Intentions to Marry, 1881

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840393, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

Imaged by Luke at Archives NZ Wellington, January 31 2025

Page 560

District of Nelson Quarter ending 30 September 1881 Registrar Robert Kirton

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

24 August 1881

Henry Dear Holdaway
Jane Edwards

Henry Oscar Holdaway
Jane Edwards
💍 1881/1875

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer
Nil

30
23

Richmond, Nelson
Wood, Nelson

30 years
20 years

Residence of Edwin Edwards, Nelson

81/1911

24 August 1881

Revd. J. Berry, Wesleyan Church

No	57
Date of Notice	24 August 1881
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Henry Dear Holdaway	Jane Edwards
BDM Match (93%)	Henry Oscar Holdaway	Jane Edwards
	💍 1881/1875
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer	Nil
Age	30	23
Dwelling Place	Richmond, Nelson	Wood, Nelson
Length of Residence	30 years	20 years
Marriage Place	Residence of Edwin Edwards, Nelson
Folio	81/1911
Consent
Date of Certificate	24 August 1881
Officiating Minister	Revd. J. Berry, Wesleyan Church

30 August 1881

Joseph Stanton
Elizabeth Jane Fuller

Joseph Stanton
Elizabeth Jane Fuller
💍 1881/1862

Bachelor
Spinster

Grocer's Asst.
Nil

21
22

Waimea Street, Nelson
Waimea Street, Nelson

21 years
2 years

Residence of Joseph Stanton, Washington Valley, Nelson

81/1899

30 August 1881

Revd. John Beckenham, Congregational Independant Church

No	58
Date of Notice	30 August 1881
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Joseph Stanton	Elizabeth Jane Fuller
	💍 1881/1862
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Grocer's Asst.	Nil
Age	21	22
Dwelling Place	Waimea Street, Nelson	Waimea Street, Nelson
Length of Residence	21 years	2 years
Marriage Place	Residence of Joseph Stanton, Washington Valley, Nelson
Folio	81/1899
Consent
Date of Certificate	30 August 1881
Officiating Minister	Revd. John Beckenham, Congregational Independant Church

30 August 1881

George Thomas
Frances Mary Parmenter

George Thomas
Frances Mary Carmenter
💍 1881/1865

George Thomas
Mary Carroll
💍 1881/1772

Bachelor
Spinster

Blacksmith
Nil

22
25

Bridge Street, Nelson
Bridge Street, Nelson

3 days
25 years

St Marys Catholic Station, Nelson

81/1902

30 August 1881

Revd. William Mahoney, Roman Catholic Church

No	59
Date of Notice	30 August 1881
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	George Thomas	Frances Mary Parmenter
BDM Match (98%)	George Thomas	Frances Mary Carmenter
	💍 1881/1865
BDM Match (66%)	George Thomas	Mary Carroll
	💍 1881/1772
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Blacksmith	Nil
Age	22	25
Dwelling Place	Bridge Street, Nelson	Bridge Street, Nelson
Length of Residence	3 days	25 years
Marriage Place	St Marys Catholic Station, Nelson
Folio	81/1902
Consent
Date of Certificate	30 August 1881
Officiating Minister	Revd. William Mahoney, Roman Catholic Church

8 September 1881

William Vosper
Margaret Morrison

William Vosper
Margaret Morrison
💍 1881/87

William Lawson
Mary Morrison
💍 1881/2866

Bachelor
Spinster

Servant
Servant

22
22

Trafalgar Street, Nelson
Manuka Street, Nelson

3 years
4 years

Christ church, Nelson

81/1887

8 Sept 1881

Revd. James Leighton, Church of England

No	60
Date of Notice	8 September 1881
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Vosper	Margaret Morrison
	💍 1881/87
BDM Match (64%)	William Lawson	Mary Morrison
	💍 1881/2866
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Servant	Servant
Age	22	22
Dwelling Place	Trafalgar Street, Nelson	Manuka Street, Nelson
Length of Residence	3 years	4 years
Marriage Place	Christ church, Nelson
Folio	81/1887
Consent
Date of Certificate	8 Sept 1881
Officiating Minister	Revd. James Leighton, Church of England

13 September 1881

Edward Webley
Grace Janet Lockerbie

Edward Webley
Grace Janet Lockerbie
💍 1881/1883

Bachelor
Spinster

Carpenter
Dress maker

24
22

Alton Street, Nelson
New Street, Nelson

20 years
12 years

Residence of Revd Patrick Calder, Nile Street, Nelson

81/1896

13 Sept 1881

Revd. Patrick Calder, Presbyterian Church

No	61
Date of Notice	13 September 1881
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Edward Webley	Grace Janet Lockerbie
	💍 1881/1883
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Carpenter	Dress maker
Age	24	22
Dwelling Place	Alton Street, Nelson	New Street, Nelson
Length of Residence	20 years	12 years
Marriage Place	Residence of Revd Patrick Calder, Nile Street, Nelson
Folio	81/1896
Consent
Date of Certificate	13 Sept 1881
Officiating Minister	Revd. Patrick Calder, Presbyterian Church

14 September 1881

Robert Burns
Mary O'Neill

Robert Burns
Mary O'Neill
💍 1881/1882

Bachelor
Spinster

Hair Dresser
Servant

41
22

Bridge Street, Nelson
The Port, Nelson

31 years
5 years

Residence of Mr. Pilkington, The Port, Nelson

81/1895

14 Sept 1881

Revd. Patrick Calder. Presbyterian Church

No	62
Date of Notice	14 September 1881
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Robert Burns	Mary O'Neill
	💍 1881/1882
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Hair Dresser	Servant
Age	41	22
Dwelling Place	Bridge Street, Nelson	The Port, Nelson
Length of Residence	31 years	5 years
Marriage Place	Residence of Mr. Pilkington, The Port, Nelson
Folio	81/1895
Consent
Date of Certificate	14 Sept 1881
Officiating Minister	Revd. Patrick Calder. Presbyterian Church

19 September 1881

Edward Charles Young
Mary Ryan

Edward Charles Young
Mary Ryan
💍 1881/1864

Bachelor
Spinster

Newspaper Manager
Nil

34
24

Trafalgar Street, Nelson
Collingwood Street, Nelson

3 days
24 years

St Mary's Catholic Station, Nelson

81/1907

19 Sept 1881

Revd. William Mahoney, Roman Catholic Church

No	63
Date of Notice	19 September 1881
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Edward Charles Young	Mary Ryan
	💍 1881/1864
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Newspaper Manager	Nil
Age	34	24
Dwelling Place	Trafalgar Street, Nelson	Collingwood Street, Nelson
Length of Residence	3 days	24 years
Marriage Place	St Mary's Catholic Station, Nelson
Folio	81/1907
Consent
Date of Certificate	19 Sept 1881
Officiating Minister	Revd. William Mahoney, Roman Catholic Church

20 September 1881

Henry Cook Wilkinson
Grace Shore

Henry Cook Wilkinson
Grace Shore
💍 1881/1896

Bachelor
Widow

Miner
Nil

49
39

Grove Street, Nelson
Grove Street, Nelson

4 days
over 20 years

Office of Registrar of Marriages, Nelson

81/1915

20 Sept 1881

Robert Kirton, Registrar of Marriages

No	64
Date of Notice	20 September 1881
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Henry Cook Wilkinson	Grace Shore
	💍 1881/1896
Condition	Bachelor	Widow
Profession	Miner	Nil
Age	49	39
Dwelling Place	Grove Street, Nelson	Grove Street, Nelson
Length of Residence	4 days	over 20 years
Marriage Place	Office of Registrar of Marriages, Nelson
Folio	81/1915
Consent
Date of Certificate	20 Sept 1881
Officiating Minister	Robert Kirton, Registrar of Marriages

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).