Intentions to Marry, 1901 South Island

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840420, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

Imaged by Carole at Archives NZ Wellington, September 22 2025

1901 is bound in two volumes, North Island districts and South Island districts.

Page 287

District of Christchurch Quarter ending 30 June 1901 Registrar J. M. Walker

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

240

26 April 1901

William Henry Burrall
Agnes Grant

Ivan Henry Burrell
Agnes Grant
💍 1901/3255

Bachelor
Spinster

Laborer
Domestic

19
24

Christchurch
Christchurch

3 weeks
2 years

House of Rev. J. R. Spensley, Lichfield Street, Christchurch

01/2790

Edward Burrall, Father

26 April 1901

Rev. J. R. Spensley, Presbyterian

No	240
Date of Notice	26 April 1901
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Henry Burrall	Agnes Grant
BDM Match (83%)	Ivan Henry Burrell	Agnes Grant
	💍 1901/3255
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Laborer	Domestic
Age	19	24
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	3 weeks	2 years
Marriage Place	House of Rev. J. R. Spensley, Lichfield Street, Christchurch
Folio	01/2790
Consent	Edward Burrall, Father
Date of Certificate	26 April 1901
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. R. Spensley, Presbyterian

241

27 April 1901

Leonard Aubrey Backer
May Claudia Jones

Leonard Aubrey Stringer
May Claudia Jones
💍 1901/2000

Bachelor
Spinster

Clerk
Domestic

34
24

Christchurch
Christchurch

30 years
3 days

St. Lukes Church, Christchurch

01/2828

27 April 1901

Rev. J. A. Lush, Anglican

No	241
Date of Notice	27 April 1901
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Leonard Aubrey Backer	May Claudia Jones
BDM Match (87%)	Leonard Aubrey Stringer	May Claudia Jones
	💍 1901/2000
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Clerk	Domestic
Age	34	24
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	30 years	3 days
Marriage Place	St. Lukes Church, Christchurch
Folio	01/2828
Consent
Date of Certificate	27 April 1901
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. A. Lush, Anglican

242

27 April 1901

John William Fuller
Edith Lilian Vose

John William Fuller
Edith Lilian Vose
💍 1901/2142

Bachelor
Spinster

Railway Employee
Domestic

34
20

Christchurch
Christchurch

10 years
20 years

St. Saviours Church, Sydenham

01/2451

Edward Mark Vose, Father

27 April 1901

Rev. J. A. Scott, Anglican

No	242
Date of Notice	27 April 1901
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John William Fuller	Edith Lilian Vose
	💍 1901/2142
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Railway Employee	Domestic
Age	34	20
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	10 years	20 years
Marriage Place	St. Saviours Church, Sydenham
Folio	01/2451
Consent	Edward Mark Vose, Father
Date of Certificate	27 April 1901
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. A. Scott, Anglican

243

30 April 1901

Maurice Emile Turrell
Margaret Augusta Winifred Beswick

Maurice Emil Furrell
Margaret Augusta Winifred Benwick
💍 1901/2144

Bachelor
Spinster

Dentist

29
30

Christchurch
Christchurch

30 years
12 years

St. Mary's Church, Merivale

01/2453

30 April 1901

Rev. H. A. Watson, Anglican

No	243
Date of Notice	30 April 1901
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Maurice Emile Turrell	Margaret Augusta Winifred Beswick
BDM Match (94%)	Maurice Emil Furrell	Margaret Augusta Winifred Benwick
	💍 1901/2144
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Dentist
Age	29	30
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	30 years	12 years
Marriage Place	St. Mary's Church, Merivale
Folio	01/2453
Consent
Date of Certificate	30 April 1901
Officiating Minister	Rev. H. A. Watson, Anglican

244

30 April 1901

Thomas Henry Gibson
Emma Maynell Spensley

Thomas Henry Gibson
Emma Meynell
💍 1901/2150

Bachelor
Spinster

Gardener
Domestic

22
18

Christchurch
Christchurch

9 months
1 year

St. Barnabas Church, Fendalton

01/2436

Robert Maynell, Father

30 April 1901

Rev. J. A. Hamilton, Anglican

No	244
Date of Notice	30 April 1901
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Thomas Henry Gibson	Emma Maynell Spensley
BDM Match (76%)	Thomas Henry Gibson	Emma Meynell
	💍 1901/2150
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Gardener	Domestic
Age	22	18
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	9 months	1 year
Marriage Place	St. Barnabas Church, Fendalton
Folio	01/2436
Consent	Robert Maynell, Father
Date of Certificate	30 April 1901
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. A. Hamilton, Anglican

245

30 April 1901

James Clifford Crutch
Kate Emma Wood

James Clifford Crutch
Kate Emma Wood
💍 1901/2171

Bachelor
Spinster

Fireman
Tailoress

22
21

Christchurch
Christchurch

10 months
1 year

House of Mrs. Robertson, Devon Street, Christchurch

01/2505

30 April 1901

Rev. W. Barnaby, Wesleyan

No	245
Date of Notice	30 April 1901
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	James Clifford Crutch	Kate Emma Wood
	💍 1901/2171
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Fireman	Tailoress
Age	22	21
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	10 months	1 year
Marriage Place	House of Mrs. Robertson, Devon Street, Christchurch
Folio	01/2505
Consent
Date of Certificate	30 April 1901
Officiating Minister	Rev. W. Barnaby, Wesleyan

246

30 April 1901

Herbert Washer Gilling
Jane Faithorn Theresa

Herbert Washer Gilling
Janie Trethowan Trerise
💍 1901/2198

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer

30
28

Christchurch
Christchurch

3 days
25 years

House of Mr. Theresa, Victoria Street, Woolston

01/2534

30 April 1901

Rev. F. J. Jones, Wesleyan

No	246
Date of Notice	30 April 1901
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Herbert Washer Gilling	Jane Faithorn Theresa
BDM Match (80%)	Herbert Washer Gilling	Janie Trethowan Trerise
	💍 1901/2198
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer
Age	30	28
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	3 days	25 years
Marriage Place	House of Mr. Theresa, Victoria Street, Woolston
Folio	01/2534
Consent
Date of Certificate	30 April 1901
Officiating Minister	Rev. F. J. Jones, Wesleyan

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).