Intentions to Marry, 1875

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840387, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

Imaged by Luke at Archives NZ Wellington, May 16 2025.

This register is quite fragile and some of the pages are damaged or even missing.

Page 578

District of Christchurch Quarter ending 30 September 1875 Registrar J. W. Parkerson

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

3796

31 August 1875

Daniel Callaghan
Sarah Ann Stidworthy

Daniel Callaghan
Sarah Ann Stidworthy
💍 1875/2744

Bachelor
Spinster

Bricklayer
Dressmaker

23
22

Christchurch
Christchurch

3 months
3 months

In the Church of St. John, Christchurch

75/2351

31 August 1875

H. C. M. Watson, C of E

No	3796
Date of Notice	31 August 1875
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Daniel Callaghan	Sarah Ann Stidworthy
	💍 1875/2744
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Bricklayer	Dressmaker
Age	23	22
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	3 months	3 months
Marriage Place	In the Church of St. John, Christchurch
Folio	75/2351
Consent
Date of Certificate	31 August 1875
Officiating Minister	H. C. M. Watson, C of E

3797

1 September 1875

James Watt
Julia Flynn

James Watt
Julia Flynn
💍 1875/1740

Bachelor
Spinster

Constable
Dressmaker

25
23

Christchurch
Christchurch

8 months
1 year

In the Roman Catholic Presbytery, Christchurch

75/1784

1 September 1875

Rev. J. P. Chareyre, RC

No	3797
Date of Notice	1 September 1875
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	James Watt	Julia Flynn
	💍 1875/1740
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Constable	Dressmaker
Age	25	23
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	8 months	1 year
Marriage Place	In the Roman Catholic Presbytery, Christchurch
Folio	75/1784
Consent
Date of Certificate	1 September 1875
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. P. Chareyre, RC

3798

1 September 1875

Thomas Tuersley
Selina Elizabeth Meade

Thomas Tuersley
Selina Elizabeth Meade
💍 1875/1966

Widower
Widow

Greengrocer

42
37

Christchurch
Christchurch

12 years
8 months

In the Church of St. Michael, Christchurch

75/2047

1 September 1875

Rev W J Edwards, C of E.

No	3798
Date of Notice	1 September 1875
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Thomas Tuersley	Selina Elizabeth Meade
	💍 1875/1966
Condition	Widower	Widow
Profession	Greengrocer
Age	42	37
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	12 years	8 months
Marriage Place	In the Church of St. Michael, Christchurch
Folio	75/2047
Consent
Date of Certificate	1 September 1875
Officiating Minister	Rev W J Edwards, C of E.

3799

2 September 1875

John Foley
Ann Corckley
Coakley written below in pencil.

John Foley
Anne Coakly
💍 1875/1741

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer
Servant

24
21

Christchurch
Addington

1 week
1 week

In the Roman Catholic Church, Christchurch

75/1785

2 September 1875

Rev. J. P. Chareyre, RC

No	3799
Date of Notice	2 September 1875
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Foley	Ann Corckley Coakley written below in pencil.
BDM Match (83%)	John Foley	Anne Coakly
	💍 1875/1741
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer	Servant
Age	24	21
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Addington
Length of Residence	1 week	1 week
Marriage Place	In the Roman Catholic Church, Christchurch
Folio	75/1785
Consent
Date of Certificate	2 September 1875
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. P. Chareyre, RC

3800

3 September 1875

James Milne
Mary Gerrard

James Milne
Mary Gerrard
💍 1875/2832

Bachelor
Spinster

Shepherd
Servant

34
26

Christchurch
Christchurch

3 days
3 days

In the house of Rev. C. Fraser, Tuam Street

75/3085

3 September 1875

Rev. C. Fraser, F.C.

No	3800
Date of Notice	3 September 1875
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	James Milne	Mary Gerrard
	💍 1875/2832
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Shepherd	Servant
Age	34	26
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	3 days	3 days
Marriage Place	In the house of Rev. C. Fraser, Tuam Street
Folio	75/3085
Consent
Date of Certificate	3 September 1875
Officiating Minister	Rev. C. Fraser, F.C.

3801

4 September 1875

James Speedy Baylis
Alice Smeith Allison

James Speedy Baylis
Alice Smith Allison
💍 1875/2817

Widower
Widow

Civil Service

60
31

Christchurch
Christchurch

2 years
6 months

In the house of Rev. C. Fraser, Tuam Street

75/3047

4 September 1875

Rev. C. Fraser, F.C.

No	3801
Date of Notice	4 September 1875
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	James Speedy Baylis	Alice Smeith Allison
BDM Match (98%)	James Speedy Baylis	Alice Smith Allison
	💍 1875/2817
Condition	Widower	Widow
Profession	Civil Service
Age	60	31
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	2 years	6 months
Marriage Place	In the house of Rev. C. Fraser, Tuam Street
Folio	75/3047
Consent
Date of Certificate	4 September 1875
Officiating Minister	Rev. C. Fraser, F.C.

3802

6 September 1875

Danzie Cant
Ann Hammonds

Danzie Cant
Ann Hammonds
💍 1875/2833

Widower
Widow

Carpenter

52
47

Riccarton
Lincoln Road

9 years
8 years

In the house of Mrs. Hammonds, Lincoln Road

75/3086

6 September 1875

Rev. C. Fraser, F.C.

No	3802
Date of Notice	6 September 1875
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Danzie Cant	Ann Hammonds
	💍 1875/2833
Condition	Widower	Widow
Profession	Carpenter
Age	52	47
Dwelling Place	Riccarton	Lincoln Road
Length of Residence	9 years	8 years
Marriage Place	In the house of Mrs. Hammonds, Lincoln Road
Folio	75/3086
Consent
Date of Certificate	6 September 1875
Officiating Minister	Rev. C. Fraser, F.C.

3803

7 September 1875

Andrew Taylor
Elizabeth Graham

Andrew Taylor
Elizabeth Graham
💍 1875/2076

Bachelor
Widow

Farmer
Dressmaker

38
37

Dunsandel
Christchurch

10 years
11 years

In the house of Mrs. Graham, Peterboro Street

75/2081

7 September 1875

Rev. A. F. Douglas, F.C.

No	3803
Date of Notice	7 September 1875
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Andrew Taylor	Elizabeth Graham
	💍 1875/2076
Condition	Bachelor	Widow
Profession	Farmer	Dressmaker
Age	38	37
Dwelling Place	Dunsandel	Christchurch
Length of Residence	10 years	11 years
Marriage Place	In the house of Mrs. Graham, Peterboro Street
Folio	75/2081
Consent
Date of Certificate	7 September 1875
Officiating Minister	Rev. A. F. Douglas, F.C.

3804

7 September 1875

John Doyle
Honor Comsky

John Doyle
Honora Comsky
💍 1875/1742

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer
Servant

29
23

Christchurch
Christchurch

14 days
1 week

In the Roman Catholic Church, Christchurch

75/1786

7 September 1875

Rev. J. P. Chareyre, RC

No	3804
Date of Notice	7 September 1875
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Doyle	Honor Comsky
BDM Match (96%)	John Doyle	Honora Comsky
	💍 1875/1742
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer	Servant
Age	29	23
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	14 days	1 week
Marriage Place	In the Roman Catholic Church, Christchurch
Folio	75/1786
Consent
Date of Certificate	7 September 1875
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. P. Chareyre, RC

3805

8 September 1875

James Henry Fowler
Ann Donnelly

James Henry Fowler
Ann Donnelly
💍 1875/1743

Bachelor
Spinster

Shepherd
Servant

26
22

Christchurch
Christchurch

3 days
3 days

In the Roman Catholic Church, Christchurch

75/1787

8 September 1875

Rev. J. P. Chareyre, RC

No	3805
Date of Notice	8 September 1875
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	James Henry Fowler	Ann Donnelly
	💍 1875/1743
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Shepherd	Servant
Age	26	22
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	3 days	3 days
Marriage Place	In the Roman Catholic Church, Christchurch
Folio	75/1787
Consent
Date of Certificate	8 September 1875
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. P. Chareyre, RC

3806

8 September 1875

Benjamin Jones
Rebecca Walters

Benjamin Jones
Rebecca Walters
💍 1875/1619

Bachelor
Spinster

Compositor
Dressmaker

24
22

Christchurch
Christchurch

18 months
9 months

In the house of Mr. Jones, Springfield Road

75/1745

8 September 1875

Rev. R. Morton, Bap

No	3806
Date of Notice	8 September 1875
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Benjamin Jones	Rebecca Walters
	💍 1875/1619
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Compositor	Dressmaker
Age	24	22
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	18 months	9 months
Marriage Place	In the house of Mr. Jones, Springfield Road
Folio	75/1745
Consent
Date of Certificate	8 September 1875
Officiating Minister	Rev. R. Morton, Bap

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).

Primary digitisation of registers between 1855 and 1925 is now complete. Our digitisation volunteers are now working on verifying the currently digitised pages against printed district/page indexes, to identify pages which may have been missed or out of focus. These pages can be re-imaged as required.

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.

How can I help?

You can sign up to correct errors in the transcribed records and match ITMs with registered marriages.

You can also support this project by ☕ Buying us a coffee 🌳

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).