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 554

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

6 March 1868

Robert M. Bracken
Margaret Phair

Robert McCrackan
Margaret Phair
💍 1868/8891

Bachelor
Spinster

Boot maker

31
18

Green Island
Dunedin

5 years
7 months

the house of Robert Phair, Maitland Street, Dunedin

2080

Robert Phair, Father

6 March 1868

Rev. M. Watt

No	46
Date of Notice	6 March 1868
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Robert M. Bracken	Margaret Phair
BDM Match (88%)	Robert McCrackan	Margaret Phair
	💍 1868/8891
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Boot maker
Age	31	18
Dwelling Place	Green Island	Dunedin
Length of Residence	5 years	7 months
Marriage Place	the house of Robert Phair, Maitland Street, Dunedin
Folio	2080
Consent	Robert Phair, Father
Date of Certificate	6 March 1868
Officiating Minister	Rev. M. Watt

7 March 1868

Richard Prout
Mary Leckie

Richard Prout
Mary Leckie
💍 1868/10387

Bachelor
Widow

Seaman

38
35

Dunedin
Dunedin

2 yrs
6 yrs

Knox church Dunedin

1963

7 March 1868

Rev. D. M. Stuart

No	47
Date of Notice	7 March 1868
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Richard Prout	Mary Leckie
	💍 1868/10387
Condition	Bachelor	Widow
Profession	Seaman
Age	38	35
Dwelling Place	Dunedin	Dunedin
Length of Residence	2 yrs	6 yrs
Marriage Place	Knox church Dunedin
Folio	1963
Consent
Date of Certificate	7 March 1868
Officiating Minister	Rev. D. M. Stuart

7 March 1868

Christian Archer
Mary Brown

Christian Archer
Mary Brown
💍 1868/4260

Bachelor
Spinster

Miner

35
24

Dunedin
Dunedin

2 weeks
14 months

the office of the Registrar of Marriages Dunedin

19524

7 March 1868

Registrar of Marriages

No	48
Date of Notice	7 March 1868
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Christian Archer	Mary Brown
	💍 1868/4260
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Miner
Age	35	24
Dwelling Place	Dunedin	Dunedin
Length of Residence	2 weeks	14 months
Marriage Place	the office of the Registrar of Marriages Dunedin
Folio	19524
Consent
Date of Certificate	7 March 1868
Officiating Minister	Registrar of Marriages

9 March 1868

George Whe Bunsford
Helen Duncan

George Duke Hansford
Helen Duncan
💍 1868/10390

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer

37
30

Dunedin
Dunedin

3 months
4 months

Knox Church Dunedin

1984

9 March 1868

Rev. D. M. Stuart

No	49
Date of Notice	9 March 1868
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	George Whe Bunsford	Helen Duncan
BDM Match (88%)	George Duke Hansford	Helen Duncan
	💍 1868/10390
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer
Age	37	30
Dwelling Place	Dunedin	Dunedin
Length of Residence	3 months	4 months
Marriage Place	Knox Church Dunedin
Folio	1984
Consent
Date of Certificate	9 March 1868
Officiating Minister	Rev. D. M. Stuart

14 March 1868

Thomas Litchfield Stanley
Isabella Chisholm

Thomas Litchfield Stanley
Isabella Chisholm
💍 1868/10396

Bachelor
Spinster

Teacher

Dunedin
Dunedin

9 months
10 months

the house of James Chisholm, Filleul Street Dunedin

1987

14 March 1868

Rev. D. M. Stuart

No	50
Date of Notice	14 March 1868
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Thomas Litchfield Stanley	Isabella Chisholm
	💍 1868/10396
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Teacher
Age	25
Dwelling Place	Dunedin	Dunedin
Length of Residence	9 months	10 months
Marriage Place	the house of James Chisholm, Filleul Street Dunedin
Folio	1987
Consent
Date of Certificate	14 March 1868
Officiating Minister	Rev. D. M. Stuart

16 March 1868

William Parker Street
Margaret Black

William Parker Street
Margaret Black
💍 1868/10048

Bachelor
Spinster

Clerk, Resident Magistrate's Court

23
24

Andersons bay
Dunedin

1 year
4 years

the house of Mr. Black, London Street Dunedin

1861

31 March 1868

Rev. Thomas Burns

No	51
Date of Notice	16 March 1868
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Parker Street	Margaret Black
	💍 1868/10048
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Clerk, Resident Magistrate's Court
Age	23	24
Dwelling Place	Andersons bay	Dunedin
Length of Residence	1 year	4 years
Marriage Place	the house of Mr. Black, London Street Dunedin
Folio	1861
Consent
Date of Certificate	31 March 1868
Officiating Minister	Rev. Thomas Burns

16 March 1868

Charles Smith
Hannah Bell

Charles Smith
Hannah Bell
💍 1868/10393

Widower
Spinster

Clerk to the Provincial Council

40
23

Dunedin
Dunedin

5 years
5 years

Messrs Bell's house, Cumberland Street Dunedin

1985

16 March 1868

Rev. D. M. Stuart

No	52
Date of Notice	16 March 1868
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Charles Smith	Hannah Bell
	💍 1868/10393
Condition	Widower	Spinster
Profession	Clerk to the Provincial Council
Age	40	23
Dwelling Place	Dunedin	Dunedin
Length of Residence	5 years	5 years
Marriage Place	Messrs Bell's house, Cumberland Street Dunedin
Folio	1985
Consent
Date of Certificate	16 March 1868
Officiating Minister	Rev. D. M. Stuart

17 March 1868

William Evans
Phoebe Westlake

William Evans
Phoebe Westlake
💍 1868/10105

Bachelor
Spinster

Carter

33
18

Dunedin
Dunedin

2 yrs
2 yrs

St. Paul's Church Dunedin

1882

No Person to give Consent

17 March 1868

Rev. E. G. Edwards

No	53
Date of Notice	17 March 1868
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Evans	Phoebe Westlake
	💍 1868/10105
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Carter
Age	33	18
Dwelling Place	Dunedin	Dunedin
Length of Residence	2 yrs	2 yrs
Marriage Place	St. Paul's Church Dunedin
Folio	1882
Consent	No Person to give Consent
Date of Certificate	17 March 1868
Officiating Minister	Rev. E. G. Edwards

17 March 1868

George Carruthers
Mariane Louise Parr

George Carruthers
Marianne Louise Parr
💍 1868/4305

Widower
Widow

Coal Merchant

37
29

Dunedin
Dunedin

2 yrs
2 yrs

the house of Mrs Parr, Dundas Street Dunedin

1986

17 March 1868

Rev. D. M. Stuart

No	54
Date of Notice	17 March 1868
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	George Carruthers	Mariane Louise Parr
BDM Match (98%)	George Carruthers	Marianne Louise Parr
	💍 1868/4305
Condition	Widower	Widow
Profession	Coal Merchant
Age	37	29
Dwelling Place	Dunedin	Dunedin
Length of Residence	2 yrs	2 yrs
Marriage Place	the house of Mrs Parr, Dundas Street Dunedin
Folio	1986
Consent
Date of Certificate	17 March 1868
Officiating Minister	Rev. D. M. Stuart

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).