Intentions to Marry, 1904 South Island

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840426, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

Imaged by Carole at Archives NZ Wellington, October 13 2025.

1904 is bound in two volumes, North Island districts and South Island districts.

Page 275

District of Christchurch Quarter ending 31 March 1904 Registrar L.C. Hilliam

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

20 February 1904

Edward William Henderson
Katherine Philomena Forde

Edward William Henderson
Katherine Philomena Forde
💍 1904/188

Bachelor
Spinster

Clerk
Dressmaker

27
29

Sydenham
Christchurch

29 years
29 years

St Mary's Presbyterian Church, Manchester Street, Christchurch

04/1149

20 February 1904

Rev. R.H. Spence, Presbyterian

No	88
Date of Notice	20 February 1904
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Edward William Henderson	Katherine Philomena Forde
	💍 1904/188
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Clerk	Dressmaker
Age	27	29
Dwelling Place	Sydenham	Christchurch
Length of Residence	29 years	29 years
Marriage Place	St Mary's Presbyterian Church, Manchester Street, Christchurch
Folio	04/1149
Consent
Date of Certificate	20 February 1904
Officiating Minister	Rev. R.H. Spence, Presbyterian

22 February 1904

Gershom Daniel White
Florence Amy Himes

Gershom Daniel White
Florence Amy Thomas
💍 1904/253

Bachelor
Spinster

Builder
Dressmaker

27
29

Sydenham
Christchurch

8 years
29 years

St Luke's Baptist Church, Oxford Terrace, Christchurch

04/1190

22 February 1904

Rev. R.R. Carey, Baptist

No	89
Date of Notice	22 February 1904
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Gershom Daniel White	Florence Amy Himes
BDM Match (89%)	Gershom Daniel White	Florence Amy Thomas
	💍 1904/253
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Builder	Dressmaker
Age	27	29
Dwelling Place	Sydenham	Christchurch
Length of Residence	8 years	29 years
Marriage Place	St Luke's Baptist Church, Oxford Terrace, Christchurch
Folio	04/1190
Consent
Date of Certificate	22 February 1904
Officiating Minister	Rev. R.R. Carey, Baptist

22 February 1904

Henry William Poulson
Annie Amelia Moore

George William Poulsen
Annie Amelia Moore
💍 1904/6952

Bachelor
Spinster

Carpenter

23
19

Riccarton
Kaiapoi

12 years
9 years

Private House of R. Ryder, Clarkville, Kaiapoi

04/1213

R. Ryder, father

22 February 1904

Rev. J. Mackenzie, Presbyterian

No	90
Date of Notice	22 February 1904
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Henry William Poulson	Annie Amelia Moore
BDM Match (89%)	George William Poulsen	Annie Amelia Moore
	💍 1904/6952
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Carpenter
Age	23	19
Dwelling Place	Riccarton	Kaiapoi
Length of Residence	12 years	9 years
Marriage Place	Private House of R. Ryder, Clarkville, Kaiapoi
Folio	04/1213
Consent	R. Ryder, father
Date of Certificate	22 February 1904
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. Mackenzie, Presbyterian

24 February 1904

Joseph George Blackburn
Emmie Pohl

Joseph George Green
Emmie Pohl
💍 1904/138

Bachelor
Spinster

Blacksmith

24
19

Christchurch
Christchurch

3 days
3 days

St Michael's Church, Christchurch

04/1090

Anna Pohl, mother

24 February 1904

Archd. Neville, Anglican

No	91
Date of Notice	24 February 1904
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Joseph George Blackburn	Emmie Pohl
BDM Match (83%)	Joseph George Green	Emmie Pohl
	💍 1904/138
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Blacksmith
Age	24	19
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	3 days	3 days
Marriage Place	St Michael's Church, Christchurch
Folio	04/1090
Consent	Anna Pohl, mother
Date of Certificate	24 February 1904
Officiating Minister	Archd. Neville, Anglican

24 February 1904

Robert Arthur
Isabella Robinson

Robert Ashmore
Isabella Robinson
💍 1904/4749

Bachelor
Spinster

Clerk

27
23

Linwood
Linwood

4 years
20 years

St Paul's Anglican Church, Opawa

04/1110

24 February 1904

Rev. P.P.S. Cocks, Anglican

No	92
Date of Notice	24 February 1904
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Robert Arthur	Isabella Robinson
BDM Match (82%)	Robert Ashmore	Isabella Robinson
	💍 1904/4749
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Clerk
Age	27	23
Dwelling Place	Linwood	Linwood
Length of Residence	4 years	20 years
Marriage Place	St Paul's Anglican Church, Opawa
Folio	04/1110
Consent
Date of Certificate	24 February 1904
Officiating Minister	Rev. P.P.S. Cocks, Anglican

25 February 1904

Edward Ernest Grover
Edith Isabel May Fowke

Edward Grover
Edith Isabel May Powke
💍 1904/101

Bachelor
Spinster

Railway Clerk

26
21

Sydenham
Sydenham

12 years
6 years

St John's Church, Christchurch

04/1053

25 February 1904

Rev. R. A. Woodleigh, Anglican

No	93
Date of Notice	25 February 1904
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Edward Ernest Grover	Edith Isabel May Fowke
BDM Match (80%)	Edward Grover	Edith Isabel May Powke
	💍 1904/101
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Railway Clerk
Age	26	21
Dwelling Place	Sydenham	Sydenham
Length of Residence	12 years	6 years
Marriage Place	St John's Church, Christchurch
Folio	04/1053
Consent
Date of Certificate	25 February 1904
Officiating Minister	Rev. R. A. Woodleigh, Anglican

25 February 1904

George Ernest Barrett
Constance Amelia Barrett

George Ernest Bluett
Constance Amelia Barrett
💍 1904/119

Bachelor
Spinster

Coachman

28
30

Riccarton
Addington

3 years
3 years

St Mary's Church, Addington

04/1071

25 February 1904

Rev. W.A. Bean, Anglican

No	94
Date of Notice	25 February 1904
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	George Ernest Barrett	Constance Amelia Barrett
BDM Match (93%)	George Ernest Bluett	Constance Amelia Barrett
	💍 1904/119
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Coachman
Age	28	30
Dwelling Place	Riccarton	Addington
Length of Residence	3 years	3 years
Marriage Place	St Mary's Church, Addington
Folio	04/1071
Consent
Date of Certificate	25 February 1904
Officiating Minister	Rev. W.A. Bean, Anglican

26 February 1904

Henry Anderson
Christina Gilmore

Henry Anderson
Christina Gilmour
💍 1904/106

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer

36
35

Lincoln
Lincoln

2 years
10 years

Registrar's Office, Christchurch

04/1035

26 February 1904

Registrar, Christchurch

No	95
Date of Notice	26 February 1904
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Henry Anderson	Christina Gilmore
BDM Match (94%)	Henry Anderson	Christina Gilmour
	💍 1904/106
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer
Age	36	35
Dwelling Place	Lincoln	Lincoln
Length of Residence	2 years	10 years
Marriage Place	Registrar's Office, Christchurch
Folio	04/1035
Consent
Date of Certificate	26 February 1904
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).