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 270

District of Christchurch Quarter ending 31 March 1904 Registrar J. C. Runciman

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 February 1904

Charles Frederick Bell
Lucy Bailey

Charles Frederick Bell
Barbara Bailey
💍 1904/717

Widower
Spinster

Engineer
Tailoress

33
34

St Albans
St Albans

6 years
19 years

Residence of G. W. Bailey, Fiddler Road

04/1617

2 February 1904

Rev. G. W. Bailey, Methodist

No	56
Date of Notice	2 February 1904
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Charles Frederick Bell	Lucy Bailey
BDM Match (75%)	Charles Frederick Bell	Barbara Bailey
	💍 1904/717
Condition	Widower	Spinster
Profession	Engineer	Tailoress
Age	33	34
Dwelling Place	St Albans	St Albans
Length of Residence	6 years	19 years
Marriage Place	Residence of G. W. Bailey, Fiddler Road
Folio	04/1617
Consent
Date of Certificate	2 February 1904
Officiating Minister	Rev. G. W. Bailey, Methodist

2 February 1904

Thomas Barber
Mary Sibyl Harman

Thomas Barber
Mary Sybil Harman
💍 1904/2001

Widower
Widow

Butcher
Nurse

41
32

Christchurch
Addington

3 days
16 years

St Paul's Church, Shakespeare Road

04/3078

2 February 1904

Rev. G. Lee, Methodist

No	57
Date of Notice	2 February 1904
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Thomas Barber	Mary Sibyl Harman
BDM Match (94%)	Thomas Barber	Mary Sybil Harman
	💍 1904/2001
Condition	Widower	Widow
Profession	Butcher	Nurse
Age	41	32
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Addington
Length of Residence	3 days	16 years
Marriage Place	St Paul's Church, Shakespeare Road
Folio	04/3078
Consent
Date of Certificate	2 February 1904
Officiating Minister	Rev. G. Lee, Methodist

2 February 1904

Anthony Charlton
Annie Louisa Murphy

Anthony Shannon
Annie Louisa Murphy
💍 1904/187

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer
Housemaid

28
24

Linwood
St Albans

29 years
4 years

St Mary's Church, Merivale

04/1148

2 February 1904

Rev. R. He. Runciman, Anglican

No	58
Date of Notice	2 February 1904
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Anthony Charlton	Annie Louisa Murphy
BDM Match (88%)	Anthony Shannon	Annie Louisa Murphy
	💍 1904/187
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer	Housemaid
Age	28	24
Dwelling Place	Linwood	St Albans
Length of Residence	29 years	4 years
Marriage Place	St Mary's Church, Merivale
Folio	04/1148
Consent
Date of Certificate	2 February 1904
Officiating Minister	Rev. R. He. Runciman, Anglican

3 February 1904

William Henry White
Gardillena Allan

William Henry White
Wardillena Allan
💍 1904/118

Bachelor
Spinster

Painter
Domestic

25
23

Sydenham
Spreydon

8 years
17 years

St Mary's Church, Addington

04/1070

3 February 1904

Rev. W. S. Bean, Anglican

No	59
Date of Notice	3 February 1904
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Henry White	Gardillena Allan
BDM Match (97%)	William Henry White	Wardillena Allan
	💍 1904/118
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Painter	Domestic
Age	25	23
Dwelling Place	Sydenham	Spreydon
Length of Residence	8 years	17 years
Marriage Place	St Mary's Church, Addington
Folio	04/1070
Consent
Date of Certificate	3 February 1904
Officiating Minister	Rev. W. S. Bean, Anglican

3 February 1904

Robert Leishman Runciman
Jessie Broek Haydon

Robert Leishman Runciman
Mary Brook Haydon
💍 1904/134

Bachelor
Spinster

Sheep Farmer

30
30

Christchurch
St Albans

3 days
30 years

St Augustine's Church, Papanui

04/1063

3 February 1904

Rev. J. Campbell, Anglican

No	60
Date of Notice	3 February 1904
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Robert Leishman Runciman	Jessie Broek Haydon
BDM Match (82%)	Robert Leishman Runciman	Mary Brook Haydon
	💍 1904/134
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Sheep Farmer
Age	30	30
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	St Albans
Length of Residence	3 days	30 years
Marriage Place	St Augustine's Church, Papanui
Folio	04/1063
Consent
Date of Certificate	3 February 1904
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. Campbell, Anglican

4 February 1904

Jeremiah Joseph Dineen
Lilian Mary Hannigan

Jeremiah Joseph Dineen
Lilian Mary Hannigan
💍 1904/195

Bachelor
Spinster

Refreshment Proprietor
Waitress

26
21

Christchurch
Christchurch

3 days
3 days

Pro Cathedral

04/1155

4 February 1904

Rev. J. A. O'Connell, Roman Catholic

No	61
Date of Notice	4 February 1904
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Jeremiah Joseph Dineen	Lilian Mary Hannigan
	💍 1904/195
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Refreshment Proprietor	Waitress
Age	26	21
Dwelling Place	Christchurch	Christchurch
Length of Residence	3 days	3 days
Marriage Place	Pro Cathedral
Folio	04/1155
Consent
Date of Certificate	4 February 1904
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. A. O'Connell, Roman Catholic

4 February 1904

William McGregor
Louisa Woodhouse

William McGregor
Louisa Woodhouse
💍 1904/231

Bachelor
Spinster

Postmaster
Domestic

37
23

Lincoln
Lincoln

4 years
6 months

Baptist Church, Lincoln

04/1192

4 February 1904

Rev. S. G. Cox, Baptist

No	62
Date of Notice	4 February 1904
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William McGregor	Louisa Woodhouse
	💍 1904/231
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Postmaster	Domestic
Age	37	23
Dwelling Place	Lincoln	Lincoln
Length of Residence	4 years	6 months
Marriage Place	Baptist Church, Lincoln
Folio	04/1192
Consent
Date of Certificate	4 February 1904
Officiating Minister	Rev. S. G. Cox, Baptist

5 February 1904

Charles Edward Fowke
Lily May Brown

Charles Edward Fowke
Lily May Brown
💍 1904/132

Bachelor
Spinster

Railway Clerk

29
22

Hornby
Hornby

8 years
12 years

All Saints Church, Prebbleton

04/1061

5 February 1904

Rev. H. Williams, Anglican

No	63
Date of Notice	5 February 1904
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Charles Edward Fowke	Lily May Brown
	💍 1904/132
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Railway Clerk
Age	29	22
Dwelling Place	Hornby	Hornby
Length of Residence	8 years	12 years
Marriage Place	All Saints Church, Prebbleton
Folio	04/1061
Consent
Date of Certificate	5 February 1904
Officiating Minister	Rev. H. Williams, Anglican

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).