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 272

District of Christchurch Quarter ending 31 March 1901 Registrar J. M. Macfarlane

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

141

16 March 1901

Robert John Mitchell
Elizabeth Maud Tarrant Forward

Robert John Mitchell
Elizabeth Tanant Forward
💍 1901/392

Bachelor
Spinster

Butcher
Bookbinder

25
20

Christchurch
Christchurch

16 years
20 years

House of Mrs. J. Cheevers, Creek St., Linwood

01/861

James Forward, Father

16 March 1901

Rev. J. Elmslie, Presbyterian

No	141
Date of Notice	16 March 1901
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Robert John Mitchell	Elizabeth Maud Tarrant Forward
BDM Match (88%)	Robert John Mitchell	Elizabeth Tanant Forward
	💍 1901/392
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Butcher	Bookbinder
Age	25	20
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	16 years	20 years
Marriage Place	House of Mrs. J. Cheevers, Creek St., Linwood
Folio	01/861
Consent	James Forward, Father
Date of Certificate	16 March 1901
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. Elmslie, Presbyterian

142

16 March 1901

Ernest G. Farrell
Elizabeth Wilhelmina Perrin

Ernest O'Farrell
Elizabeth Wilhelmina Perrin
💍 1901/391

Bachelor
Spinster

Bootmaker
Domestic

30
26

Christchurch
Christchurch

30 years
6 years

House of Mr. J. Armstrong, Colombo St., Christchurch

01/852

16 March 1901

Rev. J. Mackenzie, Presbyterian

No	142
Date of Notice	16 March 1901
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Ernest G. Farrell	Elizabeth Wilhelmina Perrin
BDM Match (91%)	Ernest O'Farrell	Elizabeth Wilhelmina Perrin
	💍 1901/391
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Bootmaker	Domestic
Age	30	26
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	30 years	6 years
Marriage Place	House of Mr. J. Armstrong, Colombo St., Christchurch
Folio	01/852
Consent
Date of Certificate	16 March 1901
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. Mackenzie, Presbyterian

143

19 March 1901

Arthur Cedric Gerard
Alice Evelyn Gristt

Arthur Cedric Gerard
Alice Evelyn Gillett
💍 1901/2137

Bachelor
Spinster

Horseman
Seamstress

30
27

Christchurch
Christchurch

27 years
25 years

Anglican Church, Sumner

01/847

19 March 1901

Rev. H. Gossert, Anglican

No	143
Date of Notice	19 March 1901
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Arthur Cedric Gerard	Alice Evelyn Gristt
BDM Match (90%)	Arthur Cedric Gerard	Alice Evelyn Gillett
	💍 1901/2137
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Horseman	Seamstress
Age	30	27
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	27 years	25 years
Marriage Place	Anglican Church, Sumner
Folio	01/847
Consent
Date of Certificate	19 March 1901
Officiating Minister	Rev. H. Gossert, Anglican

144

19 March 1901

Archibald Brown
Fanny Harriet Cheevers

Archibald Brown
Fanny Harriet Chesmar
💍 1901/531

Bachelor
Spinster

Draper

23
22

Christchurch
Christchurch

23 years
22 years

House of Mr. H. Cheevers, Prebbleton

01/954

19 March 1901

Rev. J. North, Baptist

No	144
Date of Notice	19 March 1901
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Archibald Brown	Fanny Harriet Cheevers
BDM Match (91%)	Archibald Brown	Fanny Harriet Chesmar
	💍 1901/531
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Draper
Age	23	22
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	23 years	22 years
Marriage Place	House of Mr. H. Cheevers, Prebbleton
Folio	01/954
Consent
Date of Certificate	19 March 1901
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. North, Baptist

145

19 March 1901

John O'Grady
Marguerite Alice Cooke

John O'Grady
Marguerita Alice Cooke
💍 1901/810

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer

23
17

Christchurch
Christchurch

23 years
17 years

Registrar's Office, Christchurch

01/842

Alice Louisa Cooke, Mother

19 March 1901

Registrar, J. J. Henderson

No	145
Date of Notice	19 March 1901
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John O'Grady	Marguerite Alice Cooke
BDM Match (98%)	John O'Grady	Marguerita Alice Cooke
	💍 1901/810
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer
Age	23	17
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	23 years	17 years
Marriage Place	Registrar's Office, Christchurch
Folio	01/842
Consent	Alice Louisa Cooke, Mother
Date of Certificate	19 March 1901
Officiating Minister	Registrar, J. J. Henderson

146

20 March 1901

John Haines Brown
Mary Honora Plummett

John Staines Atkinson
Mary Hodgkins Plunkett
💍 1901/394

Bachelor
Spinster

Dentist

31
52

Christchurch
Christchurch

6 years
10 years

House of Mr. J. Allinson, Latimer Square, Christchurch

01/863

20 March 1901

Rev. J. Elmslie, Presbyterian

No	146
Date of Notice	20 March 1901
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Haines Brown	Mary Honora Plummett
BDM Match (60%)	John Staines Atkinson	Mary Hodgkins Plunkett
	💍 1901/394
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Dentist
Age	31	52
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	6 years	10 years
Marriage Place	House of Mr. J. Allinson, Latimer Square, Christchurch
Folio	01/863
Consent
Date of Certificate	20 March 1901
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. Elmslie, Presbyterian

147

20 March 1901

Walter John Dangerfield
Alice Winifred Mitchener

Walter John Dangerfield
Alice Winifred Mitchenson
💍 1901/2152

Bachelor
Spinster

Painter

23
20

Christchurch
Christchurch

27 years
20 years

Holy Trinity Church, Avonside, Christchurch

01/888

Oliver Mitchener, Father

20 March 1901

Rev. W. A. Pascoe, Anglican

No	147
Date of Notice	20 March 1901
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Walter John Dangerfield	Alice Winifred Mitchener
BDM Match (94%)	Walter John Dangerfield	Alice Winifred Mitchenson
	💍 1901/2152
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Painter
Age	23	20
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	27 years	20 years
Marriage Place	Holy Trinity Church, Avonside, Christchurch
Folio	01/888
Consent	Oliver Mitchener, Father
Date of Certificate	20 March 1901
Officiating Minister	Rev. W. A. Pascoe, Anglican

These records have been automatically transcribed and must be verified using the page image (below)

100% Contrast

100% Brightness

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).