Intentions to Marry, 1877

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840389, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

Imaged by Luke at Archives NZ Wellington, April 16 2025

Page 393

District of Napier Quarter ending 30 June 1877 Registrar John Grubb

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

809

3 April 1877

Henry Darmor Gardiner
Mary Ann Hutchin

Henry Dormer Gardiner
Mary Ann Hutchings
💍 1877/988

Widower
Spinster

Baker
Servant

40
19

Napier
Napier

3 Months
16 months

House of Rev. J. Parkin, Napier

77/907

John Hutchin father

3 April 1877

Rev. I. Parkin

No	809
Date of Notice	3 April 1877
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Henry Darmor Gardiner	Mary Ann Hutchin
BDM Match (90%)	Henry Dormer Gardiner	Mary Ann Hutchings
	💍 1877/988
Condition	Widower	Spinster
Profession	Baker	Servant
Age	40	19
Dwelling Place	Napier	Napier
Length of Residence	3 Months	16 months
Marriage Place	House of Rev. J. Parkin, Napier
Folio	77/907
Consent	John Hutchin father
Date of Certificate	3 April 1877
Officiating Minister	Rev. I. Parkin

810

5 April 1877

Hannibal Layou Lary
Mary Ann Jacobs

Hannibal Lyne Lory
Mary Ann Jacobs
💍 1877/987

Widower
Widow

Laborer

48
50

Port Ahuriri
Napier

2 years
2 years

House of Rev. S. Berry

77/906

5 April 1877

Rev. S. Berry

No	810
Date of Notice	5 April 1877
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Hannibal Layou Lary	Mary Ann Jacobs
BDM Match (89%)	Hannibal Lyne Lory	Mary Ann Jacobs
	💍 1877/987
Condition	Widower	Widow
Profession	Laborer
Age	48	50
Dwelling Place	Port Ahuriri	Napier
Length of Residence	2 years	2 years
Marriage Place	House of Rev. S. Berry
Folio	77/906
Consent
Date of Certificate	5 April 1877
Officiating Minister	Rev. S. Berry

811

9 April 1877

Joseph Walter Strudwick
Jane Anne Soaplein Garne

Joseph Walter Hendwick
Jane Ann Josephine Garne
💍 1877/989

Widower
Spinster

Constable
Housekeeper

35
26

Napier
Napier

3 years
3 months

House of I. W. Strudwick

77/908

9 April 1877

Rev. I. Parkin

No	811
Date of Notice	9 April 1877
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Joseph Walter Strudwick	Jane Anne Soaplein Garne
BDM Match (77%)	Joseph Walter Hendwick	Jane Ann Josephine Garne
	💍 1877/989
Condition	Widower	Spinster
Profession	Constable	Housekeeper
Age	35	26
Dwelling Place	Napier	Napier
Length of Residence	3 years	3 months
Marriage Place	House of I. W. Strudwick
Folio	77/908
Consent
Date of Certificate	9 April 1877
Officiating Minister	Rev. I. Parkin

812

25 April 1877

John Laurenson
Jane Ebbett

John Laurenson
Jane Ebbett
💍 1877/1007

Bachelor
Spinster

Storeman
Servant

22
22

Napier
Napier

2 years
4 years

Residence of D. Begg Esq

77/903

25 April 1877

Rev. D. Sidey

No	812
Date of Notice	25 April 1877
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Laurenson	Jane Ebbett
	💍 1877/1007
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Storeman	Servant
Age	22	22
Dwelling Place	Napier	Napier
Length of Residence	2 years	4 years
Marriage Place	Residence of D. Begg Esq
Folio	77/903
Consent
Date of Certificate	25 April 1877
Officiating Minister	Rev. D. Sidey

813

30 April 1877

Donald Sutherland
Harriett Joseph

Donald Sutherland
Harriet Joseph
💍 1877/1280

Bachelor
Spinster

Hotelkeeper

31
21

Napier
Napier

3 days
3 weeks

St Johns Church

77/1229

30 April 1877

Rev. I. Townsend

No	813
Date of Notice	30 April 1877
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Donald Sutherland	Harriett Joseph
BDM Match (97%)	Donald Sutherland	Harriet Joseph
	💍 1877/1280
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Hotelkeeper
Age	31	21
Dwelling Place	Napier	Napier
Length of Residence	3 days	3 weeks
Marriage Place	St Johns Church
Folio	77/1229
Consent
Date of Certificate	30 April 1877
Officiating Minister	Rev. I. Townsend

814

5 May 1877

Samuel Mason Wilson
Elizabeth Esther Holder

Samuel Mason Wilson
Elizabeth Esther Holder
💍 1877/1281

Bachelor
Spinster

Hotel Keeper

28
20

Napier
Napier

3 days
2 months

St Johns Church

77/1230

Henry Holder father

5 May 1877

Rev. I. Townsend

No	814
Date of Notice	5 May 1877
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Samuel Mason Wilson	Elizabeth Esther Holder
	💍 1877/1281
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Hotel Keeper
Age	28	20
Dwelling Place	Napier	Napier
Length of Residence	3 days	2 months
Marriage Place	St Johns Church
Folio	77/1230
Consent	Henry Holder father
Date of Certificate	5 May 1877
Officiating Minister	Rev. I. Townsend

815

7 May 1877

John Hunt
Elizabeth Jane Williams

John Hunt
Elizabeth Jane Williams
💍 1877/991

Bachelor
Spinster

Laborer

21
21

Clive
Clive

5 years
2 years

Residence of Mr Douglas

77/910

7 May 1877

Rev. I. Shepherd

No	815
Date of Notice	7 May 1877
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Hunt	Elizabeth Jane Williams
	💍 1877/991
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Laborer
Age	21	21
Dwelling Place	Clive	Clive
Length of Residence	5 years	2 years
Marriage Place	Residence of Mr Douglas
Folio	77/910
Consent
Date of Certificate	7 May 1877
Officiating Minister	Rev. I. Shepherd

816

10 May 1877

Arthur Innes Cothrill
Julie Moore Stuart

Arthur James Cotterill
Julie Moore Stuart
💍 1877/1282

Bachelor
Spinster

Solicitor

29
21

Napier
Napier

3 years
8 years

St Johns Church

77/1231

10 May 1877

Rev. I. Townsend

No	816
Date of Notice	10 May 1877
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Arthur Innes Cothrill	Julie Moore Stuart
BDM Match (89%)	Arthur James Cotterill	Julie Moore Stuart
	💍 1877/1282
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Solicitor
Age	29	21
Dwelling Place	Napier	Napier
Length of Residence	3 years	8 years
Marriage Place	St Johns Church
Folio	77/1231
Consent
Date of Certificate	10 May 1877
Officiating Minister	Rev. I. Townsend

817

14 May 1877

Thomas Parsons
Eliza Le Couteur

Thomas Parsons
Eliza Le Couteur
💍 1877/1421

Bachelor
Spinster

Ship Farmer

28
20

Puketapu
Napier

2 years
2 years

Church

77/1344

to parent or Guardian in the Colony

14 May 1877

Rev. W. Marshall

No	817
Date of Notice	14 May 1877
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Thomas Parsons	Eliza Le Couteur
	💍 1877/1421
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Ship Farmer
Age	28	20
Dwelling Place	Puketapu	Napier
Length of Residence	2 years	2 years
Marriage Place	Church
Folio	77/1344
Consent	to parent or Guardian in the Colony
Date of Certificate	14 May 1877
Officiating Minister	Rev. W. Marshall

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).