Intentions to Marry, 1905 Canterbury, Otago, Chatham Islands

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840429, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

1905 is bound in three volumes - Auckland, Taranaki, Hawke's Bay (1905a), Wellington, Marlborough, Nelson, Westland (1905b), and Canterbury, Otago, Chatham Islands (1905c).

Page 597

District of Invercargill Quarter ending 30 September 1905 Registrar John Ernest Taylor, Deputy Registrar

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 July 1905

David Smart Meffin
Emily Susan Lainchbury

David Smart Treffin
Emily Susan Lainchbury
💍 1905/2550

Bachelor
Spinster

Painter
Dressmaker

24
23

Clifton, Invercargill
Invercargill, Tay St.

15 years
23 years

Residence of Mr. Lainchbury, Clifton

05/5012

18 July 1905

Rev. I. A. Pybus

No	87
Date of Notice	18 July 1905
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	David Smart Meffin	Emily Susan Lainchbury
BDM Match (95%)	David Smart Treffin	Emily Susan Lainchbury
	💍 1905/2550
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Painter	Dressmaker
Age	24	23
Dwelling Place	Clifton, Invercargill	Invercargill, Tay St.
Length of Residence	15 years	23 years
Marriage Place	Residence of Mr. Lainchbury, Clifton
Folio	05/5012
Consent
Date of Certificate	18 July 1905
Officiating Minister	Rev. I. A. Pybus

19 July 1905

John Gillies
Rose Ellen Noollett

John Gillies
Rose Ellen Woollett
💍 1905/2549

Bachelor
Spinster

Wool-classer
Domestic

29
20

Invercargill, Kilbirnie
South Invercargill, St. Andrew St.

3 days
19 years

Residence of Lewis Noollett, Kilbirnie

05/5011

Lewis Noollett, father

19 July 1905

Rev. I. A. Pybus

No	88
Date of Notice	19 July 1905
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Gillies	Rose Ellen Noollett
BDM Match (97%)	John Gillies	Rose Ellen Woollett
	💍 1905/2549
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Wool-classer	Domestic
Age	29	20
Dwelling Place	Invercargill, Kilbirnie	South Invercargill, St. Andrew St.
Length of Residence	3 days	19 years
Marriage Place	Residence of Lewis Noollett, Kilbirnie
Folio	05/5011
Consent	Lewis Noollett, father
Date of Certificate	19 July 1905
Officiating Minister	Rev. I. A. Pybus

20 July 1905

Richard Loage Hill
Ada Gunn

Richard Lodge Hill
Ada Gunn
💍 1905/2704

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer
Domestic

27
24

North Invercargill, St. Andrew St.
North Invercargill, Dee St.

2 years
2 years

Roman Catholic Church

05/5767

20 July 1905

Very Rev. Dean Burke

No	89
Date of Notice	20 July 1905
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Richard Loage Hill	Ada Gunn
BDM Match (97%)	Richard Lodge Hill	Ada Gunn
	💍 1905/2704
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer	Domestic
Age	27	24
Dwelling Place	North Invercargill, St. Andrew St.	North Invercargill, Dee St.
Length of Residence	2 years	2 years
Marriage Place	Roman Catholic Church
Folio	05/5767
Consent
Date of Certificate	20 July 1905
Officiating Minister	Very Rev. Dean Burke

22 July 1905

James Smith Marshall
Elizabeth Jane Dewall

James Smith Marshall
Elizabeth Jane Newall
💍 1905/2542

Bachelor
Spinster

Slaughterman
Domestic

25
18

Invercargill, Eye St.
Invercargill, Clifton

2 years
18 years

Residence of Mr. Ardley, Eye St.

05/5004

Annie Ardley, mother

22 July 1905

Rev. Geo. Lindsay

No	90
Date of Notice	22 July 1905
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	James Smith Marshall	Elizabeth Jane Dewall
BDM Match (98%)	James Smith Marshall	Elizabeth Jane Newall
	💍 1905/2542
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Slaughterman	Domestic
Age	25	18
Dwelling Place	Invercargill, Eye St.	Invercargill, Clifton
Length of Residence	2 years	18 years
Marriage Place	Residence of Mr. Ardley, Eye St.
Folio	05/5004
Consent	Annie Ardley, mother
Date of Certificate	22 July 1905
Officiating Minister	Rev. Geo. Lindsay

25 July 1905

Albert James Cooling
Fanny Meffan

Albert James Couling
Fanny Treffan
💍 1905/2551

Bachelor
Spinster

Miner
Domestic

23
21

Invercargill, Clifton
Invercargill, Eye St.

3 days
13 years

Primitive Methodist Church

05/5013

25 July 1905

Rev. I. A. Pybus

No	91
Date of Notice	25 July 1905
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Albert James Cooling	Fanny Meffan
BDM Match (90%)	Albert James Couling	Fanny Treffan
	💍 1905/2551
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Miner	Domestic
Age	23	21
Dwelling Place	Invercargill, Clifton	Invercargill, Eye St.
Length of Residence	3 days	13 years
Marriage Place	Primitive Methodist Church
Folio	05/5013
Consent
Date of Certificate	25 July 1905
Officiating Minister	Rev. I. A. Pybus

26 July 1905

William Pope Lilly
Charles Withington

William Pope
Lilly Withington
💍 1905/2553

Bachelor
Spinster

Engineer
Domestic

31
23

Invercargill, Tramway Road
South Invercargill, Clyde St.

3 days
3 months

Residence of Charles Withington, Tramway Road

05/5014

26 July 1905

Rev. I. A. Pybus

No	92
Date of Notice	26 July 1905
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Pope Lilly	Charles Withington
BDM Match (67%)	William Pope	Lilly Withington
	💍 1905/2553
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Engineer	Domestic
Age	31	23
Dwelling Place	Invercargill, Tramway Road	South Invercargill, Clyde St.
Length of Residence	3 days	3 months
Marriage Place	Residence of Charles Withington, Tramway Road
Folio	05/5014
Consent
Date of Certificate	26 July 1905
Officiating Minister	Rev. I. A. Pybus

31 July 1905

Arthur Silverthorne Henderson
Annie Sarah Featherstone

Arthur Silverthorne Henderson
Annie Sarah Featherston
💍 1905/2581

Bachelor
Spinster

Band Clerk
Domestic

33
23

Invercargill, Forth St.
Invercargill, Tay St.

10 days
20 years

English Church

05/4992

31 July 1905

Ven. Arch. Stocker

No	93
Date of Notice	31 July 1905
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Arthur Silverthorne Henderson	Annie Sarah Featherstone
BDM Match (98%)	Arthur Silverthorne Henderson	Annie Sarah Featherston
	💍 1905/2581
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Band Clerk	Domestic
Age	33	23
Dwelling Place	Invercargill, Forth St.	Invercargill, Tay St.
Length of Residence	10 days	20 years
Marriage Place	English Church
Folio	05/4992
Consent
Date of Certificate	31 July 1905
Officiating Minister	Ven. Arch. Stocker

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).