Intentions to Marry, 1898 January-June

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840413, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

Imaged by Luke at Archives NZ Wellington, June 27 2025

1898 is bound in two volumes, January-June and July-December.

Page 814

District of Christchurch Quarter ending 30 June 1898 Registrar M. Parkerson

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

181

19 April 1898

Ernest May Simpson
Emily Margaret Ferguson

Ernest May Simpson
Emily Margaret Mary Ferguson
💍 1898/1727

Bachelor
Spinster

Striker

30
22

Christchurch
Christchurch

25 Years
11 Years

Registrar's Office

98/1948

19 April 1898

Registrar, M. Parkerson

No	181
Date of Notice	19 April 1898
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Ernest May Simpson	Emily Margaret Ferguson
BDM Match (91%)	Ernest May Simpson	Emily Margaret Mary Ferguson
	💍 1898/1727
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Striker
Age	30	22
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	25 Years	11 Years
Marriage Place	Registrar's Office
Folio	98/1948
Consent
Date of Certificate	19 April 1898
Officiating Minister	Registrar, M. Parkerson

182

20 April 1898

Francis Bean
Agnes Smith

Francis Dean
Agnes Smith
💍 1898/2720

Francis Martin
Margaret Smith
💍 1899/1557

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer
Domestic

29
20

Christchurch
Spreydon

20 Years
20 Years

House of Henry Glover, Spreydon

98/2046

Thomas Smith, Father

20 April 1898

Rev. R.J. North, Baptist

No	182
Date of Notice	20 April 1898
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Francis Bean	Agnes Smith
BDM Match (96%)	Francis Dean	Agnes Smith
	💍 1898/2720
BDM Match (61%)	Francis Martin	Margaret Smith
	💍 1899/1557
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer	Domestic
Age	29	20
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Spreydon
Length of Residence	20 Years	20 Years
Marriage Place	House of Henry Glover, Spreydon
Folio	98/2046
Consent	Thomas Smith, Father
Date of Certificate	20 April 1898
Officiating Minister	Rev. R.J. North, Baptist

183

20 April 1898

William Cox
Bertha Mary Seed

William Cox
Bertha Mary Seed
💍 1898/1726

Bachelor
Spinster

Groom

26
22

Christchurch
Christchurch

10 Years
10 Years

Registrar's Office, Christchurch

98/1949

20 April 1898

Registrar, M. Parkerson

No	183
Date of Notice	20 April 1898
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Cox	Bertha Mary Seed
	💍 1898/1726
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Groom
Age	26	22
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	10 Years	10 Years
Marriage Place	Registrar's Office, Christchurch
Folio	98/1949
Consent
Date of Certificate	20 April 1898
Officiating Minister	Registrar, M. Parkerson

184

20 April 1898

David Clapham Hiskens
Lily Musker

David Clapham Hiskens
Lily Musker
💍 1898/2241

Bachelor
Spinster

Railway Employee

26
28

Linwood
Opawa

2 Years
5 Years

House of Mr. R. Malcolm, Opawa

98/2523

20 April 1898

Rev. F.W. Isitt, Wesleyan

No	184
Date of Notice	20 April 1898
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	David Clapham Hiskens	Lily Musker
	💍 1898/2241
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Railway Employee
Age	26	28
Dwelling Place	Linwood	Opawa
Length of Residence	2 Years	5 Years
Marriage Place	House of Mr. R. Malcolm, Opawa
Folio	98/2523
Consent
Date of Certificate	20 April 1898
Officiating Minister	Rev. F.W. Isitt, Wesleyan

185

20 April 1898

Albert William Beaumont
Beatrice Maud James

Albert William Beaumont
Beatrice Maud James
💍 1898/2242

Widower
Spinster

Confectioner
Domestic

34
22

Christchurch
Christchurch

14 Years
5 Years

House of Mr. A.W. Beaumont, Colombo Street, Christchurch

98/2524

20 April 1898

Rev. F.W. Isitt, Wesleyan

No	185
Date of Notice	20 April 1898
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Albert William Beaumont	Beatrice Maud James
	💍 1898/2242
Condition	Widower	Spinster
Profession	Confectioner	Domestic
Age	34	22
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	14 Years	5 Years
Marriage Place	House of Mr. A.W. Beaumont, Colombo Street, Christchurch
Folio	98/2524
Consent
Date of Certificate	20 April 1898
Officiating Minister	Rev. F.W. Isitt, Wesleyan

186

21 April 1898

George William Howe
Frances Jane Waghorn

George William Howe
Frances Jane Waghorn
💍 1898/1777

Bachelor
Spinster

Mill Tester
Dressmaker

34
24

Christchurch
Christchurch

28 Years
13 Years

House of Mr. G.W. Howe, Colombo Street, St. Albans

98/1999

21 April 1898

Rev. T.H. Lyon, Methodist

No	186
Date of Notice	21 April 1898
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	George William Howe	Frances Jane Waghorn
	💍 1898/1777
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Mill Tester	Dressmaker
Age	34	24
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	28 Years	13 Years
Marriage Place	House of Mr. G.W. Howe, Colombo Street, St. Albans
Folio	98/1999
Consent
Date of Certificate	21 April 1898
Officiating Minister	Rev. T.H. Lyon, Methodist

187

23 April 1898

Albert Edwin Spicer
Edith Amelia Cummins

Albert Edwin Spicer
Edith Emelica Cummins
💍 1898/2246

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer

22
19

Christchurch
Christchurch

22 Years
19 Years

St. Matthew's Church, Christchurch

98/2529

William Henry Cummins, Father

23 April 1898

Rev. H. Williams, Church of England

No	187
Date of Notice	23 April 1898
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Albert Edwin Spicer	Edith Amelia Cummins
BDM Match (95%)	Albert Edwin Spicer	Edith Emelica Cummins
	💍 1898/2246
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer
Age	22	19
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	22 Years	19 Years
Marriage Place	St. Matthew's Church, Christchurch
Folio	98/2529
Consent	William Henry Cummins, Father
Date of Certificate	23 April 1898
Officiating Minister	Rev. H. Williams, Church of England

188

25 April 1898

James Fraser
Jessie Barclay

James Fraser
Jessie Barclay
💍 1898/1779

Widower
Spinster

Storekeeper

38
41

Rotherham
Christchurch

10 Years
1 Week

House of Mr. W.E. Harper, Sydenham, Rotherham

98/2025

25 April 1898

Rev. Scott Allan, Presbyterian

No	188
Date of Notice	25 April 1898
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	James Fraser	Jessie Barclay
	💍 1898/1779
Condition	Widower	Spinster
Profession	Storekeeper
Age	38	41
Dwelling Place	Rotherham	Christchurch
Length of Residence	10 Years	1 Week
Marriage Place	House of Mr. W.E. Harper, Sydenham, Rotherham
Folio	98/2025
Consent
Date of Certificate	25 April 1898
Officiating Minister	Rev. Scott Allan, Presbyterian

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).