Intentions to Marry, 1883

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840395, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

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

Page 725

District of Christchurch Quarter ending 30 September 1883 Registrar M Walkerson

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

286

24 July 1883

Walter Stuart Parker
Ellen Whithair

Walter Stuart Parker
Ellen Whithair
💍 1883/2242

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer

23
24

Templeton
Spreydon

10 years
5 years

St. Lukes Church, Christchurch

83/2154

24 July 1883

Rev. R. A. Lingard, Church of England

No	286
Date of Notice	24 July 1883
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Walter Stuart Parker	Ellen Whithair
	💍 1883/2242
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer
Age	23	24
Dwelling Place	Templeton	Spreydon
Length of Residence	10 years	5 years
Marriage Place	St. Lukes Church, Christchurch
Folio	83/2154
Consent
Date of Certificate	24 July 1883
Officiating Minister	Rev. R. A. Lingard, Church of England

287

26 July 1883

Patrick Jeremiah Herlehy
Jane Peet

Patrick Jeremiah Herlihy
Jane Peet
💍 1883/3148

Bachelor
Spinster

Constable
Servant

30
29

Christchurch
Christchurch

3 days
3 years

In the Roman Catholic Church, Lyttelton

83/2153

26 July 1883

Rev. L. Ginaty, Roman Catholic

No	287
Date of Notice	26 July 1883
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Patrick Jeremiah Herlehy	Jane Peet
BDM Match (98%)	Patrick Jeremiah Herlihy	Jane Peet
	💍 1883/3148
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Constable	Servant
Age	30	29
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	3 days	3 years
Marriage Place	In the Roman Catholic Church, Lyttelton
Folio	83/2153
Consent
Date of Certificate	26 July 1883
Officiating Minister	Rev. L. Ginaty, Roman Catholic

288

27 July 1883

George Henry Lee
Marian Ramsay Palmer

George Henry Lee
Marianne Emily Palmer
💍 1883/2129

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer

32
23

Christchurch
Christchurch

3 days
23 years

St. Michaels Church, Tepuka

83/2223

27 July 1883

Rev. W. Harper, Church of England

No	288
Date of Notice	27 July 1883
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	George Henry Lee	Marian Ramsay Palmer
BDM Match (86%)	George Henry Lee	Marianne Emily Palmer
	💍 1883/2129
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer
Age	32	23
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	3 days	23 years
Marriage Place	St. Michaels Church, Tepuka
Folio	83/2223
Consent
Date of Certificate	27 July 1883
Officiating Minister	Rev. W. Harper, Church of England

289

27 July 1883

Edmund Simmons
Anne Carver

Edmund Simmons
Anne Owen
💍 1883/3580

Bachelor
Spinster

Carpenter
Servant

29
21

Christchurch
Christchurch

4 years
11 months

In the Registrars Office

83/2205

27 July 1883

Registrar Marriages, M Walkerson

No	289
Date of Notice	27 July 1883
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Edmund Simmons	Anne Carver
BDM Match (77%)	Edmund Simmons	Anne Owen
	💍 1883/3580
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Carpenter	Servant
Age	29	21
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	4 years	11 months
Marriage Place	In the Registrars Office
Folio	83/2205
Consent
Date of Certificate	27 July 1883
Officiating Minister	Registrar Marriages, M Walkerson

290

28 July 1883

John Robinson
Ellen Selina Moore

John Robinson
Ellen Selina Moore
💍 1883/2251

Bachelor
Spinster

Storekeeper

43
30

Christchurch
Christchurch

5 days
10 days

In St. Saviours Church

83/2162

28 July 1883

Rev. H. V. Cocks, Church of England

No	290
Date of Notice	28 July 1883
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Robinson	Ellen Selina Moore
	💍 1883/2251
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Storekeeper
Age	43	30
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	5 days	10 days
Marriage Place	In St. Saviours Church
Folio	83/2162
Consent
Date of Certificate	28 July 1883
Officiating Minister	Rev. H. V. Cocks, Church of England

291

28 July 1883

Frederick James Bowton
Katherine Emma Day

Frederick James Bowton
Catherine Emma Day
💍 1883/2182

Widower
Spinster

Master Mariner

50
24

Christchurch
Christchurch

30 years
24 years

In the House of G. F. Day

83/2245

28 July 1883

Rev. W. Burrowsdie, Presbyterian

No	291
Date of Notice	28 July 1883
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Frederick James Bowton	Katherine Emma Day
BDM Match (97%)	Frederick James Bowton	Catherine Emma Day
	💍 1883/2182
Condition	Widower	Spinster
Profession	Master Mariner
Age	50	24
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	30 years	24 years
Marriage Place	In the House of G. F. Day
Folio	83/2245
Consent
Date of Certificate	28 July 1883
Officiating Minister	Rev. W. Burrowsdie, Presbyterian

292

28 July 1883

John Henry Jones
Sarah Carter

John Henry Jones
Sarah Carter
💍 1883/2162

Bachelor
Spinster

Mechanic
Dressmaker

25
27

Christchurch
Christchurch

1 year
20 years

In the House of Mr. J. V. S. Daltry

83/2249

28 July 1883

Rev. J. Camps, Wesleyan

No	292
Date of Notice	28 July 1883
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Henry Jones	Sarah Carter
	💍 1883/2162
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Mechanic	Dressmaker
Age	25	27
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	1 year	20 years
Marriage Place	In the House of Mr. J. V. S. Daltry
Folio	83/2249
Consent
Date of Certificate	28 July 1883
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. Camps, Wesleyan

293

28 July 1883

Thomas Adolphus Raffles
Maria Percy

Thomas Adolphus Reffles
Maria Piercy
💍 1883/2191

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer
Servant

47
48

Christchurch
Christchurch

1 year
5 years

In the House of Mr. Raffles

83/2178

28 July 1883

Rev. R. Best, Wesleyan

No	293
Date of Notice	28 July 1883
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Thomas Adolphus Raffles	Maria Percy
BDM Match (94%)	Thomas Adolphus Reffles	Maria Piercy
	💍 1883/2191
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer	Servant
Age	47	48
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	1 year	5 years
Marriage Place	In the House of Mr. Raffles
Folio	83/2178
Consent
Date of Certificate	28 July 1883
Officiating Minister	Rev. R. Best, Wesleyan

294

30 July 1883

Alfred Phillip Farrell
Mary Ann Kingston

Alfred Phillip Farrell
Mary Ann Kingston
💍 1883/3582

Bachelor
Spinster

Baker
Servant

28
22

Christchurch
Christchurch

4 days
4 days

In the Registrars Office

83/2207

30 July 1883

Registrar Marriages, M Walkerson

No	294
Date of Notice	30 July 1883
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Alfred Phillip Farrell	Mary Ann Kingston
	💍 1883/3582
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Baker	Servant
Age	28	22
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	4 days	4 days
Marriage Place	In the Registrars Office
Folio	83/2207
Consent
Date of Certificate	30 July 1883
Officiating Minister	Registrar Marriages, M Walkerson

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).