Born in London on 6 April 1787,[1] he was the son of Thomas Mackenzie, linendraper and his wife Lucy.
He was employed in making architectural and topographical drawings for the works of John Britton and others, and this set the direction for his career.
He died on 25 April 1854, aged 67, of disease of the heart and was buried on the western side of Highgate Cemetery.
The bulk of his work was in the following books:[2] Among his drawings were The King's Coronation (1822) and The Principal Room of the Original National Gallery, formerly the Residence of John Julius Angerstein, Esq., lately pulled down.
The latter was contributed to the Water-colour Society's exhibition in 1836, and went to the South Kensington Museum, together with two drawings of Lincoln Cathedral and one of Thornton Abbey, Lincolnshire.