Intentions to Marry, 1892

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840404, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

Imaged by Luke at Archives NZ Wellington, May 28 2025

Page 1339

District of Lyttelton Quarter ending 31 March 1892 Registrar William Shaughnessy

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

4 January 1892

James Hendry
Ellen Patheaithley

James Hendry
Ellen Pitcaithly
💍 1892/49

Bachelor
Spinster

Inspector of Schools
School teacher

32
25

Invercargill but now Lyttelton
Lyttelton

4 days
10 years

House of Mr William W. Pitcaithly

92/639

4 January 1892

Rev. H. Mackenzie, Presbyterian minister

No	1
Date of Notice	4 January 1892
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	James Hendry	Ellen Patheaithley
BDM Match (89%)	James Hendry	Ellen Pitcaithly
	💍 1892/49
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Inspector of Schools	School teacher
Age	32	25
Dwelling Place	Invercargill but now Lyttelton	Lyttelton
Length of Residence	4 days	10 years
Marriage Place	House of Mr William W. Pitcaithly
Folio	92/639
Consent
Date of Certificate	4 January 1892
Officiating Minister	Rev. H. Mackenzie, Presbyterian minister

4 January 1892

Thomas Ford
Susannah Sellars

Thomas Ford
Susan Sellers
💍 1892/619

Bachelor
Spinster

Farm Labourer

33
23

Lyttelton
Lyttelton

5 days
5 days

St. Joseph's Roman Catholic Church, Lyttelton

92/636

4 January 1892

Rev. Fr. Laverty, Roman Catholic Minister

No	2
Date of Notice	4 January 1892
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Thomas Ford	Susannah Sellars
BDM Match (88%)	Thomas Ford	Susan Sellers
	💍 1892/619
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farm Labourer
Age	33	23
Dwelling Place	Lyttelton	Lyttelton
Length of Residence	5 days	5 days
Marriage Place	St. Joseph's Roman Catholic Church, Lyttelton
Folio	92/636
Consent
Date of Certificate	4 January 1892
Officiating Minister	Rev. Fr. Laverty, Roman Catholic Minister

10 February 1892

George William Arthur Couch
Catherine Piper

Bachelor
Spinster

Store Keeper

28
24

Lyttelton
Rapaki

6 years
6 months

Wesleyan Church, Rapaki

92/4013

10 February 1892

Rev. Le Kote, Wesleyan Minister

No	3
Date of Notice	10 February 1892
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	George William Arthur Couch	Catherine Piper
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Store Keeper
Age	28	24
Dwelling Place	Lyttelton	Rapaki
Length of Residence	6 years	6 months
Marriage Place	Wesleyan Church, Rapaki
Folio	92/4013
Consent
Date of Certificate	10 February 1892
Officiating Minister	Rev. Le Kote, Wesleyan Minister

12 February 1892

Frederick Joseph Page
Catherine Loutitt

Frederick Joseph Page
Catherine Loutitt
💍 1892/50

Bachelor
Spinster

Butcher

24
23

Lyttelton
Lyttelton

9 years
23 years

House of Peter Loutitt, Briddle Path, Lyttelton

92/640

12 February 1892

Rev. H. Mackenzie, Presbyterian Minister

No	4
Date of Notice	12 February 1892
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Frederick Joseph Page	Catherine Loutitt
	💍 1892/50
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Butcher
Age	24	23
Dwelling Place	Lyttelton	Lyttelton
Length of Residence	9 years	23 years
Marriage Place	House of Peter Loutitt, Briddle Path, Lyttelton
Folio	92/640
Consent
Date of Certificate	12 February 1892
Officiating Minister	Rev. H. Mackenzie, Presbyterian Minister

20 February 1892

John Rathbone Bond
Gabrielle Charlotte de Longueville Graham

John Rathbone Bond
Gabriella Charlotte di Longueville Graham
💍 1892/620

Bachelor
Spinster

Caterer

26
22

Steamship Rangitira, Lyttelton
Lyttelton

3 days
6 months

St. Saviour's Anglican Church, Lyttelton

92/637

20 February 1892

Rev. E. E. Chambers, Anglican Minister

No	5
Date of Notice	20 February 1892
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Rathbone Bond	Gabrielle Charlotte de Longueville Graham
BDM Match (98%)	John Rathbone Bond	Gabriella Charlotte di Longueville Graham
	💍 1892/620
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Caterer
Age	26	22
Dwelling Place	Steamship Rangitira, Lyttelton	Lyttelton
Length of Residence	3 days	6 months
Marriage Place	St. Saviour's Anglican Church, Lyttelton
Folio	92/637
Consent
Date of Certificate	20 February 1892
Officiating Minister	Rev. E. E. Chambers, Anglican Minister

23 February 1892

George Butler
Elizabeth Payne
formerly Tyman

George Butler
Elizabeth Payne
💍 1892/51

Widower
Widow

Farmer

62
39

Getties Valley
Lyttelton

30 years
7 years

House of Elizabeth Payne, St. David Street, Lyttelton

92/641

23 February 1892

Rev. H. Mackenzie, Presbyterian Minister

No	6
Date of Notice	23 February 1892
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	George Butler	Elizabeth Payne formerly Tyman
	💍 1892/51
Condition	Widower	Widow
Profession	Farmer
Age	62	39
Dwelling Place	Getties Valley	Lyttelton
Length of Residence	30 years	7 years
Marriage Place	House of Elizabeth Payne, St. David Street, Lyttelton
Folio	92/641
Consent
Date of Certificate	23 February 1892
Officiating Minister	Rev. H. Mackenzie, Presbyterian Minister

24 February 1892

Teveti Manihera
Makareta Paipa

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer

33
22

Rapaki
Rapaki

16 years
22 years

Wesleyan Church, Rapaki

92/4012

24 February 1892

Rev. Le Kote, Wesleyan Minister

No	7
Date of Notice	24 February 1892
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Teveti Manihera	Makareta Paipa
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer
Age	33	22
Dwelling Place	Rapaki	Rapaki
Length of Residence	16 years	22 years
Marriage Place	Wesleyan Church, Rapaki
Folio	92/4012
Consent
Date of Certificate	24 February 1892
Officiating Minister	Rev. Le Kote, Wesleyan Minister

4 March 1892

Albert John Mason
Maud Emily Bradford

Albert John Mason
Maude Emily Bradford
💍 1892/578

Bachelor
Spinster

Shunter

21
19

Lyttelton
Christchurch

14 months
12 years

House of James Henry Bradford, Chester Street, Christchurch

92/587

James Henry Bradford, Father

4 March 1892

Rev. W. S. Potter, Primitive Methodist Minister

No	8
Date of Notice	4 March 1892
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Albert John Mason	Maud Emily Bradford
BDM Match (98%)	Albert John Mason	Maude Emily Bradford
	💍 1892/578
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Shunter
Age	21	19
Dwelling Place	Lyttelton	Christchurch
Length of Residence	14 months	12 years
Marriage Place	House of James Henry Bradford, Chester Street, Christchurch
Folio	92/587
Consent	James Henry Bradford, Father
Date of Certificate	4 March 1892
Officiating Minister	Rev. W. S. Potter, Primitive Methodist Minister

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).