Intentions to Marry, 1890

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840402, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

Imaged by Luke at Archives NZ Wellington, May 23 2025

Page 232

District of Rangiora Quarter ending 31 March 1890 Registrar Andrew H. Lussinghall

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

605

4 January 1890

Charles George Rayner
Martha Ellen Miles

Charles George Rayner
Martha Ellen Miles
💍 1890/361

Bachelor
Spinster

Butcher
not any

25 years
19 years

Rangiora
Rangiora

8 months
19 years

Church of England

90/449

John Miles, Father

4 January 1890

Rev. W. E. Gillam

No	605
Date of Notice	4 January 1890
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Charles George Rayner	Martha Ellen Miles
	💍 1890/361
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Butcher	not any
Age	25 years	19 years
Dwelling Place	Rangiora	Rangiora
Length of Residence	8 months	19 years
Marriage Place	Church of England
Folio	90/449
Consent	John Miles, Father
Date of Certificate	4 January 1890
Officiating Minister	Rev. W. E. Gillam

606

7 January 1890

William Reeves, Junr.
Rachel Penticost

William Reeves
Rachel Pentecost
💍 1890/356

Bachelor
Spinster

Coach Builder
not any

21 years
21 years

Rangiora
Rangiora

3 years
21 years

At the residence of Mr. Philip Penticost, Rangiora

90/445

7 January 1890

Rev. Alfred Peters

No	606
Date of Notice	7 January 1890
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Reeves, Junr.	Rachel Penticost
BDM Match (80%)	William Reeves	Rachel Pentecost
	💍 1890/356
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Coach Builder	not any
Age	21 years	21 years
Dwelling Place	Rangiora	Rangiora
Length of Residence	3 years	21 years
Marriage Place	At the residence of Mr. Philip Penticost, Rangiora
Folio	90/445
Consent
Date of Certificate	7 January 1890
Officiating Minister	Rev. Alfred Peters

607

15 January 1890

Michael Doyle
Ruth Adams

Michael Doyle
Ruth Adams
💍 1890/353

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer
not any

25 years
19 years

Loburn
Ashley

20 years
16 years

Office of the Registrar, Rangiora

90/442

Robert Adams, Father

15 January 1890

No	607
Date of Notice	15 January 1890
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Michael Doyle	Ruth Adams
	💍 1890/353
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer	not any
Age	25 years	19 years
Dwelling Place	Loburn	Ashley
Length of Residence	20 years	16 years
Marriage Place	Office of the Registrar, Rangiora
Folio	90/442
Consent	Robert Adams, Father
Date of Certificate	15 January 1890
Officiating Minister

608

4 February 1890

Joseph Taylor
Caroline Smith

Joseph Taylor
Caroline Smith
💍 1890/354

Bachelor
Spinster

Lawyer
not any

24 years
21 years

Rangiora
Rangiora

4 days
21 years

Office of the Registrar, Rangiora

90/443

6 February 1890

No	608
Date of Notice	4 February 1890
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Joseph Taylor	Caroline Smith
	💍 1890/354
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Lawyer	not any
Age	24 years	21 years
Dwelling Place	Rangiora	Rangiora
Length of Residence	4 days	21 years
Marriage Place	Office of the Registrar, Rangiora
Folio	90/443
Consent
Date of Certificate	6 February 1890
Officiating Minister

609

10 February 1890

Frederick Woodsford
Ellen Florence Humphreys

Frederick Woodsford
Ellen Florence Humphreys
💍 1890/355

Bachelor
Spinster

Groom
not any

25 years
18 years

Rangiora
Rangiora

3 years
18 years

Office of the Registrar, Rangiora

90/444

Frank Humphreys, Father

11 February 1890

No	609
Date of Notice	10 February 1890
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Frederick Woodsford	Ellen Florence Humphreys
	💍 1890/355
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Groom	not any
Age	25 years	18 years
Dwelling Place	Rangiora	Rangiora
Length of Residence	3 years	18 years
Marriage Place	Office of the Registrar, Rangiora
Folio	90/444
Consent	Frank Humphreys, Father
Date of Certificate	11 February 1890
Officiating Minister

610

18 February 1890

John Briggs
Elizabeth Dawson

John Briggs
Elizabeth Dawson
💍 1890/3656

Bachelor

Farmer

26 years

Woodend - Rangiora
Rangiora

9 months

The Residence of Mr. George Dawson, Ohoka

90/441

18 February 1890

Rev. J. H. Gray

No	610
Date of Notice	18 February 1890
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Briggs	Elizabeth Dawson
	💍 1890/3656
Condition	Bachelor
Profession	Farmer
Age	26 years
Dwelling Place	Woodend - Rangiora	Rangiora
Length of Residence	9 months
Marriage Place	The Residence of Mr. George Dawson, Ohoka
Folio	90/441
Consent
Date of Certificate	18 February 1890
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. H. Gray

611

1 March 1890

Edgar Stannard Cole
Rebecca Ayres

Edgar Stannard Cole
Rebecca Ayres
💍 1890/360

Bachelor
Spinster

Blacksmith
Dressmaker

32 years
32 years

Woodend
Woodend

3 days
20 years

Wesleyan Church

90/448

1 March 1890

Rev. D. I. Murray

No	611
Date of Notice	1 March 1890
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Edgar Stannard Cole	Rebecca Ayres
	💍 1890/360
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Blacksmith	Dressmaker
Age	32 years	32 years
Dwelling Place	Woodend	Woodend
Length of Residence	3 days	20 years
Marriage Place	Wesleyan Church
Folio	90/448
Consent
Date of Certificate	1 March 1890
Officiating Minister	Rev. D. I. Murray

612

4 March 1890

James Theodore Ogden Withers
Alice Ogden

James Theodore Withers
Alice Ogden
💍 1890/357

Bachelor
Spinster

Storekeeper
not any

23 years
19 years

Southbrook - Rangiora
Rangiora

23 years
19 years

Free Methodist Church, Rangiora

90/446

Amos Ogden, Father

5 March 1890

Rev. Alfred Peters

No	612
Date of Notice	4 March 1890
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	James Theodore Ogden Withers	Alice Ogden
BDM Match (89%)	James Theodore Withers	Alice Ogden
	💍 1890/357
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Storekeeper	not any
Age	23 years	19 years
Dwelling Place	Southbrook - Rangiora	Rangiora
Length of Residence	23 years	19 years
Marriage Place	Free Methodist Church, Rangiora
Folio	90/446
Consent	Amos Ogden, Father
Date of Certificate	5 March 1890
Officiating Minister	Rev. Alfred Peters

613

25 March 1890

William Cone
Maria Walton

William Cone
Maria Walton
💍 1890/470

Widower

Farmer

50 years

Ashley Bank, Rangiora
Christchurch

20 years

Office of the Registrar, Christchurch

90/564

25 March 1890

Registrar of Births &c., Christchurch

No	613
Date of Notice	25 March 1890
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Cone	Maria Walton
	💍 1890/470
Condition	Widower
Profession	Farmer
Age	50 years
Dwelling Place	Ashley Bank, Rangiora	Christchurch
Length of Residence	20 years
Marriage Place	Office of the Registrar, Christchurch
Folio	90/564
Consent
Date of Certificate	25 March 1890
Officiating Minister	Registrar of Births &c., Christchurch

614

29 March 1890

Matthew James Sherwin
Margaret Hammon

Matthew James Sherwin
Margaret Hammon
💍 1890/358

Bachelor
Spinster

Storekeeper
not any

28 years
23 years

Rangiora
Rangiora

2 years
9 years

Free Methodist Church, Rangiora

90/447

29 March 1890

Rev. Alfred Peters

No	614
Date of Notice	29 March 1890
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Matthew James Sherwin	Margaret Hammon
	💍 1890/358
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Storekeeper	not any
Age	28 years	23 years
Dwelling Place	Rangiora	Rangiora
Length of Residence	2 years	9 years
Marriage Place	Free Methodist Church, Rangiora
Folio	90/447
Consent
Date of Certificate	29 March 1890
Officiating Minister	Rev. Alfred Peters

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).