Intentions to Marry, 1870

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840382, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

Imaged by Luke Howison at Archives NZ Wellington, November 15 2024

Page 359

District of Nelson Quarter ending 31 March 1870 Registrar Robert Pickett

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

4 January 1870

George Biggs
Clara Kite

George Biggs
Clara Kite
💍 1870/6567

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer

27
18

Richmond
Richmond

4 days
18 years

At the "White Hart" Hotel, Richmond

Lucy Kite, mother

4 January 1870

Revd. Edward Thomas

No	1
Date of Notice	4 January 1870
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	George Biggs	Clara Kite
	💍 1870/6567
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer
Age	27	18
Dwelling Place	Richmond	Richmond
Length of Residence	4 days	18 years
Marriage Place	At the "White Hart" Hotel, Richmond
Folio
Consent	Lucy Kite, mother
Date of Certificate	4 January 1870
Officiating Minister	Revd. Edward Thomas

4 January 1870

James Johnson
Grace Eliza Freeman

James Johnson
Grace Eliza Freeman
💍 1870/6573

Bachelor
Spinster

Carpenter

25
24

City of Nelson
City of Nelson

10 years
24 years

At the residence of James Johnson, cabinet maker, Collingwood St., Nelson

25 January 1870

Revd. Edward Thomas

No	2
Date of Notice	4 January 1870
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	James Johnson	Grace Eliza Freeman
	💍 1870/6573
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Carpenter
Age	25	24
Dwelling Place	City of Nelson	City of Nelson
Length of Residence	10 years	24 years
Marriage Place	At the residence of James Johnson, cabinet maker, Collingwood St., Nelson
Folio
Consent
Date of Certificate	25 January 1870
Officiating Minister	Revd. Edward Thomas

5 January 1870

Charles Oliver Mules
Laura Blundell

Charles Oliver Mules
Laura Blundell
💍 1870/6519

Bachelor
Spinster

Clerk in orders

32
27

Spring Grove
Waimea West

2 years
18 years

At St. Michael's Church, Waimea West

5 January 1870

The Bishop of Nelson

No	3
Date of Notice	5 January 1870
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Charles Oliver Mules	Laura Blundell
	💍 1870/6519
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Clerk in orders
Age	32	27
Dwelling Place	Spring Grove	Waimea West
Length of Residence	2 years	18 years
Marriage Place	At St. Michael's Church, Waimea West
Folio
Consent
Date of Certificate	5 January 1870
Officiating Minister	The Bishop of Nelson

5 January 1870

Findley McArthur
Elizabeth Gibson

Findlay McArthur
Elizabeth Gibson
💍 1870/6474

Bachelor
Spinster

Mariner

28
22

City of Nelson
City of Nelson

5 years
4 years

At the Presbyterian Church in Nelson

70/829

5 January 1870

Revd. Patrick Calder

No	4
Date of Notice	5 January 1870
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Findley McArthur	Elizabeth Gibson
BDM Match (97%)	Findlay McArthur	Elizabeth Gibson
	💍 1870/6474
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Mariner
Age	28	22
Dwelling Place	City of Nelson	City of Nelson
Length of Residence	5 years	4 years
Marriage Place	At the Presbyterian Church in Nelson
Folio	70/829
Consent
Date of Certificate	5 January 1870
Officiating Minister	Revd. Patrick Calder

11 January 1870

John Patching
Fanny Flemming

John Patching
Fanny Flemming
💍 1870/3805

Bachelor
Spinster

Tin smith

22
21

City of Nelson
City of Nelson

11 years
13 years

At the residence of the Rev. Edwd. Thomas, Manuka St,, Nelson

11 January 1870

Revd. Edward Thomas

No	5
Date of Notice	11 January 1870
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Patching	Fanny Flemming
	💍 1870/3805
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Tin smith
Age	22	21
Dwelling Place	City of Nelson	City of Nelson
Length of Residence	11 years	13 years
Marriage Place	At the residence of the Rev. Edwd. Thomas, Manuka St,, Nelson
Folio
Consent
Date of Certificate	11 January 1870
Officiating Minister	Revd. Edward Thomas

13 January 1870

Alfred Parmenter
Matilda Johnson

Alfred Parminter
Matilda Johnson
💍 1870/6570

Widower
Spinster

Builder

36
35

City of Nelson
City of Nelson

12 years
9 years

At the residence of James Johnson, cabinet maker, Collingwood St., Nelson

27 January 1870

Revd. Edward Thomas

No	6
Date of Notice	13 January 1870
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Alfred Parmenter	Matilda Johnson
BDM Match (97%)	Alfred Parminter	Matilda Johnson
	💍 1870/6570
Condition	Widower	Spinster
Profession	Builder
Age	36	35
Dwelling Place	City of Nelson	City of Nelson
Length of Residence	12 years	9 years
Marriage Place	At the residence of James Johnson, cabinet maker, Collingwood St., Nelson
Folio
Consent
Date of Certificate	27 January 1870
Officiating Minister	Revd. Edward Thomas

13 January 1870

Fleming Pinkston O'Reilly
Elizabeth O'Reilly Blackwood

Fleming Pinkston O'Reilly
Elizabeth O'Reilly Blackwood
💍 1870/6537

Bachelor
Spinster

Settler

35
28

City of Nelson
City of Nelson

4 days
4 weeks

At Christ Church, Nelson

15 January 1870

Revd. Richard Joshua Thorpe

No	7
Date of Notice	13 January 1870
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Fleming Pinkston O'Reilly	Elizabeth O'Reilly Blackwood
	💍 1870/6537
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Settler
Age	35	28
Dwelling Place	City of Nelson	City of Nelson
Length of Residence	4 days	4 weeks
Marriage Place	At Christ Church, Nelson
Folio
Consent
Date of Certificate	15 January 1870
Officiating Minister	Revd. Richard Joshua Thorpe

15 January 1870

Frederick Spear
Lucy Bunfield Galland

Frederick Spears
Lucy Burfield Galland
💍 1870/6468

Bachelor
Spinster

Ironmonger

31
22

City of Nelson
City of Nelson

2 years
4 years

At the residence of William Chivers Wilkins ironmonger, Manuka St., Nelson

29 January 1870

Revd. William Moore Biss

No	8
Date of Notice	15 January 1870
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Frederick Spear	Lucy Bunfield Galland
BDM Match (95%)	Frederick Spears	Lucy Burfield Galland
	💍 1870/6468
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Ironmonger
Age	31	22
Dwelling Place	City of Nelson	City of Nelson
Length of Residence	2 years	4 years
Marriage Place	At the residence of William Chivers Wilkins ironmonger, Manuka St., Nelson
Folio
Consent
Date of Certificate	29 January 1870
Officiating Minister	Revd. William Moore Biss

24 January 1870

Peter Buchanan
Isabella Robertson

Peter Buchanan
Isabella Robertson
💍 1870/6504

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer

37
34

City of Nelson
City of Nelson

9 months
4 years

At the residence of William Haddock, corn chandler, Washington Road, Nelson

24 January 1870

Revd. John Crump

No	9
Date of Notice	24 January 1870
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Peter Buchanan	Isabella Robertson
	💍 1870/6504
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer
Age	37	34
Dwelling Place	City of Nelson	City of Nelson
Length of Residence	9 months	4 years
Marriage Place	At the residence of William Haddock, corn chandler, Washington Road, Nelson
Folio
Consent
Date of Certificate	24 January 1870
Officiating Minister	Revd. John Crump

27 January 1870

John Fiven
Adeline Jasper

John Feven
Adeline Jasper
💍 1870/6576

Bachelor
Widow

Blacksmith

26
25

City of Nelson
City of Nelson

26 years
25 years

At the residence of John Fiven, blacksmith, Tory St, Nelson

27 January 1870

Revd. Edward Thomas

No	10
Date of Notice	27 January 1870
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Fiven	Adeline Jasper
BDM Match (95%)	John Feven	Adeline Jasper
	💍 1870/6576
Condition	Bachelor	Widow
Profession	Blacksmith
Age	26	25
Dwelling Place	City of Nelson	City of Nelson
Length of Residence	26 years	25 years
Marriage Place	At the residence of John Fiven, blacksmith, Tory St, Nelson
Folio
Consent
Date of Certificate	27 January 1870
Officiating Minister	Revd. Edward Thomas

27 January 1870

John Hook
Clara Anna Mathews

John Hook
Clara Anna Mathews
💍 1870/6540

Bachelor
Spinster

Storeman

27
17

City of Nelson
City of Nelson

2 years
17 years

At Christ Church, Nelson

Sarah Ann Haynes, mother

27 January 1870

Revd. Geo. Henry Johnston

No	11
Date of Notice	27 January 1870
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Hook	Clara Anna Mathews
	💍 1870/6540
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Storeman
Age	27	17
Dwelling Place	City of Nelson	City of Nelson
Length of Residence	2 years	17 years
Marriage Place	At Christ Church, Nelson
Folio
Consent	Sarah Ann Haynes, mother
Date of Certificate	27 January 1870
Officiating Minister	Revd. Geo. Henry Johnston

31 January 1870

James Smith Cross
Elizabeth Askew

James Smith Cross
Elizabeth Askew
💍 1870/6477

Bachelor
Spinster

Commission Agent

26
19

City of Nelson
City of Nelson

12 years
19 years

At the residence of Thomas Askew, hotel keeper, near Nile St. East, Nelson

Thomas Askew, father

31 January 1870

Revd. Patrick Calder

No	12
Date of Notice	31 January 1870
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	James Smith Cross	Elizabeth Askew
	💍 1870/6477
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Commission Agent
Age	26	19
Dwelling Place	City of Nelson	City of Nelson
Length of Residence	12 years	19 years
Marriage Place	At the residence of Thomas Askew, hotel keeper, near Nile St. East, Nelson
Folio
Consent	Thomas Askew, father
Date of Certificate	31 January 1870
Officiating Minister	Revd. Patrick Calder

31 January 1870

Henry Young
Mary Ann Arey

Henry Young
Mary Ann Grey
💍 1870/3799

Bachelor
Spinster

Boatman

26
24

City of Nelson
City of Nelson

7 days
9 days

At Christ Church, Nelson

not issued - vide No 18.

No	13
Date of Notice	31 January 1870
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Henry Young	Mary Ann Arey
BDM Match (96%)	Henry Young	Mary Ann Grey
	💍 1870/3799
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Boatman
Age	26	24
Dwelling Place	City of Nelson	City of Nelson
Length of Residence	7 days	9 days
Marriage Place	At Christ Church, Nelson
Folio
Consent
Date of Certificate
Officiating Minister	not issued - vide No 18.

2 February 1870

John Haycock
Sarah Robins

John Haycock
Sarah Robins
💍 1870/6444

Widower
Widow

Sheep farmer

51
48

Waimea East
Waimea East

1 year
2 weeks

At the residence of said John Haycock, Waimea East

2 February 1870

Revd. James A. Taylor

No	14
Date of Notice	2 February 1870
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Haycock	Sarah Robins
	💍 1870/6444
Condition	Widower	Widow
Profession	Sheep farmer
Age	51	48
Dwelling Place	Waimea East	Waimea East
Length of Residence	1 year	2 weeks
Marriage Place	At the residence of said John Haycock, Waimea East
Folio
Consent
Date of Certificate	2 February 1870
Officiating Minister	Revd. James A. Taylor

12 February 1870

William George Kemp
Charlotte Greenwood

William George Kemp
Charlotte Greenwood
💍 1870/6546

Bachelor
Spinster

Surgeon

23
20

City of Nelson
City of Nelson

18 months
4 years

At Christ Church, Nelson

John D. Greenwood, father

12 February 1870

Revd. Geo. Henry Johnstone

No	15
Date of Notice	12 February 1870
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William George Kemp	Charlotte Greenwood
	💍 1870/6546
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Surgeon
Age	23	20
Dwelling Place	City of Nelson	City of Nelson
Length of Residence	18 months	4 years
Marriage Place	At Christ Church, Nelson
Folio
Consent	John D. Greenwood, father
Date of Certificate	12 February 1870
Officiating Minister	Revd. Geo. Henry Johnstone

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).