 by Graeme Hunt (2000, Reed Books, Auckland)
• Southern People: A Dictionary of Otago and Southland Biography Edited by Jane Thomson (1998, Dunedin City Council, Dunedin)
• Wilson, James Oakley (1985) [First ed. published 1913]. New Zealand parliamentary record, 1840–1984 (4 ed.). Wellington: V.R. Ward, Govt. Printer. OCLC 154283103.