BIOGRAPHY
There are many biographies written about David McKee Wright, foremost of which are the works of Dr Michael Sharkey who has studied the life and works of the poet in a 25 year quest. However, as this website is intended to promote his works it seems appropriate that we leave the poet himself to write his own biography. The following is what David McKee Wright wrote of his life in 1920.
David McKee Wright’s Story
My great distinction, and that which specially qualifies me to write of simple themes, is that I was born under thatch—brown Irish straw thatch with sally rods for binding and deep green moss on the weather side. The new house at Ballynaskeagh was being built; my grandfather, David McKee, had just died at the age of 92; and my mother and father were home on furlough from Syria. I was left as a squawling and delicate infant in the care of my grandmother[1] and aunt to get strong breathing Irish air while my parents returned to Damascus. Up to the age of seven I roamed about the fields of County Down—the very district where still the Orange drum[2] beats loudest, yet which, in spite of the noise, elects De Valera[3] to the Ulster Parliament. I loved every tree about my old home, every turn of the green roads, every cadence of the people's voices. They were all my friends—the farmers, the cotters[4], the very old men who talked of the battle of Ballynahinch[5] as a familiar memory of childhood, the beggarmen sitting eating bowls of stir-about or broth in the big Ballynaskeagh kitchen, the people under orange banners and those who wore green sashes[6].
In his brief account of his life David McKee Wright overlooked varied occupations from roustabout, to congregational minister, the decade of New Zealand writing, and literary recitals; two decades of Australian editorship and journalism and his three families. He managed to leave more out of his life story than he wrote about. Some of his most interesting works appeared in the eight years after he wrote this brief account and continued to be published for ten years following his death in 1928
All this and much more is described in the book "Apollo in George Street: The life of David McKee Wright", the biography written by Michael Sharkey published by Puncher and Wattmann, NSW, Australia in 2012.
All this and much more is described in the book "Apollo in George Street: The life of David McKee Wright", the biography written by Michael Sharkey published by Puncher and Wattmann, NSW, Australia in 2012.
[1] Rebecca McKee (nee Todd) 1808 d. Christchurch NZ 1892
[2] A large, double headed drum often called the ‘goat skin’ or the ‘orange drum’, is generally associated with the ritual twelfth of July demonstrations held by the Orange Lodge in Ulster, and was an integral part of the identity of Northern Protestants.
[3] George De Valero (1882 –1975) for over fifty years a dominant political figures in 20th century Ireland serving multiple terms as head of government and head of state, He was a leader of Ireland's struggle for independence founding Fianna Fáil, which continues to be the largest political party in Ireland.
[4] A peasant farmer
[5] The battle of Ballynahinch was fought between British Forces and United Irishmen seeking parliamentary reform on 12 Jun 1798 outside Ballnahinch near his birthplace at Ballynaskeagh.
[6] A Catholic organisation that grew in the 19th and 20th centuries in opposition to Protestant Orangemen. They distinguished themselves by wearing a green sash (the colour green being a national symbol of Ireland), organising parades and carrying opposition banners to Orangemen. Green sashes are also commonly worn on St Patrick’s Day.
[7] Aged 18 years in 1887
[8] A New Zealand sheep farm
[2] A large, double headed drum often called the ‘goat skin’ or the ‘orange drum’, is generally associated with the ritual twelfth of July demonstrations held by the Orange Lodge in Ulster, and was an integral part of the identity of Northern Protestants.
[3] George De Valero (1882 –1975) for over fifty years a dominant political figures in 20th century Ireland serving multiple terms as head of government and head of state, He was a leader of Ireland's struggle for independence founding Fianna Fáil, which continues to be the largest political party in Ireland.
[4] A peasant farmer
[5] The battle of Ballynahinch was fought between British Forces and United Irishmen seeking parliamentary reform on 12 Jun 1798 outside Ballnahinch near his birthplace at Ballynaskeagh.
[6] A Catholic organisation that grew in the 19th and 20th centuries in opposition to Protestant Orangemen. They distinguished themselves by wearing a green sash (the colour green being a national symbol of Ireland), organising parades and carrying opposition banners to Orangemen. Green sashes are also commonly worn on St Patrick’s Day.
[7] Aged 18 years in 1887
[8] A New Zealand sheep farm