Intentions to Marry, 1866

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840378, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

Page 316

District of Nelson Quarter ending 31 December 1866 Registrar John Poynter

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

3 November 1866

William Robert Cassell McVicar
Emma Coles

William Robert C McVicar
Emma Coles
💍 1866/6907

Bachelor
Spinster

Carpenter

26
19

City of Nelson
Suburban South

16 years
2 weeks

At the residence of John Tippet Smith schoolmaster, Stoke

66/862

Sarah Smith, Mother

3 November 1866

Rev. Patrick Calder

No	87
Date of Notice	3 November 1866
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Robert Cassell McVicar	Emma Coles
BDM Match (90%)	William Robert C McVicar	Emma Coles
	💍 1866/6907
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Carpenter
Age	26	19
Dwelling Place	City of Nelson	Suburban South
Length of Residence	16 years	2 weeks
Marriage Place	At the residence of John Tippet Smith schoolmaster, Stoke
Folio	66/862
Consent	Sarah Smith, Mother
Date of Certificate	3 November 1866
Officiating Minister	Rev. Patrick Calder

5 November 1866

Arthur Dudley Dobson
Eleanor Lewis

Arthur Dudley Dobson
Eleanor Lewis
💍 1866/6991

Bachelor
Spinster

Civil Engineer

25
19

City of Nelson
City of Nelson

6 months
10 years

At Christ church, Nelson

66/893

Henry Lewis, Father

5 November 1866

Rev. Geo. Hy. Johnstone

No	88
Date of Notice	5 November 1866
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Arthur Dudley Dobson	Eleanor Lewis
	💍 1866/6991
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Civil Engineer
Age	25	19
Dwelling Place	City of Nelson	City of Nelson
Length of Residence	6 months	10 years
Marriage Place	At Christ church, Nelson
Folio	66/893
Consent	Henry Lewis, Father
Date of Certificate	5 November 1866
Officiating Minister	Rev. Geo. Hy. Johnstone

12 November 1866

John Webley
Amelia Harwood

John Webley
Amelia Harwood
💍 1866/6922

Bachelor
Spinster

Carpenter

21
18

City of Nelson
City of Nelson

5 years
4 years

At the residence of John Webley, carpenter, Vanguard St., Nelson

66/867

George Harwood, Father

12 November 1866

Rev. John Davis

No	89
Date of Notice	12 November 1866
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Webley	Amelia Harwood
	💍 1866/6922
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Carpenter
Age	21	18
Dwelling Place	City of Nelson	City of Nelson
Length of Residence	5 years	4 years
Marriage Place	At the residence of John Webley, carpenter, Vanguard St., Nelson
Folio	66/867
Consent	George Harwood, Father
Date of Certificate	12 November 1866
Officiating Minister	Rev. John Davis

19 November 1866

John Day
Elizabeth Page

John Day
Elizabeth Page
💍 1866/4214

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer

26
21

Suburban North
Suburban North

10 years
21 years

At the Protestant Episcopalian Church in Suburban North

66/894

10 December 1866

Rev. Geo. Hy. Johnstone

No	90
Date of Notice	19 November 1866
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Day	Elizabeth Page
	💍 1866/4214
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer
Age	26	21
Dwelling Place	Suburban North	Suburban North
Length of Residence	10 years	21 years
Marriage Place	At the Protestant Episcopalian Church in Suburban North
Folio	66/894
Consent
Date of Certificate	10 December 1866
Officiating Minister	Rev. Geo. Hy. Johnstone

24 November 1866

John Bown
Emma Dalton

John Bowie
Emma Dalton
💍 1866/7099

Bachelor
Spinster

Settler

29
19

City of Nelson
City of Nelson

3 days
8 years

At the residence of William Dalton carpenter, Milton St., Nelson

66/932

William Dalton, Father

24 November 1866

Rev. Edw. Thomas

No	91
Date of Notice	24 November 1866
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Bown	Emma Dalton
BDM Match (90%)	John Bowie	Emma Dalton
	💍 1866/7099
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Settler
Age	29	19
Dwelling Place	City of Nelson	City of Nelson
Length of Residence	3 days	8 years
Marriage Place	At the residence of William Dalton carpenter, Milton St., Nelson
Folio	66/932
Consent	William Dalton, Father
Date of Certificate	24 November 1866
Officiating Minister	Rev. Edw. Thomas

11 December 1866

James Crichton
Emily Eban

James Crichton
Emily Eban
💍 1866/7060

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer

35
19

Waimea South
Waimea West

1 year
6 years

At the residence of the Rev. William Kirk, Hardy St., Nelson

66/918

Emma Eban, Mother

13 December 1866

Rev. William Kirk

No	92
Date of Notice	11 December 1866
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	James Crichton	Emily Eban
	💍 1866/7060
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer
Age	35	19
Dwelling Place	Waimea South	Waimea West
Length of Residence	1 year	6 years
Marriage Place	At the residence of the Rev. William Kirk, Hardy St., Nelson
Folio	66/918
Consent	Emma Eban, Mother
Date of Certificate	13 December 1866
Officiating Minister	Rev. William Kirk

13 December 1866

Robert Macintyre
Margaret Jane Deck

Robert Macintyre
Margaret Jane Deck
💍 1866/6637

Bachelor
Spinster

Merchant

25
23

City of Nelson
Wellington

3 days
2 years

At the office of the Registrar of Marriages, Wellington

66/770

13 December 1866

Registrar of Marriages, Wellington

No	93
Date of Notice	13 December 1866
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Robert Macintyre	Margaret Jane Deck
	💍 1866/6637
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Merchant
Age	25	23
Dwelling Place	City of Nelson	Wellington
Length of Residence	3 days	2 years
Marriage Place	At the office of the Registrar of Marriages, Wellington
Folio	66/770
Consent
Date of Certificate	13 December 1866
Officiating Minister	Registrar of Marriages, Wellington

14 December 1866

John Hogg
Ellen Bush

John Hogg
Ellen Bush
💍 1867/6739

Bachelor
Spinster

Maltster

30
20

City of Nelson
City of Nelson

5 years
5 years

At Christ church, Nelson

Under clause VII act 1858

not yet issued

No	94
Date of Notice	14 December 1866
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Hogg	Ellen Bush
	💍 1867/6739
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Maltster
Age	30	20
Dwelling Place	City of Nelson	City of Nelson
Length of Residence	5 years	5 years
Marriage Place	At Christ church, Nelson
Folio
Consent	Under clause VII act 1858
Date of Certificate	not yet issued
Officiating Minister

18 December 1866

Robert Henry Bartlett
Mary Elizabeth Fletcher

Robert Henry Bartlett
Mary Elizabeth Fletcher
💍 1867/6742

Bachelor
Spinster

Carpenter

19
22

City of Nelson
City of Nelson

9 years
4 months

At Christ church, Nelson

Emma Bartlett, Mother

not yet issued

No	95
Date of Notice	18 December 1866
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Robert Henry Bartlett	Mary Elizabeth Fletcher
	💍 1867/6742
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Carpenter
Age	19	22
Dwelling Place	City of Nelson	City of Nelson
Length of Residence	9 years	4 months
Marriage Place	At Christ church, Nelson
Folio
Consent	Emma Bartlett, Mother
Date of Certificate	not yet issued
Officiating Minister

18 December 1866

Elijah Ingham
Jane Roberts

No corresponding marriage registration located

Bachelor
Widow

Miner

30
31

City of Nelson
City of Nelson

4 years
4 years

At Christ church, Nelson

19 December 1866

Rev. Geo. Hy. Johnstone

No	96
Date of Notice	18 December 1866
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Elijah Ingham	Jane Roberts
BDM Match (8%)
	💍 No corresponding marriage registration located
Condition	Bachelor	Widow
Profession	Miner
Age	30	31
Dwelling Place	City of Nelson	City of Nelson
Length of Residence	4 years	4 years
Marriage Place	At Christ church, Nelson
Folio
Consent
Date of Certificate	19 December 1866
Officiating Minister	Rev. Geo. Hy. Johnstone

20 December 1866

William O'Dwyer
Mary Schroder

William O'Dwyer
Mary Shroder
💍 1867/6715

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer

29
21

Richmond
Richmond

20 years
3 weeks

At the Catholic Church in Nelson

67/806

20 December 1866

Rev. Ant. Marie Garin

No	97
Date of Notice	20 December 1866
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William O'Dwyer	Mary Schroder
BDM Match (96%)	William O'Dwyer	Mary Shroder
	💍 1867/6715
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer
Age	29	21
Dwelling Place	Richmond	Richmond
Length of Residence	20 years	3 weeks
Marriage Place	At the Catholic Church in Nelson
Folio	67/806
Consent
Date of Certificate	20 December 1866
Officiating Minister	Rev. Ant. Marie Garin

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

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Attribution: This image was digitised by Archives NZ Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga and is republished here under CC BY. It has been cropped and rotated for convenience.

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 1908. 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).