Intentions to Marry, 1898 July-December

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840414, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

Imaged by Carole at Archives NZ Wellington, June 27 2025

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

Page 704

District of Wellington Quarter ending 31 December 1898 Registrar Frederick William Mansfield

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

386

21 October 1898

William Thomson Johnston
Marian Price

William Thomson Johnston
Marian Price
💍 1898/4785

Bachelor
Divorced (decree made absolute 3 February 1888)

Labourer

30
36

Wellington
Wellington

4 years 6 months
20 years

Presbyterian Church, Wellington

98/4273

25 October 1898

Rev. J. R. Elliott

No	386
Date of Notice	21 October 1898
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Thomson Johnston	Marian Price
	💍 1898/4785
Condition	Bachelor	Divorced (decree made absolute 3 February 1888)
Profession	Labourer
Age	30	36
Dwelling Place	Wellington	Wellington
Length of Residence	4 years 6 months	20 years
Marriage Place	Presbyterian Church, Wellington
Folio	98/4273
Consent
Date of Certificate	25 October 1898
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. R. Elliott

387

22 October 1898

John Hughes
Mary Ann Douglas

John Hughes
Mary Ann Douglas
💍 1898/3320

Edward Charles Holmes
Mary Ann Douglas
💍 1898/865

Bachelor
Spinster

Machinist

36
32

Wellington
Wellington

36 years
32 years

Registrar's Office, Wellington

98/4257

22 October 1898

F. W. Mansfield, Registrar

No	387
Date of Notice	22 October 1898
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Hughes	Mary Ann Douglas
	💍 1898/3320
BDM Match (62%)	Edward Charles Holmes	Mary Ann Douglas
	💍 1898/865
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Machinist
Age	36	32
Dwelling Place	Wellington	Wellington
Length of Residence	36 years	32 years
Marriage Place	Registrar's Office, Wellington
Folio	98/4257
Consent
Date of Certificate	22 October 1898
Officiating Minister	F. W. Mansfield, Registrar

388

22 October 1898

Ernest Tweed Barthorp
Ellen May Mowbray

Ernest Tweed Barthorp
Ellen May Mowbray
💍 1898/4565

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer

22
26

Pahiatua
Lower Hutt

6 months
10 years

St. James Church, Lower Hutt

98/4335

22 October 1898

Rev. Joshua Jones

No	388
Date of Notice	22 October 1898
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Ernest Tweed Barthorp	Ellen May Mowbray
	💍 1898/4565
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer
Age	22	26
Dwelling Place	Pahiatua	Lower Hutt
Length of Residence	6 months	10 years
Marriage Place	St. James Church, Lower Hutt
Folio	98/4335
Consent
Date of Certificate	22 October 1898
Officiating Minister	Rev. Joshua Jones

389

24 October 1898

John Fitzgerald
Katherine Horgan

John Fitzgerald
Catherine Horgan
💍 1898/4583

Bachelor
Spinster

Bricklayer

30
21

Lower Hutt
Wellington

6 months
4 years

St. Mary's of the Angels Church, Wellington

98/4329

24 October 1898

Rev. Thos. Delany

No	389
Date of Notice	24 October 1898
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Fitzgerald	Katherine Horgan
BDM Match (97%)	John Fitzgerald	Catherine Horgan
	💍 1898/4583
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Bricklayer
Age	30	21
Dwelling Place	Lower Hutt	Wellington
Length of Residence	6 months	4 years
Marriage Place	St. Mary's of the Angels Church, Wellington
Folio	98/4329
Consent
Date of Certificate	24 October 1898
Officiating Minister	Rev. Thos. Delany

390

25 October 1898

George Parker Burns
Lucy Jane Campbell

George Parkes Burns
Lucy Annie Campbell
💍 1898/4789

Bachelor
Spinster

Laundyman

27
27

Wellington
Wellington

5 years
13 years

St. John's Church, Wellington

98/4286

25 October 1898

Rev. Jas. Paterson

No	390
Date of Notice	25 October 1898
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	George Parker Burns	Lucy Jane Campbell
BDM Match (89%)	George Parkes Burns	Lucy Annie Campbell
	💍 1898/4789
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Laundyman
Age	27	27
Dwelling Place	Wellington	Wellington
Length of Residence	5 years	13 years
Marriage Place	St. John's Church, Wellington
Folio	98/4286
Consent
Date of Certificate	25 October 1898
Officiating Minister	Rev. Jas. Paterson

391

25 October 1898

Francis Julius
Emily May Morgan

Francis Juluis
Emily May Morgan
💍 1898/4566

Bachelor
Spinster

Carder

27
19

Johnsonville
Johnsonville

1 year
7 years

Residence of Mrs. Johnson, Johnsonville

98/4338

Catherine Morgan, Mother

25 October 1898

Rev. Thos. J. Jones

No	391
Date of Notice	25 October 1898
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Francis Julius	Emily May Morgan
BDM Match (93%)	Francis Juluis	Emily May Morgan
	💍 1898/4566
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Carder
Age	27	19
Dwelling Place	Johnsonville	Johnsonville
Length of Residence	1 year	7 years
Marriage Place	Residence of Mrs. Johnson, Johnsonville
Folio	98/4338
Consent	Catherine Morgan, Mother
Date of Certificate	25 October 1898
Officiating Minister	Rev. Thos. J. Jones

392

26 October 1898

James Chapman
Clara Young

James Chapman
Clara Young
💍 1898/4796

Bachelor
Spinster

Painter

27
23

Wellington
Wellington

4 years
23 years

Presbyterian Church, Wellington

98/4274

26 October 1898

Rev. J. K. Elliott

No	392
Date of Notice	26 October 1898
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	James Chapman	Clara Young
	💍 1898/4796
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Painter
Age	27	23
Dwelling Place	Wellington	Wellington
Length of Residence	4 years	23 years
Marriage Place	Presbyterian Church, Wellington
Folio	98/4274
Consent
Date of Certificate	26 October 1898
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. K. Elliott

393

27 October 1898

Peter Anderson
Margaret Simpson

Peter Anderson
Margaret Simpson McNaught
💍 1898/4788

Bachelor
Spinster

Blacksmith

29
28

Wellington
Oamaru

8 days
24 years

St. John's Church, Melcombe Street, Wellington

98/4285

27 October 1898

Rev. James Paterson

No	393
Date of Notice	27 October 1898
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Peter Anderson	Margaret Simpson
BDM Match (82%)	Peter Anderson	Margaret Simpson McNaught
	💍 1898/4788
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Blacksmith
Age	29	28
Dwelling Place	Wellington	Oamaru
Length of Residence	8 days	24 years
Marriage Place	St. John's Church, Melcombe Street, Wellington
Folio	98/4285
Consent
Date of Certificate	27 October 1898
Officiating Minister	Rev. James Paterson

394

27 October 1898

Frederick Walter Taber
Emily Jane Palmer

Fletcher Walter Haber
Emily Jane Palmer
💍 1898/4560

Bachelor
Spinster

Clerk

23
22

Wellington
Wellington

7 years
22 years

Residence of Mr. Charles Palmer, Hall Street, Wellington

98/4305

27 October 1898

Rev. W. Shirer

No	394
Date of Notice	27 October 1898
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Frederick Walter Taber	Emily Jane Palmer
BDM Match (82%)	Fletcher Walter Haber	Emily Jane Palmer
	💍 1898/4560
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Clerk
Age	23	22
Dwelling Place	Wellington	Wellington
Length of Residence	7 years	22 years
Marriage Place	Residence of Mr. Charles Palmer, Hall Street, Wellington
Folio	98/4305
Consent
Date of Certificate	27 October 1898
Officiating Minister	Rev. W. Shirer

395

28 October 1898

Charles Kent Andrews
Margaret Ellery Spiller

Charles Raut Andrews
Margaret Mary Spiller
💍 1898/4798

Bachelor
Spinster

Clerk

23
21

Wellington
Wellington

7 years
21 years

St. Peter's Church, Wellington

98/4295

28 October 1898

Rev. W. C. Waters

No	395
Date of Notice	28 October 1898
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Charles Kent Andrews	Margaret Ellery Spiller
BDM Match (84%)	Charles Raut Andrews	Margaret Mary Spiller
	💍 1898/4798
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Clerk
Age	23	21
Dwelling Place	Wellington	Wellington
Length of Residence	7 years	21 years
Marriage Place	St. Peter's Church, Wellington
Folio	98/4295
Consent
Date of Certificate	28 October 1898
Officiating Minister	Rev. W. C. Waters

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).