Intentions to Marry, 1868

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840380, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

Page 454

District of Quarter ending

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

153

18 January 1868

Morris Milburn
Sarah Jane Dixon

Morrie Milburn
Sarah Jane Dixon
💍 1868/6065

Bachelor
Spinster

Butcher

21
18

Ferry Road
Do

3 years
3 years

In the House of Rev. C. Fraser

493

Robert Dixon, Father

18 January 1868

Rev. C. Fraser

No	153
Date of Notice	18 January 1868
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Morris Milburn	Sarah Jane Dixon
BDM Match (96%)	Morrie Milburn	Sarah Jane Dixon
	💍 1868/6065
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Butcher
Age	21	18
Dwelling Place	Ferry Road	Do
Length of Residence	3 years	3 years
Marriage Place	In the House of Rev. C. Fraser
Folio	493
Consent	Robert Dixon, Father
Date of Certificate	18 January 1868
Officiating Minister	Rev. C. Fraser

154

18 January 1868

Robert Brown Marshall
Betsy Rennie

Robert Brown Marshall
Betsy Rennie
💍 1868/6074

Bachelor
Widow

Farmer

35
35

Prebbleton
Do

5 years
2 years

In the House of Rev. C. Fraser

496

18 January 1868

Rev. C. Fraser

No	154
Date of Notice	18 January 1868
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Robert Brown Marshall	Betsy Rennie
	💍 1868/6074
Condition	Bachelor	Widow
Profession	Farmer
Age	35	35
Dwelling Place	Prebbleton	Do
Length of Residence	5 years	2 years
Marriage Place	In the House of Rev. C. Fraser
Folio	496
Consent
Date of Certificate	18 January 1868
Officiating Minister	Rev. C. Fraser

155

20 January 1868

Richard John Gee
Rose Emily Hay

Richard John Gee
Rose Emily Hay
💍 1868/6068

Bachelor
Spinster

Draper

24
20

Christchurch
Do

3 months
4 months

In the House of Rev. C. Fraser

490

There is no person in the Colony having power to give Consent

20 January 1868

Rev. C. Fraser

No	155
Date of Notice	20 January 1868
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Richard John Gee	Rose Emily Hay
	💍 1868/6068
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Draper
Age	24	20
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Do
Length of Residence	3 months	4 months
Marriage Place	In the House of Rev. C. Fraser
Folio	490
Consent	There is no person in the Colony having power to give Consent
Date of Certificate	20 January 1868
Officiating Minister	Rev. C. Fraser

156

20 January 1868

George Barrow
Matilda Logan

George Baron
Matilda Logan
💍 1868/6071

Bachelor
Spinster

Baker
Servant

24
22

Christchurch
Do

2 years
3 years

In the House of J.W.M. Troy

495

20 January 1868

Rev. C. Fraser

No	156
Date of Notice	20 January 1868
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	George Barrow	Matilda Logan
BDM Match (92%)	George Baron	Matilda Logan
	💍 1868/6071
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Baker	Servant
Age	24	22
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Do
Length of Residence	2 years	3 years
Marriage Place	In the House of J.W.M. Troy
Folio	495
Consent
Date of Certificate	20 January 1868
Officiating Minister	Rev. C. Fraser

157

20 January 1868

Charles Ill
Mary Holland

Charles Ell
Mary Holland
💍 1868/6554

Bachelor
Spinster

Carpenter

24
19

Christchurch
Montreal Street

4 years
2 years

In the House of Mrs Holland

664

Alice Holland, mother

20 January 1868

Rev. J. Thornton

No	157
Date of Notice	20 January 1868
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Charles Ill	Mary Holland
BDM Match (95%)	Charles Ell	Mary Holland
	💍 1868/6554
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Carpenter
Age	24	19
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Montreal Street
Length of Residence	4 years	2 years
Marriage Place	In the House of Mrs Holland
Folio	664
Consent	Alice Holland, mother
Date of Certificate	20 January 1868
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. Thornton

158

22 January 1868

Philip Martinetty
Desire Mathew

No corresponding marriage registration located

Widower
Widow

Artist

43
33

Christchurch
Do

3 weeks
3 weeks

In the Roman Catholic Chapel

448

22 January 1868

Rev. Father Chs

No	158
Date of Notice	22 January 1868
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Philip Martinetty	Desire Mathew
	💍 No corresponding marriage registration located
Condition	Widower	Widow
Profession	Artist
Age	43	33
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Do
Length of Residence	3 weeks	3 weeks
Marriage Place	In the Roman Catholic Chapel
Folio	448
Consent
Date of Certificate	22 January 1868
Officiating Minister	Rev. Father Chs

159

22 January 1868

Edward McAnnety
Eliza Rosengrave

Edward McAnulty
Eliza Rosengrave
💍 1868/5939

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer

25
17

Halswell
Do

6 mths
7 years

In the Roman Catholic Chapel

450

Thomas Rosengrave, Father

22 January 1868

Rev. Father Chs

No	159
Date of Notice	22 January 1868
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Edward McAnnety	Eliza Rosengrave
BDM Match (93%)	Edward McAnulty	Eliza Rosengrave
	💍 1868/5939
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer
Age	25	17
Dwelling Place	Halswell	Do
Length of Residence	6 mths	7 years
Marriage Place	In the Roman Catholic Chapel
Folio	450
Consent	Thomas Rosengrave, Father
Date of Certificate	22 January 1868
Officiating Minister	Rev. Father Chs

160

23 January 1868

Thomas Glanville
Maria Griffiths

Thomas Glanville
Maria Griffiths
💍 1868/6077

Bachelor
Widow

Brickmaker

45
45

St. Albans
Do

15 mths
7 years

In the House of H.B. Gressbrook

499

23 January 1868

Rev. C. Fraser

No	160
Date of Notice	23 January 1868
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Thomas Glanville	Maria Griffiths
	💍 1868/6077
Condition	Bachelor	Widow
Profession	Brickmaker
Age	45	45
Dwelling Place	St. Albans	Do
Length of Residence	15 mths	7 years
Marriage Place	In the House of H.B. Gressbrook
Folio	499
Consent
Date of Certificate	23 January 1868
Officiating Minister	Rev. C. Fraser

161

24 January 1868

William Pepper
Sarah Eleanor Clay

William Pepper
Sarah Helena Clay
💍 1868/6491

Bachelor
Spinster

Sailor
Servant

24
20

Christchurch
Papauni

5 days
3 mths

In the Church of St Paul

641

There is no person in the Colony having power to give Consent

24 January 1868

Rev. L. Moore

No	161
Date of Notice	24 January 1868
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Pepper	Sarah Eleanor Clay
BDM Match (86%)	William Pepper	Sarah Helena Clay
	💍 1868/6491
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Sailor	Servant
Age	24	20
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Papauni
Length of Residence	5 days	3 mths
Marriage Place	In the Church of St Paul
Folio	641
Consent	There is no person in the Colony having power to give Consent
Date of Certificate	24 January 1868
Officiating Minister	Rev. L. Moore

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 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).