Intentions to Marry, 1903 South Island

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840424, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

Imaged by Carole at Archives NZ Wellington, October 10 2025.

1903 is bound in two volumes, North Island districts and South Island districts.

Page 809

District of INVERCARGILL Quarter ending 30 June 1903 Registrar J. S. Peter

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

2 June 1903

Henry Leymon Searle
Ann Burgoyne

Henry Seymour Searle
Ann Burgoyne
💍 1903/4723

Bachelor
Spinster

Agent
Dressmaker

32
24

Gala Street, INVERCARGILL
May Street East, INVERCARGILL

6 years
15 years

Roman Catholic Church, Clyde Street, INVERCARGILL

03/4675

2 June 1903

Very Rev. Dean Burke

No	87
Date of Notice	2 June 1903
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Henry Leymon Searle	Ann Burgoyne
BDM Match (93%)	Henry Seymour Searle	Ann Burgoyne
	💍 1903/4723
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Agent	Dressmaker
Age	32	24
Dwelling Place	Gala Street, INVERCARGILL	May Street East, INVERCARGILL
Length of Residence	6 years	15 years
Marriage Place	Roman Catholic Church, Clyde Street, INVERCARGILL
Folio	03/4675
Consent
Date of Certificate	2 June 1903
Officiating Minister	Very Rev. Dean Burke

2 June 1903

Thomas Kilkelly
Elizabeth Rylan

Thomas Kilkelly
Elizabeth Ryan
💍 1903/4722

Bachelor
Spinster

Sawmiller
Domestic

32
24

Grosvenor Street, INVERCARGILL
Grosvenor Street, INVERCARGILL

25 years
1 month

Roman Catholic Church, Rakahouka, INVERCARGILL

03/4674

2 June 1903

Very Rev. Dean Burke

No	88
Date of Notice	2 June 1903
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Thomas Kilkelly	Elizabeth Rylan
BDM Match (97%)	Thomas Kilkelly	Elizabeth Ryan
	💍 1903/4722
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Sawmiller	Domestic
Age	32	24
Dwelling Place	Grosvenor Street, INVERCARGILL	Grosvenor Street, INVERCARGILL
Length of Residence	25 years	1 month
Marriage Place	Roman Catholic Church, Rakahouka, INVERCARGILL
Folio	03/4674
Consent
Date of Certificate	2 June 1903
Officiating Minister	Very Rev. Dean Burke

4 June 1903

William Ernest Elliott
May Jane Trenbath

William Ernest Elliott
Mary Jane Trembeth
💍 1903/3807

Bachelor
Spinster

Butcher
Domestic

29
20

Dee Street, INVERCARGILL
Dee Street, INVERCARGILL

4 years
5 days

English Church, Tay Street, INVERCARGILL

03/3147

John Trenbath, father

4 June 1903

Ven. Archdeacon Stocker

No	89
Date of Notice	4 June 1903
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Ernest Elliott	May Jane Trenbath
BDM Match (92%)	William Ernest Elliott	Mary Jane Trembeth
	💍 1903/3807
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Butcher	Domestic
Age	29	20
Dwelling Place	Dee Street, INVERCARGILL	Dee Street, INVERCARGILL
Length of Residence	4 years	5 days
Marriage Place	English Church, Tay Street, INVERCARGILL
Folio	03/3147
Consent	John Trenbath, father
Date of Certificate	4 June 1903
Officiating Minister	Ven. Archdeacon Stocker

4 June 1903

Dudley Dunlop Morrison
Esther Amelia Morrison

Huntley Dunlop
Esther Amelia Morrison
💍 1903/3814

Bachelor
Spinster

Printer
Domestic

23
20

Avenal, INVERCARGILL
Hill Street, INVERCARGILL

23 years
20 years

Presbyterian Church, Dee Street, INVERCARGILL

03/3155

4 June 1903

Rev. G. Lindsay

No	90
Date of Notice	4 June 1903
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Dudley Dunlop Morrison	Esther Amelia Morrison
BDM Match (73%)	Huntley Dunlop	Esther Amelia Morrison
	💍 1903/3814
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Printer	Domestic
Age	23	20
Dwelling Place	Avenal, INVERCARGILL	Hill Street, INVERCARGILL
Length of Residence	23 years	20 years
Marriage Place	Presbyterian Church, Dee Street, INVERCARGILL
Folio	03/3155
Consent
Date of Certificate	4 June 1903
Officiating Minister	Rev. G. Lindsay

6 June 1903

John Moor Docherty
Margaret Grace Fraser

John Moore Docherty
Margaret Fraser
💍 1903/3849

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer
Domestic

44
42

Morton Mains, INVERCARGILL
Waianiwa, INVERCARGILL

20 years
42 years

Residence of [illegible] Father, Waianiwa

03/3168

6 June 1903

Rev. W. White

No	91
Date of Notice	6 June 1903
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Moor Docherty	Margaret Grace Fraser
BDM Match (83%)	John Moore Docherty	Margaret Fraser
	💍 1903/3849
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer	Domestic
Age	44	42
Dwelling Place	Morton Mains, INVERCARGILL	Waianiwa, INVERCARGILL
Length of Residence	20 years	42 years
Marriage Place	Residence of [illegible] Father, Waianiwa
Folio	03/3168
Consent
Date of Certificate	6 June 1903
Officiating Minister	Rev. W. White

9 June 1903

William Henry Stroyan
Louisa Hannah Simpson

William Henry Hogue
Louisa Susannah Simpson
💍 1903/3806

Bachelor
Spinster

Bushman
Domestic

31
28

Dee Street, INVERCARGILL
Dee Street, INVERCARGILL

3 days
3 days

English Church, Tay Street, INVERCARGILL

03/3146

9 June 1903

Ven. Archdeacon Stocker

No	92
Date of Notice	9 June 1903
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Henry Stroyan	Louisa Hannah Simpson
BDM Match (79%)	William Henry Hogue	Louisa Susannah Simpson
	💍 1903/3806
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Bushman	Domestic
Age	31	28
Dwelling Place	Dee Street, INVERCARGILL	Dee Street, INVERCARGILL
Length of Residence	3 days	3 days
Marriage Place	English Church, Tay Street, INVERCARGILL
Folio	03/3146
Consent
Date of Certificate	9 June 1903
Officiating Minister	Ven. Archdeacon Stocker

9 June 1903

Charles Andrew Roading (Gilfillan)
Jane Tucker

Charles Anderson
Jane Tuckey
💍 1903/3823

Bachelor
Divorced

Roading Keeper
Housekeeper

43
41

Mataura, INVERCARGILL
Mataura, INVERCARGILL

Office of the Registrar of Marriages, INVERCARGILL

03/3139

9 June 1903

Registrar of Marriages, INVERCARGILL

No	93
Date of Notice	9 June 1903
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Charles Andrew Roading (Gilfillan)	Jane Tucker
BDM Match (66%)	Charles Anderson	Jane Tuckey
	💍 1903/3823
Condition	Bachelor	Divorced
Profession	Roading Keeper	Housekeeper
Age	43	41
Dwelling Place	Mataura, INVERCARGILL	Mataura, INVERCARGILL
Length of Residence
Marriage Place	Office of the Registrar of Marriages, INVERCARGILL
Folio	03/3139
Consent
Date of Certificate	9 June 1903
Officiating Minister	Registrar of Marriages, INVERCARGILL

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).