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 596

District of Christchurch Quarter ending 31 March 1877 Registrar 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

4419

19 February 1877

John Keenan
Emily Dean

John Keenan
Emily Dean
💍 1877/789

Widower
Spinster

Labourer
Servant

30
29

Christchurch
Opawa

3 days
2 years

St Michaels Church, Christchurch

Waitui, 77/684

19 February 1877

Rev. E. G. Penney

No	4419
Date of Notice	19 February 1877
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Keenan	Emily Dean
	💍 1877/789
Condition	Widower	Spinster
Profession	Labourer	Servant
Age	30	29
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Opawa
Length of Residence	3 days	2 years
Marriage Place	St Michaels Church, Christchurch
Folio	Waitui, 77/684
Consent
Date of Certificate	19 February 1877
Officiating Minister	Rev. E. G. Penney

4420

19 February 1877

John Henry Donovan
Alice Hawkins

John Henry Donovan
Alice Hankins
💍 1877/1451

Bachelor
Spinster

Mariner

25
24

Christchurch
Christchurch

10 months
20 years

In the Scotch Church, Tuam Street

77/1401

19 February 1877

Rev. C. Fraser

No	4420
Date of Notice	19 February 1877
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Henry Donovan	Alice Hawkins
BDM Match (96%)	John Henry Donovan	Alice Hankins
	💍 1877/1451
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Mariner
Age	25	24
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	10 months	20 years
Marriage Place	In the Scotch Church, Tuam Street
Folio	77/1401
Consent
Date of Certificate	19 February 1877
Officiating Minister	Rev. C. Fraser

4421

20 February 1877

James Sullivan
Agnes McCullough

James Sullivan
Agnes McCullough
💍 1877/1458

Bachelor
Spinster

Tailor
Servant

38
26

Christchurch
Christchurch

3 years
6 years

In the house of Rev. C. Fraser

77/1408

20 February 1877

Rev. C. Fraser

No	4421
Date of Notice	20 February 1877
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	James Sullivan	Agnes McCullough
	💍 1877/1458
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Tailor	Servant
Age	38	26
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	3 years	6 years
Marriage Place	In the house of Rev. C. Fraser
Folio	77/1408
Consent
Date of Certificate	20 February 1877
Officiating Minister	Rev. C. Fraser

4422

21 February 1877

William Payne
Rebecca Watson

William Payne
Rebecca Watson
💍 1877/1463

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer
Servant

22
23

Prebbleton
Riccarton

2 years
23 years

In the house of Rev. C. Fraser

77/1412

21 February 1877

Rev. C. Fraser

No	4422
Date of Notice	21 February 1877
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Payne	Rebecca Watson
	💍 1877/1463
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer	Servant
Age	22	23
Dwelling Place	Prebbleton	Riccarton
Length of Residence	2 years	23 years
Marriage Place	In the house of Rev. C. Fraser
Folio	77/1412
Consent
Date of Certificate	21 February 1877
Officiating Minister	Rev. C. Fraser

4423

21 February 1877

George Simpson
Elizabeth Corkrey

George Simpson
Elizabeth Corkrey
💍 1877/1453

Bachelor
Spinster

Engineer
Servant

38
28

Christchurch
Christchurch

12 years
5 years

In the Scotch Church, Tuam St

77/1403

21 February 1877

Rev C Fraser

No	4423
Date of Notice	21 February 1877
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	George Simpson	Elizabeth Corkrey
	💍 1877/1453
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Engineer	Servant
Age	38	28
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	12 years	5 years
Marriage Place	In the Scotch Church, Tuam St
Folio	77/1403
Consent
Date of Certificate	21 February 1877
Officiating Minister	Rev C Fraser

4424

22 February 1877

George Ashworth
Fanny Bowden

George Ashworth
Fanny Bowden
💍 1877/87

Bachelor
Spinster

Bootmaker
Domestic

21
21

Christchurch
Christchurch

13 years
5 weeks

In St.Lukes Church, Christchurch

77/403

22 February 1877

Rev. E. A. Lingard

No	4424
Date of Notice	22 February 1877
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	George Ashworth	Fanny Bowden
	💍 1877/87
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Bootmaker	Domestic
Age	21	21
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	13 years	5 weeks
Marriage Place	In St.Lukes Church, Christchurch
Folio	77/403
Consent
Date of Certificate	22 February 1877
Officiating Minister	Rev. E. A. Lingard

4425

24 February 1877

Thomas Reed Turner
Elizabeth Martha Bayley

Thomas Reid Turnor
Elizabeth Martha Bayley
💍 1877/522

Bachelor
Spinster

Salesman

29
25

Christchurch
Christchurch

6 months
3 weeks

In St Johns Church, Christchurch

77/364

24 February 1877

Rev H C M Watson

No	4425
Date of Notice	24 February 1877
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Thomas Reed Turner	Elizabeth Martha Bayley
BDM Match (94%)	Thomas Reid Turnor	Elizabeth Martha Bayley
	💍 1877/522
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Salesman
Age	29	25
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	6 months	3 weeks
Marriage Place	In St Johns Church, Christchurch
Folio	77/364
Consent
Date of Certificate	24 February 1877
Officiating Minister	Rev H C M Watson

4426

24 February 1877

Albert Corrick
Sarah Alice Calvert

Albert Corrick
Sarah Alice Calvert
💍 1877/458

Bachelor
Spinster

Bootmaker

28
23

Christchurch
Christchurch

13 years
16 years

In the Wesleyan Church

77/409

24 February 1877

Rev W Morley

No	4426
Date of Notice	24 February 1877
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Albert Corrick	Sarah Alice Calvert
	💍 1877/458
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Bootmaker
Age	28	23
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	13 years	16 years
Marriage Place	In the Wesleyan Church
Folio	77/409
Consent
Date of Certificate	24 February 1877
Officiating Minister	Rev W Morley

4427

24 February 1877

Alexander Keane
Selina South

Alexander Neare
Selina South
💍 1877/523

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer
Servant

24
28

Christchurch
Christchurch

4 years
2 years

In St. Andrews Church

77/1402

Margaret Taylor, Mother

26 February 1877

Rev. C. Fraser

No	4427
Date of Notice	24 February 1877
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Alexander Keane	Selina South
BDM Match (93%)	Alexander Neare	Selina South
	💍 1877/523
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer	Servant
Age	24	28
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	4 years	2 years
Marriage Place	In St. Andrews Church
Folio	77/1402
Consent	Margaret Taylor, Mother
Date of Certificate	26 February 1877
Officiating Minister	Rev. C. Fraser

4428

26 February 1877

William McAllen
Sarah Ellen Yates

William Davidson
Sarah Ellen Yates
💍 1877/1452

Bachelor
Spinster

Carpenter
Dressmaker

36
20

Christchurch
Christchurch

5 days
4 years

Tram Street

26 February 1877

Rev. R. J. Bunshe

No	4428
Date of Notice	26 February 1877
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William McAllen	Sarah Ellen Yates
BDM Match (78%)	William Davidson	Sarah Ellen Yates
	💍 1877/1452
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Carpenter	Dressmaker
Age	36	20
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	5 days	4 years
Marriage Place	Tram Street
Folio
Consent
Date of Certificate	26 February 1877
Officiating Minister	Rev. R. J. Bunshe

4429

26 February 1877

Joseph Ford
Julia Bourke

Joseph Ford
Julia Bourk
💍 1877/492

Bachelor
Spinster

Plasterer
Servant

23
23

Christchurch
Christchurch

22 years
1 year

In the house of Mr. Ford, Worcester Street

77/397

26 February 1877

Rev. J. Elmslie

No	4429
Date of Notice	26 February 1877
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Joseph Ford	Julia Bourke
BDM Match (96%)	Joseph Ford	Julia Bourk
	💍 1877/492
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Plasterer	Servant
Age	23	23
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	22 years	1 year
Marriage Place	In the house of Mr. Ford, Worcester Street
Folio	77/397
Consent
Date of Certificate	26 February 1877
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. Elmslie

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 1908. 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).