Intentions to Marry, 1888

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840400, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

Imaged by Alexandra at Archives NZ Wellington, May 14 2025

Page 248

District of Christchurch Quarter ending 31 March 1888 Registrar J. M. Maude

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

1 February 1888

Archibald Henry Fisher
Annie Seaton

Archibald Henry Fisher
Annie Seaton Gall Thompson
💍 1888/680

Bachelor
Spinster

Station Holder

22
23

Christchurch

16 years
5 years

Registrar's Office

88/548

1 February 1888

Registrar Marriages J. M. Maude

No	31
Date of Notice	1 February 1888
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Archibald Henry Fisher	Annie Seaton
BDM Match (73%)	Archibald Henry Fisher	Annie Seaton Gall Thompson
	💍 1888/680
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Station Holder
Age	22	23
Dwelling Place	Christchurch
Length of Residence	16 years	5 years
Marriage Place	Registrar's Office
Folio	88/548
Consent
Date of Certificate	1 February 1888
Officiating Minister	Registrar Marriages J. M. Maude

1 February 1888

William James Lambe
Harriette Lambe

William Jarman
Harriette Lambe
💍 1888/679

Bachelor
Spinster

Shepherd
Servant

34
24

Christchurch
Christchurch

3 months
3 years

Registrar's Office

88/547

1 February 1888

Registrar Marriages J. M. Maude

No	32
Date of Notice	1 February 1888
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William James Lambe	Harriette Lambe
BDM Match (79%)	William Jarman	Harriette Lambe
	💍 1888/679
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Shepherd	Servant
Age	34	24
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	3 months	3 years
Marriage Place	Registrar's Office
Folio	88/547
Consent
Date of Certificate	1 February 1888
Officiating Minister	Registrar Marriages J. M. Maude

2 February 1888

William Woodhead
Mary Ann Wallace

William Woodhead
Mary Ann Sarah Wallace
💍 1888/630

Bachelor
Spinster

Master Mariner

28
16

Christchurch
Christchurch

5 days
5 days

St. Michael's Church

88/496

Sarah Wallace, mother

2 February 1888

Rev. W. Harper, Church of England

No	33
Date of Notice	2 February 1888
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Woodhead	Mary Ann Wallace
BDM Match (86%)	William Woodhead	Mary Ann Sarah Wallace
	💍 1888/630
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Master Mariner
Age	28	16
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	5 days	5 days
Marriage Place	St. Michael's Church
Folio	88/496
Consent	Sarah Wallace, mother
Date of Certificate	2 February 1888
Officiating Minister	Rev. W. Harper, Church of England

3 February 1888

Charles Reeve
Elizabeth Forsyth

Charles Reeve
Elizabeth Margaret Forsyth
💍 1888/681

Bachelor
Spinster

Bookmaker

22
22

Christchurch
Christchurch

14 years
14 years

Registrar's Office

88/549

Margaret Forsyth, mother

3 February 1888

Registrar Marriages J. M. Maude

No	34
Date of Notice	3 February 1888
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Charles Reeve	Elizabeth Forsyth
BDM Match (83%)	Charles Reeve	Elizabeth Margaret Forsyth
	💍 1888/681
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Bookmaker
Age	22	22
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	14 years	14 years
Marriage Place	Registrar's Office
Folio	88/549
Consent	Margaret Forsyth, mother
Date of Certificate	3 February 1888
Officiating Minister	Registrar Marriages J. M. Maude

4 February 1888

George Human
Agnes Flora Davis

George Humm
Agnes Flora Davis
💍 1888/641

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer
Servant

28
21

Christchurch
Christchurch

3 days
3 days

House of Rev. P. W. Jones, Cambridge Terrace

88/506

4 February 1888

Rev. P. W. Jones, Methodist

No	35
Date of Notice	4 February 1888
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	George Human	Agnes Flora Davis
BDM Match (92%)	George Humm	Agnes Flora Davis
	💍 1888/641
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer	Servant
Age	28	21
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	3 days	3 days
Marriage Place	House of Rev. P. W. Jones, Cambridge Terrace
Folio	88/506
Consent
Date of Certificate	4 February 1888
Officiating Minister	Rev. P. W. Jones, Methodist

4 February 1888

Hugh Wilson
Mary Ann Quinan

Hugh Wilson
Mary Ann Quinn
💍 1888/654

Joseph Wilson
Mary Ann Searle
💍 1888/1223

Bachelor
Spinster

Polisher
Servant

21
22

Christchurch
Christchurch

21 years
4 years

Church of England, Armside

88/521

4 February 1888

Rev. W. A. Pascoe, Church of England

No	36
Date of Notice	4 February 1888
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Hugh Wilson	Mary Ann Quinan
BDM Match (97%)	Hugh Wilson	Mary Ann Quinn
	💍 1888/654
BDM Match (61%)	Joseph Wilson	Mary Ann Searle
	💍 1888/1223
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Polisher	Servant
Age	21	22
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	21 years	4 years
Marriage Place	Church of England, Armside
Folio	88/521
Consent
Date of Certificate	4 February 1888
Officiating Minister	Rev. W. A. Pascoe, Church of England

4 February 1888

William Hamilton
Mary Carroll

William Hamilton
Mary Carroll
💍 1888/682

Widower
Spinster

Labourer

30
26

Lincoln
Lincoln

12 years
2 years

Registrar's Office

88/550

4 February 1888

Registrar Marriages J. M. Maude

No	37
Date of Notice	4 February 1888
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Hamilton	Mary Carroll
	💍 1888/682
Condition	Widower	Spinster
Profession	Labourer
Age	30	26
Dwelling Place	Lincoln	Lincoln
Length of Residence	12 years	2 years
Marriage Place	Registrar's Office
Folio	88/550
Consent
Date of Certificate	4 February 1888
Officiating Minister	Registrar Marriages J. M. Maude

6 February 1888

George Edward Trusitte
Mary Louisa Austin

George Edward Smith
Mary Louisa Austin
💍 1888/683

Bachelor
Spinster

Butcher

22
19

Christchurch
Christchurch

2 years
10 years

Registrar's Office

88/551

Austin, father

6 February 1888

Registrar Marriages J. M. Maude

No	38
Date of Notice	6 February 1888
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	George Edward Trusitte	Mary Louisa Austin
BDM Match (86%)	George Edward Smith	Mary Louisa Austin
	💍 1888/683
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Butcher
Age	22	19
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	2 years	10 years
Marriage Place	Registrar's Office
Folio	88/551
Consent	Austin, father
Date of Certificate	6 February 1888
Officiating Minister	Registrar Marriages J. M. Maude

6 February 1888

Alfred Laurence Austin
Alice May Austin

Alfred Lawrence
Eliza May Austin
💍 1888/688

Bachelor
Spinster

Printer

22
17

Christchurch
Christchurch

5 years
10 years

Registrar's Office

88/555

Austin, father

6 February 1888

Registrar Marriages J. M. Maude

No	39
Date of Notice	6 February 1888
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Alfred Laurence Austin	Alice May Austin
BDM Match (72%)	Alfred Lawrence	Eliza May Austin
	💍 1888/688
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Printer
Age	22	17
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	5 years	10 years
Marriage Place	Registrar's Office
Folio	88/555
Consent	Austin, father
Date of Certificate	6 February 1888
Officiating Minister	Registrar Marriages J. M. Maude

6 February 1888

John Dillon
Lena Hogan

John Dillon
Lena Hogan
💍 1888/692

Bachelor
Spinster

Constable

34
21

Christchurch
Christchurch

4 years
2 months

Roman Catholic Church

88/537

6 February 1888

Rev. L. McQuaid, Roman Catholic

No	40
Date of Notice	6 February 1888
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Dillon	Lena Hogan
	💍 1888/692
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Constable
Age	34	21
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	4 years	2 months
Marriage Place	Roman Catholic Church
Folio	88/537
Consent
Date of Certificate	6 February 1888
Officiating Minister	Rev. L. McQuaid, Roman Catholic

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).