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 311

District of Christchurch Quarter ending 30 September 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

413

15 August 1902

Thomas Frederick George Brown
Harriet Kate Elizabeth Woodford

Thomas Frederick George Brown
Harriet Kate Elizabeth Woodford
💍 1902/4411

Bachelor
Spinster

Draper
Domestic

23
21

Christchurch
Bromley

1 year
2 years

Residence of Mrs. Woodford, Bromley

02/4091

15 August 1902

Rev. W. D. Ross, Presbyterian Terrace

No	413
Date of Notice	15 August 1902
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Thomas Frederick George Brown	Harriet Kate Elizabeth Woodford
	💍 1902/4411
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Draper	Domestic
Age	23	21
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Bromley
Length of Residence	1 year	2 years
Marriage Place	Residence of Mrs. Woodford, Bromley
Folio	02/4091
Consent
Date of Certificate	15 August 1902
Officiating Minister	Rev. W. D. Ross, Presbyterian Terrace

414

15 August 1902

Alfred John Rump
Alice Anne Thomas

Alfred John Rump
Alice Ann Thomas
💍 1902/4276

Bachelor
Spinster

Salesman
Domestic

26
25

Addington
Riccarton

9 years
6 months

St. Mary's, Addington

02/4081

15 August 1902

Rev. G. I. Beare, Anglican

No	414
Date of Notice	15 August 1902
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Alfred John Rump	Alice Anne Thomas
BDM Match (97%)	Alfred John Rump	Alice Ann Thomas
	💍 1902/4276
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Salesman	Domestic
Age	26	25
Dwelling Place	Addington	Riccarton
Length of Residence	9 years	6 months
Marriage Place	St. Mary's, Addington
Folio	02/4081
Consent
Date of Certificate	15 August 1902
Officiating Minister	Rev. G. I. Beare, Anglican

415

15 August 1902

Henry Edmeades Nickless
Isabella Brown

Henry Edmeades Nicklers
Isabella Brown
💍 1902/4255

Bachelor
Spinster

Flax Miller

34
24

Marshlands
Christchurch

7 years
4 years

St. Michael's, Christchurch

02/4060

15 August 1902

Rev. A. W. Averill, Anglican

No	415
Date of Notice	15 August 1902
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Henry Edmeades Nickless	Isabella Brown
BDM Match (98%)	Henry Edmeades Nicklers	Isabella Brown
	💍 1902/4255
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Flax Miller
Age	34	24
Dwelling Place	Marshlands	Christchurch
Length of Residence	7 years	4 years
Marriage Place	St. Michael's, Christchurch
Folio	02/4060
Consent
Date of Certificate	15 August 1902
Officiating Minister	Rev. A. W. Averill, Anglican

416

15 August 1902

Hugh Warwick McClelland
Lilian Frances Emily Corey

Hugh Warnock McClelland
Lilian Emily Frances Corey
💍 1902/4383

Bachelor
Spinster

Pastry Cook
Domestic

24
24

Papanui
Papanui

6 years
24 years

Residence of Mrs. Grey, 20 Derby Road, Papanui

02/4142

15 August 1902

Rev. G. Dawson, Wesleyan

No	416
Date of Notice	15 August 1902
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Hugh Warwick McClelland	Lilian Frances Emily Corey
BDM Match (73%)	Hugh Warnock McClelland	Lilian Emily Frances Corey
	💍 1902/4383
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Pastry Cook	Domestic
Age	24	24
Dwelling Place	Papanui	Papanui
Length of Residence	6 years	24 years
Marriage Place	Residence of Mrs. Grey, 20 Derby Road, Papanui
Folio	02/4142
Consent
Date of Certificate	15 August 1902
Officiating Minister	Rev. G. Dawson, Wesleyan

417

15 August 1902

William Robert Taylor
Catherine Taylor

William Robert Taylor
Catherine Taylor
💍 1902/4263

Robert Scobie
Catherine Taylor
💍 1902/3251

Bachelor
Spinster

Inspector

26
24

Amuri
Christchurch

5 years
6 months

St. Michael's, Christchurch, Amuri

02/4061

15 August 1902

Rev. A. W. Averill, Anglican

No	417
Date of Notice	15 August 1902
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Robert Taylor	Catherine Taylor
	💍 1902/4263
BDM Match (67%)	Robert Scobie	Catherine Taylor
	💍 1902/3251
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Inspector
Age	26	24
Dwelling Place	Amuri	Christchurch
Length of Residence	5 years	6 months
Marriage Place	St. Michael's, Christchurch, Amuri
Folio	02/4061
Consent
Date of Certificate	15 August 1902
Officiating Minister	Rev. A. W. Averill, Anglican

418

15 August 1902

Frederick Arthur Broad
Margaret Amelia Whitnall

Frederick Ambrose Broad
Margaret Amelia Whitnall
💍 1902/99

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer
Domestic

26
20

Christchurch
Christchurch

26 years
10 years

Registrar's Office, Christchurch

02/4097

Eliza Whitnall, Mother

15 August 1902

Registrar, Christchurch

No	418
Date of Notice	15 August 1902
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Frederick Arthur Broad	Margaret Amelia Whitnall
BDM Match (87%)	Frederick Ambrose Broad	Margaret Amelia Whitnall
	💍 1902/99
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer	Domestic
Age	26	20
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	26 years	10 years
Marriage Place	Registrar's Office, Christchurch
Folio	02/4097
Consent	Eliza Whitnall, Mother
Date of Certificate	15 August 1902
Officiating Minister	Registrar, Christchurch

419

16 August 1902

James Curragh
Ellen Hannah Parish

James Curragh
Ellen Hannah Parish
💍 1902/4287

Bachelor
Spinster

Engineer

29
27

Templeton
Yaldhurst

29 years
27 years

Anglican Church, Yaldhurst

02/4069

16 August 1902

Rev. W. P. Gould, Anglican

No	419
Date of Notice	16 August 1902
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	James Curragh	Ellen Hannah Parish
	💍 1902/4287
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Engineer
Age	29	27
Dwelling Place	Templeton	Yaldhurst
Length of Residence	29 years	27 years
Marriage Place	Anglican Church, Yaldhurst
Folio	02/4069
Consent
Date of Certificate	16 August 1902
Officiating Minister	Rev. W. P. Gould, Anglican

420

18 August 1902

William Deacon
Minnie Mennell

William Deacon
Minnie Mennell
💍 1902/98

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer
Domestic

37
25

Christchurch
Christchurch

3 days
3 weeks

Registrar's Office, Christchurch

02/4076

18 August 1902

Registrar, Christchurch

No	420
Date of Notice	18 August 1902
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Deacon	Minnie Mennell
	💍 1902/98
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer	Domestic
Age	37	25
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	3 days	3 weeks
Marriage Place	Registrar's Office, Christchurch
Folio	02/4076
Consent
Date of Certificate	18 August 1902
Officiating Minister	Registrar, Christchurch

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).