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 988

District of Nelson Quarter ending 30 September 1890 Registrar Robert Kitford

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 July 1890

Neil Dickson Hood
Anne Sarah Walsh

Neil Dickson Hood
Anne Sarah Walsh
💍 1890/2434

Bachelor
Spinster

Engineer
Nil

31
23

Franklyn Street, Nelson
Franklyn Street, Nelson

1 Week
1 Week

Presbyterian Church

90/2347

1 July 1890

Revd Patrick Calder, Presbyterian Church

No	25
Date of Notice	1 July 1890
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Neil Dickson Hood	Anne Sarah Walsh
	💍 1890/2434
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Engineer	Nil
Age	31	23
Dwelling Place	Franklyn Street, Nelson	Franklyn Street, Nelson
Length of Residence	1 Week	1 Week
Marriage Place	Presbyterian Church
Folio	90/2347
Consent
Date of Certificate	1 July 1890
Officiating Minister	Revd Patrick Calder, Presbyterian Church

14 July 1890

David Pattie
Edith Lane

David Pattie
Edith Lane
💍 1890/2435

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer
Nil

29
25

Trafalgar Street, Nelson
Manuka Street, Nelson

3 days
2 months

Residence of Mr. John Robertson Jnr., Trafalgar Street, Nelson

90/2348

14 July 1890

Revd Patrick Calder, Presbyterian Church

No	26
Date of Notice	14 July 1890
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	David Pattie	Edith Lane
	💍 1890/2435
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer	Nil
Age	29	25
Dwelling Place	Trafalgar Street, Nelson	Manuka Street, Nelson
Length of Residence	3 days	2 months
Marriage Place	Residence of Mr. John Robertson Jnr., Trafalgar Street, Nelson
Folio	90/2348
Consent
Date of Certificate	14 July 1890
Officiating Minister	Revd Patrick Calder, Presbyterian Church

1 August 1890

Ernest Alfred Sherwood
Isabella Scott

Ernest Alfred Sherwood
Isabella Scott
💍 1890/2530

Bachelor
Spinster

Storeman
Servant

24
24

Manuka Street, Nelson
Manuka Street, Nelson

24 years
5 years

Residence of Mr. A. Chalmers, Manuka Street, Nelson

90/2353

1 August 1890

Revd Francis Whitmore Isitt, Wesleyan Church

No	27
Date of Notice	1 August 1890
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Ernest Alfred Sherwood	Isabella Scott
	💍 1890/2530
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Storeman	Servant
Age	24	24
Dwelling Place	Manuka Street, Nelson	Manuka Street, Nelson
Length of Residence	24 years	5 years
Marriage Place	Residence of Mr. A. Chalmers, Manuka Street, Nelson
Folio	90/2353
Consent
Date of Certificate	1 August 1890
Officiating Minister	Revd Francis Whitmore Isitt, Wesleyan Church

18 August 1890

Richard Arnold
Jane Louisa Bringle Reeves

Richard Arnold
Jane Louisa Bringle Reeves
💍 1890/3386

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer
Nil

28
23

Motupiko
Collingwood Street, Nelson

2 months
2 Weeks

Residence of Mr. W. Reeves, Nelson

90/2356

18 August 1890

Revd William Joseph Mahoney, Roman Catholic Church

No	28
Date of Notice	18 August 1890
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Richard Arnold	Jane Louisa Bringle Reeves
	💍 1890/3386
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer	Nil
Age	28	23
Dwelling Place	Motupiko	Collingwood Street, Nelson
Length of Residence	2 months	2 Weeks
Marriage Place	Residence of Mr. W. Reeves, Nelson
Folio	90/2356
Consent
Date of Certificate	18 August 1890
Officiating Minister	Revd William Joseph Mahoney, Roman Catholic Church

20 August 1890

James Herbert Wells
Rose Martin

James Herbert Wells
Rose Martin
💍 1890/2531

Bachelor
Spinster

Carpenter
Servant

23
24

Russell Street, Nelson
Tasman Street, Nelson

23 years
6 years

Wesleyan Parsonage

90/2354

20 August 1890

Revd Francis Whitmore Isitt, Wesleyan Church

No	29
Date of Notice	20 August 1890
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	James Herbert Wells	Rose Martin
	💍 1890/2531
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Carpenter	Servant
Age	23	24
Dwelling Place	Russell Street, Nelson	Tasman Street, Nelson
Length of Residence	23 years	6 years
Marriage Place	Wesleyan Parsonage
Folio	90/2354
Consent
Date of Certificate	20 August 1890
Officiating Minister	Revd Francis Whitmore Isitt, Wesleyan Church

25 August 1890

Charles Edward Roper
Catherine Burns

Charles Edward Roper
Catherine Burns
💍 1890/2519

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer
Servant

22
23

Collingwood Street, Nelson
Trafalgar Street, Nelson

20 years
23 years

Presbyterian Church

90/2349

25 August 1890

Revd Patrick Calder, Presbyterian Church

No	30
Date of Notice	25 August 1890
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Charles Edward Roper	Catherine Burns
	💍 1890/2519
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer	Servant
Age	22	23
Dwelling Place	Collingwood Street, Nelson	Trafalgar Street, Nelson
Length of Residence	20 years	23 years
Marriage Place	Presbyterian Church
Folio	90/2349
Consent
Date of Certificate	25 August 1890
Officiating Minister	Revd Patrick Calder, Presbyterian Church

27 August 1890

William Score Saunders
Elizabeth Allport

William Score Sanders
Elizabeth Allpart
💍 1890/2532

Widower
Spinster

Bank Messenger
Nil

50
47

St Vincent Street, Nelson
Collingwood Street, Nelson

30 years
7 months

Residence of Reuben Bird, Collingwood Street, Nelson

90/2355

27 August 1890

Revd Francis Whitmore Isitt, Wesleyan Church

No	31
Date of Notice	27 August 1890
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Score Saunders	Elizabeth Allport
BDM Match (95%)	William Score Sanders	Elizabeth Allpart
	💍 1890/2532
Condition	Widower	Spinster
Profession	Bank Messenger	Nil
Age	50	47
Dwelling Place	St Vincent Street, Nelson	Collingwood Street, Nelson
Length of Residence	30 years	7 months
Marriage Place	Residence of Reuben Bird, Collingwood Street, Nelson
Folio	90/2355
Consent
Date of Certificate	27 August 1890
Officiating Minister	Revd Francis Whitmore Isitt, Wesleyan Church

6 September 1890

David Giblin
Mary Phoebe Taylor

David Giblin
Mary Phoebe Taylor
💍 1890/2529

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer
Nil

27
20

Stoke
Stoke

27 years
20 years

Holy Trinity Church

90/2352

James Taylor, father

6 September 1890

Revd William Henry Batler, Church of England

No	32
Date of Notice	6 September 1890
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	David Giblin	Mary Phoebe Taylor
	💍 1890/2529
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer	Nil
Age	27	20
Dwelling Place	Stoke	Stoke
Length of Residence	27 years	20 years
Marriage Place	Holy Trinity Church
Folio	90/2352
Consent	James Taylor, father
Date of Certificate	6 September 1890
Officiating Minister	Revd William Henry Batler, Church of England

12 September 1890

Ernest William Neumann
Caroline Dorothea Mary Kruse

Ernest William Neumann
Caroline Dorothea Mary Kruse
💍 1890/2533

Bachelor
Spinster

Sawyer
Nil

37
23

Richmond
Hope

1 Week
1 Month

Office of Registrar

90/2357

17 September 1890

Robert Kitford, Registrar

No	33
Date of Notice	12 September 1890
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Ernest William Neumann	Caroline Dorothea Mary Kruse
	💍 1890/2533
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Sawyer	Nil
Age	37	23
Dwelling Place	Richmond	Hope
Length of Residence	1 Week	1 Month
Marriage Place	Office of Registrar
Folio	90/2357
Consent
Date of Certificate	17 September 1890
Officiating Minister	Robert Kitford, Registrar

15 September 1890

Edgar Challies
Helen Drummond

Edgar Challis
Helen Drummond
💍 1890/2528

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer
Nil

35
32

Waimea West
Waimea West

35 years
1 year

Presbyterian Church

90/2351

15 September 1890

Revd Patrick Calder, Presbyterian Church

No	34
Date of Notice	15 September 1890
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Edgar Challies	Helen Drummond
BDM Match (96%)	Edgar Challis	Helen Drummond
	💍 1890/2528
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer	Nil
Age	35	32
Dwelling Place	Waimea West	Waimea West
Length of Residence	35 years	1 year
Marriage Place	Presbyterian Church
Folio	90/2351
Consent
Date of Certificate	15 September 1890
Officiating Minister	Revd Patrick Calder, Presbyterian Church

15 September 1890

Frederic William Scott
Susannah McCormack

Frederic William Cox
Susannah McCormack
💍 1890/2527

Bachelor
Spinster

Married
Nil

26
20

The Port, Nelson
Hardy Street, Nelson

3 months
20 years

Residence of Robert McCormack

90/2350

Robert McCormack, father

15 September 1890

Revd Patrick Calder, Presbyterian Church

No	35
Date of Notice	15 September 1890
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Frederic William Scott	Susannah McCormack
BDM Match (91%)	Frederic William Cox	Susannah McCormack
	💍 1890/2527
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Married	Nil
Age	26	20
Dwelling Place	The Port, Nelson	Hardy Street, Nelson
Length of Residence	3 months	20 years
Marriage Place	Residence of Robert McCormack
Folio	90/2350
Consent	Robert McCormack, father
Date of Certificate	15 September 1890
Officiating Minister	Revd Patrick Calder, Presbyterian Church

24 September 1890

John Lammas
Wilhelmina Sophia Elizabeth Busch

John Lammas
Wilhelmina Sophia Elizabeth Busch
💍 1890/2534

Widower
Widow

Blacksmith
Nil

51
37

Hope
Hope

1 month
12 years

Office of the Registrar

90/2358

24 September 1890

Robert Kitford, Registrar

No	36
Date of Notice	24 September 1890
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Lammas	Wilhelmina Sophia Elizabeth Busch
	💍 1890/2534
Condition	Widower	Widow
Profession	Blacksmith	Nil
Age	51	37
Dwelling Place	Hope	Hope
Length of Residence	1 month	12 years
Marriage Place	Office of the Registrar
Folio	90/2358
Consent
Date of Certificate	24 September 1890
Officiating Minister	Robert Kitford, Registrar

29 September 1890

Robert White
Sarah Challies

Robert White
Sarah Challies
💍 1890/3138

Bachelor
Spinster

Tobacconist
Nil

26
27

Bridge Street, Nelson
Appleby

12 years
27 years

Residence of Mrs. Sarah Challies

90/3314

29 September 1890

Revd Patrick Calder, Presbyterian Church

No	37
Date of Notice	29 September 1890
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Robert White	Sarah Challies
	💍 1890/3138
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Tobacconist	Nil
Age	26	27
Dwelling Place	Bridge Street, Nelson	Appleby
Length of Residence	12 years	27 years
Marriage Place	Residence of Mrs. Sarah Challies
Folio	90/3314
Consent
Date of Certificate	29 September 1890
Officiating Minister	Revd Patrick Calder, Presbyterian Church

29 September 1890

William Ashton Roughton
Hannah Eliza Fraser

William Ashton Roughton
Hannah Eliza Fraser
💍 1890/3127

Bachelor
Spinster

Grocer
Nil

28
21

Hardy Street, Nelson
Harley Street, Nelson

3 years
9 years

Office of the Registrar of Marriages, Nelson

90/3327

29 September 1890

Robert Kitford, Registrar

No	38
Date of Notice	29 September 1890
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Ashton Roughton	Hannah Eliza Fraser
	💍 1890/3127
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Grocer	Nil
Age	28	21
Dwelling Place	Hardy Street, Nelson	Harley Street, Nelson
Length of Residence	3 years	9 years
Marriage Place	Office of the Registrar of Marriages, Nelson
Folio	90/3327
Consent
Date of Certificate	29 September 1890
Officiating Minister	Robert Kitford, Registrar

29 September 1890

Arthur Harold Glasgow
Annie Gertrude Pitt

Arthur Harold Glasgow
Annie Gertrude Pitt
💍 1890/3123

Bachelor
Spinster

Bank Clerk
Nil

21
24

Hardy Street, Nelson
The Port, Nelson

11 years
11 years

Christchurch

90/3322

29 September 1890

Revd John Pratt Kempthorne, Church of England

No	39
Date of Notice	29 September 1890
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Arthur Harold Glasgow	Annie Gertrude Pitt
	💍 1890/3123
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Bank Clerk	Nil
Age	21	24
Dwelling Place	Hardy Street, Nelson	The Port, Nelson
Length of Residence	11 years	11 years
Marriage Place	Christchurch
Folio	90/3322
Consent
Date of Certificate	29 September 1890
Officiating Minister	Revd John Pratt Kempthorne, Church of England

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).