Intentions to Marry, 1902 South Island

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840422, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

Imaged by Luke and Carole at Archives NZ Wellington, October 3 and October 8, 2025.

1902 is bound in two volumes, North Island districts and South Island districts.

Page 264

District of Christchurch Quarter ending 31 March 1902 Registrar L. C. Williams

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

18 February 1902

Charles James Holmes
Mary Piteaithly

Charles James Holmes
Mary Pitcarthly Priest
💍 1902/888

Bachelor
Spinster

Cabman
Domestic

47
25

Christchurch
Linwood

8 months
8 months

Smiths Methodist Church, St Asaph Street, Linwood

02/1098

18 February 1902

Rev. C. E. Ward, Primitive Methodist

No	80
Date of Notice	18 February 1902
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Charles James Holmes	Mary Piteaithly
BDM Match (80%)	Charles James Holmes	Mary Pitcarthly Priest
	💍 1902/888
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Cabman	Domestic
Age	47	25
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Linwood
Length of Residence	8 months	8 months
Marriage Place	Smiths Methodist Church, St Asaph Street, Linwood
Folio	02/1098
Consent
Date of Certificate	18 February 1902
Officiating Minister	Rev. C. E. Ward, Primitive Methodist

19 February 1902

Arthur William Minson
Evelyn Constance Bell

Arthur William Minson
Evelyn Constance Bell
💍 1902/958

Bachelor
Spinster

Ironmonger

31
25

Opawa
Linwood

7 years
25 years

Trinity Church, Linwood, St Asaph Street

02/997

19 February 1902

Rev. W. A. Pascoe, Anglican

No	81
Date of Notice	19 February 1902
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Arthur William Minson	Evelyn Constance Bell
	💍 1902/958
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Ironmonger
Age	31	25
Dwelling Place	Opawa	Linwood
Length of Residence	7 years	25 years
Marriage Place	Trinity Church, Linwood, St Asaph Street
Folio	02/997
Consent
Date of Certificate	19 February 1902
Officiating Minister	Rev. W. A. Pascoe, Anglican

19 February 1902

Thomas Clark
Lillie Hosking

Thomas Clark
Lillie Hoskins
💍 1902/1302

Thomas Clark
Lily Marie Brame
💍 1903/497

Bachelor
Spinster

Trainer
Domestic

28
20

Christchurch
Christchurch

5 years
20 years

Registrar's Office, Christchurch

No person in N.Z. Can Consent to marriage of Lillie Hosking

No	82
Date of Notice	19 February 1902
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Thomas Clark	Lillie Hosking
BDM Match (96%)	Thomas Clark	Lillie Hoskins
	💍 1902/1302
BDM Match (63%)	Thomas Clark	Lily Marie Brame
	💍 1903/497
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Trainer	Domestic
Age	28	20
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	5 years	20 years
Marriage Place	Registrar's Office, Christchurch
Folio
Consent	No person in N.Z. Can Consent to marriage of Lillie Hosking
Date of Certificate
Officiating Minister

20 February 1902

George Lowther Bradley
Lily Allan Young

George Lowther Bradley
Lily Allan
💍 1902/952

Bachelor
Spinster

Salesman
Teacher

29
24

Christchurch
Christchurch

29 years
3 years

St Michael's Church, Christchurch

02/1026

20 February 1902

Rev. A. W. Averill, Anglican

No	83
Date of Notice	20 February 1902
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	George Lowther Bradley	Lily Allan Young
BDM Match (81%)	George Lowther Bradley	Lily Allan
	💍 1902/952
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Salesman	Teacher
Age	29	24
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	29 years	3 years
Marriage Place	St Michael's Church, Christchurch
Folio	02/1026
Consent
Date of Certificate	20 February 1902
Officiating Minister	Rev. A. W. Averill, Anglican

21 February 1902

James John Pegley
Mary Jane Huresich

James John Pegley
Mary Jane Hercomb
💍 1902/946

Bachelor
Spinster

Bootmaker
Tailoress

29
31

Opawa
Opawa

5 years
23 years

St Mark's Church, Opawa

02/1000

21 February 1902

Rev. A. W. Averill, Anglican

No	84
Date of Notice	21 February 1902
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	James John Pegley	Mary Jane Huresich
BDM Match (83%)	James John Pegley	Mary Jane Hercomb
	💍 1902/946
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Bootmaker	Tailoress
Age	29	31
Dwelling Place	Opawa	Opawa
Length of Residence	5 years	23 years
Marriage Place	St Mark's Church, Opawa
Folio	02/1000
Consent
Date of Certificate	21 February 1902
Officiating Minister	Rev. A. W. Averill, Anglican

21 February 1902

William Frederick Pettit
Elizabeth Sarah Pettit

William Frederick Burns
Elizabeth Sarah Pettit
💍 1902/3154

Divorced
Spinster

Draper
Saleswoman

39
34

Christchurch
Wellington

39 years
2 years

St Andrew's Church, Wellington

02/1778

21 February 1902

Rev. C. E. Dallaston, Baptist

No	85
Date of Notice	21 February 1902
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Frederick Pettit	Elizabeth Sarah Pettit
BDM Match (88%)	William Frederick Burns	Elizabeth Sarah Pettit
	💍 1902/3154
Condition	Divorced	Spinster
Profession	Draper	Saleswoman
Age	39	34
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Wellington
Length of Residence	39 years	2 years
Marriage Place	St Andrew's Church, Wellington
Folio	02/1778
Consent
Date of Certificate	21 February 1902
Officiating Minister	Rev. C. E. Dallaston, Baptist

21 February 1902

Samuel Talbot
Rebecca Burbeck

Samuel Gilbert
Rebecca Birbeck
💍 1902/538

Widower
Widow

Labourer
Domestic

54
34

Christchurch
Opawa

40 years
5 years

House of Mrs Birbeck, Opawa

02/1511

21 February 1902

W. Howes, Wesleyan

No	86
Date of Notice	21 February 1902
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Samuel Talbot	Rebecca Burbeck
BDM Match (82%)	Samuel Gilbert	Rebecca Birbeck
	💍 1902/538
Condition	Widower	Widow
Profession	Labourer	Domestic
Age	54	34
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Opawa
Length of Residence	40 years	5 years
Marriage Place	House of Mrs Birbeck, Opawa
Folio	02/1511
Consent
Date of Certificate	21 February 1902
Officiating Minister	W. Howes, Wesleyan

21 February 1902

Richard Constantine Alphonso Sibly
Ellen Jane Reid

Richard Constantine Alphonso Sibly
Ellen Jane Reid
💍 1902/2098

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer

26
27

Sydenham
Sydenham

28 years
27 years

House of James Reid, Bowen Street, Sydenham

02/1039

21 February 1902

W. Simpson, Rev. J. Mackenzie, Presbyterian

No	87
Date of Notice	21 February 1902
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Richard Constantine Alphonso Sibly	Ellen Jane Reid
	💍 1902/2098
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer
Age	26	27
Dwelling Place	Sydenham	Sydenham
Length of Residence	28 years	27 years
Marriage Place	House of James Reid, Bowen Street, Sydenham
Folio	02/1039
Consent
Date of Certificate	21 February 1902
Officiating Minister	W. Simpson, Rev. J. Mackenzie, 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).