Intentions to Marry, 1897 January-June

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840411, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

Imaged by Luke at Archives NZ Wellington, June 25 2025

1897 is bound in two volumes, January-June and July-December.

Page 233

District of Wellington Quarter ending 31 March 1897 Registrar W. Y. 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

Unnumbered

29 March 1897

Edward James Rouse
Rachel Wright

Edward James Rouse
Rachel Wright
💍 1897/3910

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer

22
19

Petone
Lower Hutt

years
years

Registrars Office, Wellington

97/506

Jessie Wright, Lower Hutt

29 March 1897

W. Y. Wyatt

No	Unnumbered
Date of Notice	29 March 1897
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Edward James Rouse	Rachel Wright
	💍 1897/3910
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer
Age	22	19
Dwelling Place	Petone	Lower Hutt
Length of Residence	years	years
Marriage Place	Registrars Office, Wellington
Folio	97/506
Consent	Jessie Wright, Lower Hutt
Date of Certificate	29 March 1897
Officiating Minister	W. Y. Wyatt

15 March 1897

Vernon Lapman Willeston
Jessie Mary Stewart

Vernon Lipman Willeston
Jessie Mary Stewart
💍 1897/1900

Bachelor
Widow

Civil Servant

30
27

Wellington
Wellington

years
years

House of Messrs Davis, Sydney St. Wellington

97/3095

15 March 1897

Rev. C. S. Ogg

No	95
Date of Notice	15 March 1897
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Vernon Lapman Willeston	Jessie Mary Stewart
BDM Match (98%)	Vernon Lipman Willeston	Jessie Mary Stewart
	💍 1897/1900
Condition	Bachelor	Widow
Profession	Civil Servant
Age	30	27
Dwelling Place	Wellington	Wellington
Length of Residence	years	years
Marriage Place	House of Messrs Davis, Sydney St. Wellington
Folio	97/3095
Consent
Date of Certificate	15 March 1897
Officiating Minister	Rev. C. S. Ogg

18 March 1897

Ethelbert Cecil Davidson
Ruth Elizabeth Playle

Ethelbert Cecil Davidson
Ruth Elizabeth Playle
💍 1897/3923

Bachelor
Spinster

Tram Driver

23
26

Wellington
Wellington

years
years

Wesleyan Church, Taranaki St. Wellington

97/526

18 March 1897

Rev. H. Baumber

No	96
Date of Notice	18 March 1897
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Ethelbert Cecil Davidson	Ruth Elizabeth Playle
	💍 1897/3923
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Tram Driver
Age	23	26
Dwelling Place	Wellington	Wellington
Length of Residence	years	years
Marriage Place	Wesleyan Church, Taranaki St. Wellington
Folio	97/526
Consent
Date of Certificate	18 March 1897
Officiating Minister	Rev. H. Baumber

23 March 1897

Albert Francis Tonks
Elizabeth Bowman Duff

Albert Francis Tonks
Elizabeth Bowman Duff
💍 1897/766

Bachelor
Spinster

Moller

22
25

Wellington
Wellington

years
years

Wesleyan Church, Taranaki St. Wellington

97/1767

23 March 1897

Rev. W. Baumber

No	97
Date of Notice	23 March 1897
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Albert Francis Tonks	Elizabeth Bowman Duff
	💍 1897/766
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Moller
Age	22	25
Dwelling Place	Wellington	Wellington
Length of Residence	years	years
Marriage Place	Wesleyan Church, Taranaki St. Wellington
Folio	97/1767
Consent
Date of Certificate	23 March 1897
Officiating Minister	Rev. W. Baumber

23 March 1897

William Harris
Catherine Alexander

William Harris
Catherine Alexander
💍 1897/351

William Hamilton
Ethel Patience Alexander
💍 1898/554

Bachelor
Spinster

Currier

28
23

Kawarra
Khandallah

years
1 month

House of Mrs Harris, Khandallah

97/586

23 March 1897

Rev. Henry Brown Burnett

No	98
Date of Notice	23 March 1897
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Harris	Catherine Alexander
	💍 1897/351
BDM Match (63%)	William Hamilton	Ethel Patience Alexander
	💍 1898/554
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Currier
Age	28	23
Dwelling Place	Kawarra	Khandallah
Length of Residence	years	1 month
Marriage Place	House of Mrs Harris, Khandallah
Folio	97/586
Consent
Date of Certificate	23 March 1897
Officiating Minister	Rev. Henry Brown Burnett

23 March 1897

Wilhelm Theodore Almquist
Eleanor Hunter Hill

Wilhelm Theodore Almquist
Eleanor Hunter Hill
💍 1897/3670

Bachelor
Spinster

Dyer

45
21

Wellington
Wellington

11 months
11 months

House of Mrs Davy, Courtney Place Wellington

97/569

23 March 1897

Rev. H. B. Redstone

No	99
Date of Notice	23 March 1897
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Wilhelm Theodore Almquist	Eleanor Hunter Hill
	💍 1897/3670
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Dyer
Age	45	21
Dwelling Place	Wellington	Wellington
Length of Residence	11 months	11 months
Marriage Place	House of Mrs Davy, Courtney Place Wellington
Folio	97/569
Consent
Date of Certificate	23 March 1897
Officiating Minister	Rev. H. B. Redstone

100

24 March 1897

Robert Henry Teague
Mary Edith Eberhart

Robert Henry Teague
Mary Edith Aberhart
💍 1897/4303

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer

30
25

Wellington
Wellington

years
years

Salvation Army Barracks, Vivian St. Wellington

97/577

24 March 1897

Mr. Edwards, Staff Capt.

No	100
Date of Notice	24 March 1897
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Robert Henry Teague	Mary Edith Eberhart
BDM Match (97%)	Robert Henry Teague	Mary Edith Aberhart
	💍 1897/4303
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer
Age	30	25
Dwelling Place	Wellington	Wellington
Length of Residence	years	years
Marriage Place	Salvation Army Barracks, Vivian St. Wellington
Folio	97/577
Consent
Date of Certificate	24 March 1897
Officiating Minister	Mr. Edwards, Staff Capt.

101

29 March 1897

Albert John Clegg
Agnes Barbara McNeil

Albert John Clegg
Agnes Barbara McNeil
💍 1897/3924

Bachelor
Spinster

Telegraphist

25
25

Wellington
Wellington

3 days
1 year

Wesleyan Church, Taranaki St. Wellington

97/527

29 March 1897

Rev. H. Baumber

No	101
Date of Notice	29 March 1897
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Albert John Clegg	Agnes Barbara McNeil
	💍 1897/3924
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Telegraphist
Age	25	25
Dwelling Place	Wellington	Wellington
Length of Residence	3 days	1 year
Marriage Place	Wesleyan Church, Taranaki St. Wellington
Folio	97/527
Consent
Date of Certificate	29 March 1897
Officiating Minister	Rev. H. Baumber

102

29 March 1897

Henry Edward Marchant
Henrietta Laura Freeman

Henry Edward Marchant
Henrietta Laura Freeman
💍 1897/810

Bachelor
Spinster

Commercial Traveller

26
21

Wellington
Wellington

years
years

St. Peters Church, Wellington

97/1814

29 March 1897

Rev. W. C. Waters

No	102
Date of Notice	29 March 1897
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Henry Edward Marchant	Henrietta Laura Freeman
	💍 1897/810
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Commercial Traveller
Age	26	21
Dwelling Place	Wellington	Wellington
Length of Residence	years	years
Marriage Place	St. Peters Church, Wellington
Folio	97/1814
Consent
Date of Certificate	29 March 1897
Officiating Minister	Rev. W. C. Waters

103

29 March 1897

James Edward Wild
Lucy Gertrude Walsh

James Edward Wild
Lily Gertrude Walsh
💍 1897/3925

Bachelor
Spinster

Barman

27
21

Wellington
Wellington

years
years

House of Mrs Stevens, Alpha St. Wellington

97/528

29 March 1897

Rev. H. Baumber

No	103
Date of Notice	29 March 1897
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	James Edward Wild	Lucy Gertrude Walsh
BDM Match (95%)	James Edward Wild	Lily Gertrude Walsh
	💍 1897/3925
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Barman
Age	27	21
Dwelling Place	Wellington	Wellington
Length of Residence	years	years
Marriage Place	House of Mrs Stevens, Alpha St. Wellington
Folio	97/528
Consent
Date of Certificate	29 March 1897
Officiating Minister	Rev. H. Baumber

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).