Intentions to Marry, 1872

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840384, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

Page 435

District of Christchurch Quarter ending Jan - Mar

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

2622

15 February 1872

Thomas Foley
Elizabeth Ann Down

Thomas Foley
Elizabeth Ann Down
💍 1872/9377

Bachelor
Spinster

Plasterer
Servant

24
26

Christchurch
Do

2 years
2 years

In the Church of St John

72/624

February 1872

Rev. E Bailey

No	2622
Date of Notice	15 February 1872
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Thomas Foley	Elizabeth Ann Down
	💍 1872/9377
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Plasterer	Servant
Age	24	26
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Do
Length of Residence	2 years	2 years
Marriage Place	In the Church of St John
Folio	72/624
Consent
Date of Certificate	February 1872
Officiating Minister	Rev. E Bailey

2623

16 February 1872

John Finlay
Alice Kitchens

John Finlay
Alice Hitchings
💍 1872/6449

Bachelor
Spinster

Moulder
Servant

26
23

Christchurch
Christchurch

2 years
5 months

In the House of Revd C Fraser Christchurch

72/1615

2 March 1872

Revd. C Fraser

No	2623
Date of Notice	16 February 1872
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Finlay	Alice Kitchens
BDM Match (90%)	John Finlay	Alice Hitchings
	💍 1872/6449
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Moulder	Servant
Age	26	23
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	2 years	5 months
Marriage Place	In the House of Revd C Fraser Christchurch
Folio	72/1615
Consent
Date of Certificate	2 March 1872
Officiating Minister	Revd. C Fraser

2624

20 February 1872

George Wilson
Maria Walker

George Wilson
Maria Walker
💍 1872/4848

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer
Servant

30
24

Avonside
Do

3 years
10 years

In the Avonside Church

February 20 1872

Rev. E Giles

No	2624
Date of Notice	20 February 1872
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	George Wilson	Maria Walker
	💍 1872/4848
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer	Servant
Age	30	24
Dwelling Place	Avonside	Do
Length of Residence	3 years	10 years
Marriage Place	In the Avonside Church
Folio
Consent
Date of Certificate	February 20 1872
Officiating Minister	Rev. E Giles

2625

20 February 1872

Gorham Lambert
Ellen Nisbett

Gorham Lambert
Ellen Nisbett
💍 1872/4851

Bachelor
Spinster

Gentleman

30
24

Christchurch
Do

6 years
5 years

In the Avonside Church

February 25 1872

Rev. E Giles

No	2625
Date of Notice	20 February 1872
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Gorham Lambert	Ellen Nisbett
	💍 1872/4851
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Gentleman
Age	30	24
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Do
Length of Residence	6 years	5 years
Marriage Place	In the Avonside Church
Folio
Consent
Date of Certificate	February 25 1872
Officiating Minister	Rev. E Giles

2626

26 February 1872

Samuel Clowes
Emma Hopper

Samuel Clover
Emma Hopper
💍 1872/6407

Widower
Widow

Miller
Servant

29
25

Christchurch
Do

3 days
13 years

In the House of Mr Guilford Ashford

72/1600

February 26 1872

Rev. W Kirk

No	2626
Date of Notice	26 February 1872
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Samuel Clowes	Emma Hopper
BDM Match (92%)	Samuel Clover	Emma Hopper
	💍 1872/6407
Condition	Widower	Widow
Profession	Miller	Servant
Age	29	25
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Do
Length of Residence	3 days	13 years
Marriage Place	In the House of Mr Guilford Ashford
Folio	72/1600
Consent
Date of Certificate	February 26 1872
Officiating Minister	Rev. W Kirk

2627

26 February 1872

Charles Thomas Fracheson Kiernan
Catherine Kindesley

Charles Thomas Kiernan
Catherine Kindlysides
💍 1872/6200

Bachelor
Spinster

Upholsterer
Servant

22
21

Christchurch
Do

4 months
8 years

In the Church of St Michael

72/1530

March 12 1872

Very Rev Dean Jacobs

No	2627
Date of Notice	26 February 1872
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Charles Thomas Fracheson Kiernan	Catherine Kindesley
BDM Match (73%)	Charles Thomas Kiernan	Catherine Kindlysides
	💍 1872/6200
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Upholsterer	Servant
Age	22	21
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Do
Length of Residence	4 months	8 years
Marriage Place	In the Church of St Michael
Folio	72/1530
Consent
Date of Certificate	March 12 1872
Officiating Minister	Very Rev Dean Jacobs

2628

28 February 1872

Stephen Adolphus Graydon
Ann Elizabeth Kenning

Stephen Adolphus Swaysland
Ann Elizabeth Kennington
💍 1872/6446

Widower
Spinster

Gardener
Servant

45
17

Christchurch
Do

1 year
5 years

In the House of

72/614

Kennington Father

February 28 1872

Rev. C Fraser

No	2628
Date of Notice	28 February 1872
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Stephen Adolphus Graydon	Ann Elizabeth Kenning
BDM Match (82%)	Stephen Adolphus Swaysland	Ann Elizabeth Kennington
	💍 1872/6446
Condition	Widower	Spinster
Profession	Gardener	Servant
Age	45	17
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Do
Length of Residence	1 year	5 years
Marriage Place	In the House of
Folio	72/614
Consent	Kennington Father
Date of Certificate	February 28 1872
Officiating Minister	Rev. C Fraser

2629

28 February 1872

John Brown
Johanna Gibbs

John Brown
Johanna Gibbs
💍 1872/8852

Bachelor
Spinster

Storeman
Dressmaker

26
21

Christchurch
Do

6 years
1 year

In the Wesleyan Chapel Montreal Street

72/2236

February 28 1872

Rev. A. R. Fitchett

No	2629
Date of Notice	28 February 1872
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Brown	Johanna Gibbs
	💍 1872/8852
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Storeman	Dressmaker
Age	26	21
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Do
Length of Residence	6 years	1 year
Marriage Place	In the Wesleyan Chapel Montreal Street
Folio	72/2236
Consent
Date of Certificate	February 28 1872
Officiating Minister	Rev. A. R. Fitchett

2630

2 March 1872

Martin Brady
Rachael Proctor

Martin Brady
Rachel Proctor
💍 1872/6206

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer
Servant

24
25

Templeton
Christchurch

3 years
4 years

In the Church of St Michael

72/1532

March 16 1872

Very Rev Dean Jacobs

No	2630
Date of Notice	2 March 1872
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Martin Brady	Rachael Proctor
BDM Match (97%)	Martin Brady	Rachel Proctor
	💍 1872/6206
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer	Servant
Age	24	25
Dwelling Place	Templeton	Christchurch
Length of Residence	3 years	4 years
Marriage Place	In the Church of St Michael
Folio	72/1532
Consent
Date of Certificate	March 16 1872
Officiating Minister	Very Rev Dean Jacobs

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).