1862 Intentions to Marry

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840374, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

Imaged by Luke Howison at Archives NZ Wellington, December 11 2024

Page 308

District of Dunedin Quarter ending 31 March 1862

Date of Notice

Names and Surnames of Parties

BDM Match

Condition

Calling or Profession

Age

Dwelling Place

Length of Residence

Marriage Place

Folio

Consent

Date of Certificate

Officiating Minister

14 February 1862

James Petherick
Mary Sim

James Petherick
Mary Sim
💍 1862/3056

Bachelor
Spinster

Carpenter

26 years
25 years

Dunedin
Dunedin

2 years
15 months

In the house of George Harriott, carpenter George Street Dunedin

14 February 1862

Revd Thomas Burns

No	29
Date of Notice	14 February 1862
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	James Petherick	Mary Sim
	💍 1862/3056
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Carpenter
Age	26 years	25 years
Dwelling Place	Dunedin	Dunedin
Length of Residence	2 years	15 months
Marriage Place	In the house of George Harriott, carpenter George Street Dunedin
Folio
Consent
Date of Certificate	14 February 1862
Officiating Minister	Revd Thomas Burns

19 February 1862

William Robertson
Bridget James

William Robertson
Bridget James
💍 1862/2846

Bachelor
Widow

Boarding house Keeper

25 years
24 years

Dunedin
Dunedin

2 months
6 weeks

In the house of the Revd D. Moreau, Canongate Dunedin

19 February 1862

Revd D. Moreau

No	30
Date of Notice	19 February 1862
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Robertson	Bridget James
	💍 1862/2846
Condition	Bachelor	Widow
Profession	Boarding house Keeper
Age	25 years	24 years
Dwelling Place	Dunedin	Dunedin
Length of Residence	2 months	6 weeks
Marriage Place	In the house of the Revd D. Moreau, Canongate Dunedin
Folio
Consent
Date of Certificate	19 February 1862
Officiating Minister	Revd D. Moreau

20 February 1862

William Towers
Helen Smith

William Towers
Helen Smith
💍 1862/2849

Bachelor
Spinster

Soldier

25 years
16 years

Dunedin
Dunedin

3 months
14 weeks

In the tent occupied by Mary Smith, mother of the said Helen Smith pitched near the Military Camp, Dunedin

Mary Smith, Mother

20 February 1862

Revd D Moreau

No	31
Date of Notice	20 February 1862
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Towers	Helen Smith
	💍 1862/2849
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Soldier
Age	25 years	16 years
Dwelling Place	Dunedin	Dunedin
Length of Residence	3 months	14 weeks
Marriage Place	In the tent occupied by Mary Smith, mother of the said Helen Smith pitched near the Military Camp, Dunedin
Folio
Consent	Mary Smith, Mother
Date of Certificate	20 February 1862
Officiating Minister	Revd D Moreau

21 February 1862

Francis Ballantine
Elizabeth Alitchison

Francis Ballantyne
Elizabeth Aitchinson
💍 1862/3143

Widower
Spinster

Agriculturist
Agriculturist

41 years
29 years

Wakari
Dunedin

1 year
5 months

In the house of Francis Ballantine, Agriculturist, Wakari

21 February 1862

Revd D.M. S

No	32
Date of Notice	21 February 1862
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Francis Ballantine	Elizabeth Alitchison
BDM Match (92%)	Francis Ballantyne	Elizabeth Aitchinson
	💍 1862/3143
Condition	Widower	Spinster
Profession	Agriculturist	Agriculturist
Age	41 years	29 years
Dwelling Place	Wakari	Dunedin
Length of Residence	1 year	5 months
Marriage Place	In the house of Francis Ballantine, Agriculturist, Wakari
Folio
Consent
Date of Certificate	21 February 1862
Officiating Minister	Revd D.M. S

22 February 1862

Henry Driver
Mary Frances Morton

Henry Driver
Mary Frances Morton
💍 1862/3265

Bachelor
Spinster

Merchant

30 years
18 years

Dunedin
Dunedin

6 months
3 days

In the Episcopal Church, Dunedin

William Morton, Father

22 February 1862

Revd Edward G. E

No	33
Date of Notice	22 February 1862
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Henry Driver	Mary Frances Morton
	💍 1862/3265
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Merchant
Age	30 years	18 years
Dwelling Place	Dunedin	Dunedin
Length of Residence	6 months	3 days
Marriage Place	In the Episcopal Church, Dunedin
Folio
Consent	William Morton, Father
Date of Certificate	22 February 1862
Officiating Minister	Revd Edward G. E

22 February 1862

Charl Fabricius
Caroline Shary

Charl Fabricius
Caroline Shery
💍 1862/3268

Bachelor
Spinster

Miner

26 years
22 years

Dunedin
Dunedin

8 days
5 days

In the Episcopal Church, Dunedin

22 February 1862

Revd Edward G. E

No	34
Date of Notice	22 February 1862
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Charl Fabricius	Caroline Shary
BDM Match (96%)	Charl Fabricius	Caroline Shery
	💍 1862/3268
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Miner
Age	26 years	22 years
Dwelling Place	Dunedin	Dunedin
Length of Residence	8 days	5 days
Marriage Place	In the Episcopal Church, Dunedin
Folio
Consent
Date of Certificate	22 February 1862
Officiating Minister	Revd Edward G. E

25 February 1862

John White
Mary Anne Havers

John White
Mary Anne Havers
💍 1862/3271

Bachelor
Spinster

Mariner

37 years
25 years

Port Chalmers
Dunedin

3 weeks
16 months

In the Episcopal Church, Dunedin

25 February 1862

Revd Edward G. E

No	35
Date of Notice	25 February 1862
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John White	Mary Anne Havers
	💍 1862/3271
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Mariner
Age	37 years	25 years
Dwelling Place	Port Chalmers	Dunedin
Length of Residence	3 weeks	16 months
Marriage Place	In the Episcopal Church, Dunedin
Folio
Consent
Date of Certificate	25 February 1862
Officiating Minister	Revd Edward G. E

25 February 1862

Nicholas John Burrows
Betsy Fairweather

Nicholas John Burrows
Betsy Fairweather
💍 1862/3277

Bachelor
Spinster

Sailmaker

30 years
21 years

Port Chalmers
Port Chalmers

1 year
3 months

In the Episcopal Church, Dunedin

25 February 1862

Revd Edward G. E

No	36
Date of Notice	25 February 1862
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Nicholas John Burrows	Betsy Fairweather
	💍 1862/3277
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Sailmaker
Age	30 years	21 years
Dwelling Place	Port Chalmers	Port Chalmers
Length of Residence	1 year	3 months
Marriage Place	In the Episcopal Church, Dunedin
Folio
Consent
Date of Certificate	25 February 1862
Officiating Minister	Revd Edward G. E

25 February 1862

Nicholas Fitzgibbon
Jessie McDougal

Nicholas Fitzgibbon
Jessie McDonald
💍 1862/3274

Bachelor
Spinster

Laborer

24 years
22 years

Dunedin
Dunedin

6 months
6 months

In the house of D Moreau, Canongate, Dunedin

25 February 1862

Revd D. Moreau

No	37
Date of Notice	25 February 1862
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Nicholas Fitzgibbon	Jessie McDougal
BDM Match (90%)	Nicholas Fitzgibbon	Jessie McDonald
	💍 1862/3274
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Laborer
Age	24 years	22 years
Dwelling Place	Dunedin	Dunedin
Length of Residence	6 months	6 months
Marriage Place	In the house of D Moreau, Canongate, Dunedin
Folio
Consent
Date of Certificate	25 February 1862
Officiating Minister	Revd D. Moreau

27 February 1862

Edward Johnston
Emily Chittock

Edward Johnston
Emily Chittock
💍 1862/3384

Bachelor
Spinster

Clergyman

32 years
21 years

Dunedin
Dunedin

4 days
4 days

In the Office of the Registrar of Marriages, Dunedin

27 February 1862

Registrar of Marriages

No	38
Date of Notice	27 February 1862
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Edward Johnston	Emily Chittock
	💍 1862/3384
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Clergyman
Age	32 years	21 years
Dwelling Place	Dunedin	Dunedin
Length of Residence	4 days	4 days
Marriage Place	In the Office of the Registrar of Marriages, Dunedin
Folio
Consent
Date of Certificate	27 February 1862
Officiating Minister	Registrar of Marriages

These records have been automatically transcribed and must be verified using the page image (below)

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What is an Intention to Marry?

The 1854 Marriage Act required Pakeha settlers (and later Maori) to register their intention to marry from 1855. The resulting Notices of intention to marry were sent by the district registrars to the Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages and bound into large volumes, each containing a year of notices. These registers were eventually deposited with Archives New Zealand.

What information does an ItM record?

A typical Intention to Marry notice records:

the bride and groom's full names
occupation of the groom (and sometimes the bride)
their ages
district where the marriage would take place
how long they had resided in the district
Where the marriage would take place (eg, a specific church)
Who would officiate the marriage (eg, a minister)
The date of the notice and also a date when the certificate was issued. Marriages had to take place within 3 months, and usually occurred within a week or so of the certificate date.
If one of the parties was under 21, a parent who consented to their marriage was usually specified

These details can provide clues for genealogical and historical research. Knowing the date and district makes it easier to look for wedding notices in Papers Past, and the amount of time that the parties had resided in a district can offer clues to whether a person was born in NZ, or when they immigrated.

However, finding individual records in the Intentions to Marry registers was typically a slow and manual process, usually requiring an in-person visit to Archives NZ's Wellington office (during limited opening hours) and using a handwritten card catalogue index to look up individual names.

Eight years of the registers had been digitised by Archives NZ prior to 2024, but even these digital versions required the use of a manual index and usually examining several pages to locate specific records.

What is the Intentions to Marry Project?

This project aims to transcribe the New Zealand Intentions to Marry registers (from 1855 to 1925) with the assistance of new technology (AI), making the records freely available and easily searchable.

The ITM records have also been cross-referenced with the registered marriages at DIA Births, Deaths and Marriages, where possible (a small fraction of the recorded intentions to marry did not become a registered marriage).

Currently we have almost all records between 1855 and 1903. More registers are being added almost every week.

The project is led by Luke Howison, a web developer who made the free genealogical research search tool NZ Ancestor Search Helper and Archway-style Collections Search. There are also some wonderful volunteers assisting with digitising the registers.

Can I volunteer to help?

Yes, you can! You can sign up to correct errors in the transcribed records and match ITMs with registered marriages.

I am also looking for Wellington-based volunteers to help me digitise more years of the registers. I can provide lighting equipment and a 'clicker' (to trigger your phone's camera).

How is the transcription done?

There are several steps to digitising and transcribing the records:

Digitising the registers (taking clean, straight, high-quality photos)
Processing the digitised pages by straightening, cropping and sharpening the images
Transcribing each page with a combination of AI tools
Matching each ITM with a registered marriage when possible
Human verification of the transcribed information

The main LLM (AI) used are the Google Gemini Pro and Flash models, which have excellent 'Vision' capabilities, and a generous free tier.

Archives NZ has released the register years they have digitised (1865-69, 1872, 1874 and 1880) under a Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 license.

The Intention to Marry registers (up to 1925) are more than 100 years old, so their Crown Copyright has expired, putting them in the public domain. This also applies to any 'mechanical reproductions' (eg, pictures or photocopies) of their content without substantial alteration.

The transcribed records on this website are released under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal license, which allows reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format, even for commercial purposes, while giving credit to the creator (NZ Intentions to Marry Project).