Intentions to Marry, 1880

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840392, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

Page 661

District of Christchurch Quarter ending 30 June 1880 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

148

13 April 1880

Patrick Ryan
Margaret McAdams

Patrick Ryan
Margaret McAdams
💍 1880/694

Bachelor
Spinster

Constable

23
19

Christchurch
Christchurch

2 years
5 years

In the Roman Catholic Church Christchurch

80/1168

Terence McAdams, Father

13 April 1880

Rev. L. Ginaty, Roman Catholic

No	148
Date of Notice	13 April 1880
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Patrick Ryan	Margaret McAdams
	💍 1880/694
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Constable
Age	23	19
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	2 years	5 years
Marriage Place	In the Roman Catholic Church Christchurch
Folio	80/1168
Consent	Terence McAdams, Father
Date of Certificate	13 April 1880
Officiating Minister	Rev. L. Ginaty, Roman Catholic

149

14 April 1880

George Reese
Selena Roan Guthrie Dewsbury

George Reese
Selina Roan Guthrie Dewsbury
💍 1880/1428

Bachelor
Spinster

Grocer

26
19

Sydenham
Sydenham

8 years
8 years

In the house of Mr. Dewsbury, Sydenham

80/1089

John Dewsbury, Father

14 April 1880

Rev. J.S. Rishworth Wesleyan

No	149
Date of Notice	14 April 1880
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	George Reese	Selena Roan Guthrie Dewsbury
BDM Match (98%)	George Reese	Selina Roan Guthrie Dewsbury
	💍 1880/1428
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Grocer
Age	26	19
Dwelling Place	Sydenham	Sydenham
Length of Residence	8 years	8 years
Marriage Place	In the house of Mr. Dewsbury, Sydenham
Folio	80/1089
Consent	John Dewsbury, Father
Date of Certificate	14 April 1880
Officiating Minister	Rev. J.S. Rishworth Wesleyan

150

16 April 1880

Peter Patten
Emily Thompson

Peter Patten
Emily Thompson
💍 1880/1430

Bachelor
Spinster

Painter

26
24

Merivale
Papanui

19 years
6 years

In St Pauls Church, Cashel Street

80/1108

16 April 1880

Rev. J. Elmslie, Presbyterian

No	150
Date of Notice	16 April 1880
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Peter Patten	Emily Thompson
	💍 1880/1430
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Painter
Age	26	24
Dwelling Place	Merivale	Papanui
Length of Residence	19 years	6 years
Marriage Place	In St Pauls Church, Cashel Street
Folio	80/1108
Consent
Date of Certificate	16 April 1880
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. Elmslie, Presbyterian

151

17 April 1880

John Henderson
Christina Ann Wallis

John Henderson
Christian Ann Wallis
💍 1880/1841

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer
Servant

23
26

Springston
Springston

14 years
9 months

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

80/1132

17 April 1880

Rev. C. Fraser Presbyterian

No	151
Date of Notice	17 April 1880
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Henderson	Christina Ann Wallis
BDM Match (95%)	John Henderson	Christian Ann Wallis
	💍 1880/1841
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer	Servant
Age	23	26
Dwelling Place	Springston	Springston
Length of Residence	14 years	9 months
Marriage Place	In the House of Rev. C. Fraser, Tuam Street
Folio	80/1132
Consent
Date of Certificate	17 April 1880
Officiating Minister	Rev. C. Fraser Presbyterian

152

19 April 1880

George Harvey
Jane Orr Meharry

George Harray
Jane Orr Meharry
💍 1880/1840

Bachelor
Spinster

Contractor

23
19

Christchurch
Christchurch

3 days
3 days

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

80/1131

William Meharry, Father

19 April 1880

Rev. C. Fraser Presbyterian

No	152
Date of Notice	19 April 1880
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	George Harvey	Jane Orr Meharry
BDM Match (92%)	George Harray	Jane Orr Meharry
	💍 1880/1840
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Contractor
Age	23	19
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	3 days	3 days
Marriage Place	In The house of Rev. C. Fraser, Tuam Street
Folio	80/1131
Consent	William Meharry, Father
Date of Certificate	19 April 1880
Officiating Minister	Rev. C. Fraser Presbyterian

153

19 April 1880

John Carey
Honora Murphy

John Carey
Hanoria Murphy
💍 1880/1709

Bachelor
Spinster

Sawyer
Servant

35
23

Christchurch
Christchurch

3 days
3 days

In the Roman Catholic Church Christchurch

80/1169

19 April 1880

Rev. L. Ginaty Roman Catholic

No	153
Date of Notice	19 April 1880
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Carey	Honora Murphy
BDM Match (93%)	John Carey	Hanoria Murphy
	💍 1880/1709
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Sawyer	Servant
Age	35	23
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	3 days	3 days
Marriage Place	In the Roman Catholic Church Christchurch
Folio	80/1169
Consent
Date of Certificate	19 April 1880
Officiating Minister	Rev. L. Ginaty Roman Catholic

154

19 April 1880

William Henry Hind
Miriam Hephzibah Thornton

William Henry Hind
Miriam Hephzibah Thornton
💍 1880/1422

Bachelor
Spinster

Cabinet Maker

23
24

Merivale
Carlton Road

3 years
14 years

In St. Lukes Church, Christchurch

80/1101

19 April 1880

Rev. E A Lingard, Church of England

No	154
Date of Notice	19 April 1880
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Henry Hind	Miriam Hephzibah Thornton
	💍 1880/1422
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Cabinet Maker
Age	23	24
Dwelling Place	Merivale	Carlton Road
Length of Residence	3 years	14 years
Marriage Place	In St. Lukes Church, Christchurch
Folio	80/1101
Consent
Date of Certificate	19 April 1880
Officiating Minister	Rev. E A Lingard, Church of England

155

19 April 1880

John Miln
Ellen McKenna

John Miln
Ellen McKenna
💍 1880/1429

Widower
Widow

Farmer

52
27

Linwood Road
Spreydon

26 years
2 years

In the house of Mr. Thornton, Spreydon

80/1107

19 April 1880

Rev. J. Elmslie Presbyterian

No	155
Date of Notice	19 April 1880
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Miln	Ellen McKenna
	💍 1880/1429
Condition	Widower	Widow
Profession	Farmer
Age	52	27
Dwelling Place	Linwood Road	Spreydon
Length of Residence	26 years	2 years
Marriage Place	In the house of Mr. Thornton, Spreydon
Folio	80/1107
Consent
Date of Certificate	19 April 1880
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. Elmslie Presbyterian

These records have been automatically transcribed and must be verified using the page image (below)

100% Contrast

100% Brightness

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).

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).