Intentions to Marry, 1886

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840398, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

Imaged by Luke at Archives NZ Wellington, May 14 2025

Page 134

District of Wellington Quarter ending 31 March 1886 Registrar W. T. Wyatt

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

22 February 1886

Robert Thomas Holmes
Emma West

Robert Thomas Holmes
Emma West
💍 1886/1303

Widower
Spinster

Artist

53
31

Wellington
Wellington

years
5 Weeks

House of Mr W. J. Knowles, Glenbervie Terrace

86/1245

22 February 1886

Rev. W. H. West

No	37
Date of Notice	22 February 1886
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Robert Thomas Holmes	Emma West
	💍 1886/1303
Condition	Widower	Spinster
Profession	Artist
Age	53	31
Dwelling Place	Wellington	Wellington
Length of Residence	years	5 Weeks
Marriage Place	House of Mr W. J. Knowles, Glenbervie Terrace
Folio	86/1245
Consent
Date of Certificate	22 February 1886
Officiating Minister	Rev. W. H. West

22 February 1886

Richard Edward Newport
Flora Muir

Richard Edward Newport
Flora Muir
💍 1886/495

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer

32
22

Wellington
Wellington

15 months
6 months

Registrar's office, Wellington

86/1343

22 February 1886

W. T. Wyatt, Reg.

No	38
Date of Notice	22 February 1886
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Richard Edward Newport	Flora Muir
	💍 1886/495
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer
Age	32	22
Dwelling Place	Wellington	Wellington
Length of Residence	15 months	6 months
Marriage Place	Registrar's office, Wellington
Folio	86/1343
Consent
Date of Certificate	22 February 1886
Officiating Minister	W. T. Wyatt, Reg.

22 February 1886

Edwin Thomas Daniel
Mary Ann Clara Bright

Edwin Thomas Daniel
Mary Ann Clara Bright
💍 1886/473

Bachelor
Spinster

Storeman

20
20

Wellington
Wellington

years
years

Registrar's office, Wellington

86/1344

Edwin Daniel, Father; Frederick Bright, Father

22 February 1886

W. T. Wyatt, Reg.

No	39
Date of Notice	22 February 1886
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Edwin Thomas Daniel	Mary Ann Clara Bright
	💍 1886/473
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Storeman
Age	20	20
Dwelling Place	Wellington	Wellington
Length of Residence	years	years
Marriage Place	Registrar's office, Wellington
Folio	86/1344
Consent	Edwin Daniel, Father; Frederick Bright, Father
Date of Certificate	22 February 1886
Officiating Minister	W. T. Wyatt, Reg.

23 February 1886

Walter Cleeve Edwards
Jeanie Brown

Walter Cleeve Edwards
Jeanie Brown
💍 1886/474

Bachelor
Spinster

Civil Engineer

24
22

Horokiwi Valley
Porirua

days
years

Registrar's office, Wellington

86/1345

23 February 1886

W. T. Wyatt, Reg.

No	40
Date of Notice	23 February 1886
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Walter Cleeve Edwards	Jeanie Brown
	💍 1886/474
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Civil Engineer
Age	24	22
Dwelling Place	Horokiwi Valley	Porirua
Length of Residence	days	years
Marriage Place	Registrar's office, Wellington
Folio	86/1345
Consent
Date of Certificate	23 February 1886
Officiating Minister	W. T. Wyatt, Reg.

24 February 1886

Charles William Chilman
Amy Maria Davy

Charles William Chilman
Amy Maria Davy
💍 1886/461

Bachelor
Spinster

Bank Clerk

33
24

Wellington
Wellington

years
years

S. Paul's Cathedral

86/308

24 February 1886

Rev. J. Fancourt

No	41
Date of Notice	24 February 1886
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Charles William Chilman	Amy Maria Davy
	💍 1886/461
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Bank Clerk
Age	33	24
Dwelling Place	Wellington	Wellington
Length of Residence	years	years
Marriage Place	S. Paul's Cathedral
Folio	86/308
Consent
Date of Certificate	24 February 1886
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. Fancourt

24 February 1886

Frederick James Reid
Kate Elizabeth Lowater

Fredrick James Reid
Kate Elizabeth Lowater
💍 1886/448

Bachelor
Spinster

Warehouseman

36
20

Wellington
Woolcombe Street

14 days
years

House of Mr Lowater

86/319

Susannah Lowater, Mother

24 February 1886

Rev. W. C. Oliver

No	42
Date of Notice	24 February 1886
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Frederick James Reid	Kate Elizabeth Lowater
BDM Match (98%)	Fredrick James Reid	Kate Elizabeth Lowater
	💍 1886/448
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Warehouseman
Age	36	20
Dwelling Place	Wellington	Woolcombe Street
Length of Residence	14 days	years
Marriage Place	House of Mr Lowater
Folio	86/319
Consent	Susannah Lowater, Mother
Date of Certificate	24 February 1886
Officiating Minister	Rev. W. C. Oliver

26 February 1886

George Bosher
Ellen Susannah Hall

George Bosher
Ellen Susannah Hall
💍 1886/454

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer

26
20

Pawa Flat
Buckle Street

years
years

House of Mr Bosher

86/324

George Hall, Father

26 February 1886

Rev. P. W. Jones

No	43
Date of Notice	26 February 1886
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	George Bosher	Ellen Susannah Hall
	💍 1886/454
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer
Age	26	20
Dwelling Place	Pawa Flat	Buckle Street
Length of Residence	years	years
Marriage Place	House of Mr Bosher
Folio	86/324
Consent	George Hall, Father
Date of Certificate	26 February 1886
Officiating Minister	Rev. P. W. Jones

26 February 1886

Jeremiah Dundon
Catherine Gleeson

Jeremiah Dundon
Catherine Gleeson
💍 1886/442

Bachelor
Spinster

Shepherd

33
31

Wellington
Wellington

1 Week
years

S. Mary of the Angels

86/313

26 February 1886

Rev. P. Kerrigan

No	44
Date of Notice	26 February 1886
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Jeremiah Dundon	Catherine Gleeson
	💍 1886/442
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Shepherd
Age	33	31
Dwelling Place	Wellington	Wellington
Length of Residence	1 Week	years
Marriage Place	S. Mary of the Angels
Folio	86/313
Consent
Date of Certificate	26 February 1886
Officiating Minister	Rev. P. Kerrigan

2 March 1886

Hugh Harold Cairns
Emily Mason

Hugh Harold Cousins
Emily Mason
💍 1886/455

Bachelor
Spinster

Mariner

25
22

Wellington
Wellington

years
years

Primitive Methodist Church, Webb Street

86/325

2 March 1886

Rev. P. W. Jones

No	45
Date of Notice	2 March 1886
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Hugh Harold Cairns	Emily Mason
BDM Match (89%)	Hugh Harold Cousins	Emily Mason
	💍 1886/455
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Mariner
Age	25	22
Dwelling Place	Wellington	Wellington
Length of Residence	years	years
Marriage Place	Primitive Methodist Church, Webb Street
Folio	86/325
Consent
Date of Certificate	2 March 1886
Officiating Minister	Rev. P. W. Jones

2 March 1886

Henry Morris
Emma Jane Oakley

Henry Morris
Emma Jane Oakley
💍 1886/475

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer

21
24

Wellington
Wellington

5 days
years

Registrar's office, Wellington

86/1346

2 March 1886

W. T. Wyatt, Reg.

No	46
Date of Notice	2 March 1886
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Henry Morris	Emma Jane Oakley
	💍 1886/475
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer
Age	21	24
Dwelling Place	Wellington	Wellington
Length of Residence	5 days	years
Marriage Place	Registrar's office, Wellington
Folio	86/1346
Consent
Date of Certificate	2 March 1886
Officiating Minister	W. T. Wyatt, Reg.

2 March 1886

Harry Thomas Richards
Agnes Tannabill

Harry Thomas Richards
Agnes Tannahill
💍 1886/1029

Bachelor
Spinster

Photographer

44
27

Wellington
Wellington Terrace

years
years

House of Rev. G. I. Goff

86/901

2 March 1886

Rev. G. I. Goff, Pres.

No	47
Date of Notice	2 March 1886
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Harry Thomas Richards	Agnes Tannabill
BDM Match (97%)	Harry Thomas Richards	Agnes Tannahill
	💍 1886/1029
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Photographer
Age	44	27
Dwelling Place	Wellington	Wellington Terrace
Length of Residence	years	years
Marriage Place	House of Rev. G. I. Goff
Folio	86/901
Consent
Date of Certificate	2 March 1886
Officiating Minister	Rev. G. I. Goff, Pres.

4 March 1886

Thomas Burks Woodford
Emily Jones

Thomas Curtis Woodford
Emily Jones
💍 1886/462

Bachelor
Spinster

Watchmaker

38
40

Wellington
Wellington

years
years

St. Paul's Cathedral

86/309

4 March 1886

Rev. John Still

No	48
Date of Notice	4 March 1886
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Thomas Burks Woodford	Emily Jones
BDM Match (93%)	Thomas Curtis Woodford	Emily Jones
	💍 1886/462
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Watchmaker
Age	38	40
Dwelling Place	Wellington	Wellington
Length of Residence	years	years
Marriage Place	St. Paul's Cathedral
Folio	86/309
Consent
Date of Certificate	4 March 1886
Officiating Minister	Rev. John Still

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).