Intentions to Marry, 1907 Wellington, Marlborough, Nelson, Westland

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840434, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

1907 is bound in three volumes - Auckland, Taranaki, Hawke's Bay (1907a), Wellington, Marlborough, Nelson, Westland (1907b), and Canterbury, Otago, Chatham Islands (1907c).

Page 195

District of Palmerston North Quarter ending 30 September 1907 Registrar Robert N. Keeling

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

1 July 1907

Robert William Belfit
Gracie Evelyn Conlin

Robert William Belfit
Gracie Evelyn Conlin
💍 1907/5243

Bachelor
Spinster

Storeman

24 years
22

Palmerston North
Longburn

24 years
5 years

Registrars office, Palmerston North

07/4992

6 July 1907

Robert N. Keeling, Registrar, Palmerston North

No	95
Date of Notice	1 July 1907
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Robert William Belfit	Gracie Evelyn Conlin
	💍 1907/5243
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Storeman
Age	24 years	22
Dwelling Place	Palmerston North	Longburn
Length of Residence	24 years	5 years
Marriage Place	Registrars office, Palmerston North
Folio	07/4992
Consent
Date of Certificate	6 July 1907
Officiating Minister	Robert N. Keeling, Registrar, Palmerston North

8 July 1907

George Henry Gedson
Ethel Eliza Sorensen

Bachelor
Spinster

Carrier
Domestic Service

23
18 years

Palmerston North
Palmerston North

2 years
18 years

Registrars office, Palmerston North

No	96
Date of Notice	8 July 1907
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	George Henry Gedson	Ethel Eliza Sorensen
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Carrier	Domestic Service
Age	23	18 years
Dwelling Place	Palmerston North	Palmerston North
Length of Residence	2 years	18 years
Marriage Place	Registrars office, Palmerston North
Folio
Consent
Date of Certificate
Officiating Minister

9 July 1907

Ernest Mansfield Beedey
Gertrude Blyana O'Callahan

Ernest Mansfield Beechey
Gertrude Bryana O'Callahan
💍 1907/5244

Bachelor
Spinster

Clerk

21 years
23

Palmerston North
Palmerston North

3 days
3 days

Registrars office, Palmerston North

07/4993

9 July 1907

Robert N. Keeling, Registrar, Palmerston North

No	97
Date of Notice	9 July 1907
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Ernest Mansfield Beedey	Gertrude Blyana O'Callahan
BDM Match (94%)	Ernest Mansfield Beechey	Gertrude Bryana O'Callahan
	💍 1907/5244
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Clerk
Age	21 years	23
Dwelling Place	Palmerston North	Palmerston North
Length of Residence	3 days	3 days
Marriage Place	Registrars office, Palmerston North
Folio	07/4993
Consent
Date of Certificate	9 July 1907
Officiating Minister	Robert N. Keeling, Registrar, Palmerston North

14 July 1907

James Edward Hayes
Mary Jane Lee

James Edward Hayes
Mary Jane Lee
💍 1907/5279

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer
Domestic Service

24
21 years

Palmerston North
Palmerston North

4 years
8 years

House of Mary Lee, Palmerston North

07/5004

14 July 1907

Rev. Isaac Jolly, Presbyterian Minister, Palmerston North

No	98
Date of Notice	14 July 1907
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	James Edward Hayes	Mary Jane Lee
	💍 1907/5279
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer	Domestic Service
Age	24	21 years
Dwelling Place	Palmerston North	Palmerston North
Length of Residence	4 years	8 years
Marriage Place	House of Mary Lee, Palmerston North
Folio	07/5004
Consent
Date of Certificate	14 July 1907
Officiating Minister	Rev. Isaac Jolly, Presbyterian Minister, Palmerston North

15 July 1907

John Owen McEwen
Portilla Sophia Burmeister

John Ewen McEwen
Botilla Sophia Burmeister
💍 1907/5257

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer

28 years
24

Longburn
Kairanga

28 years
15 years

Lutheran Church, Palmerston North

07/4991

15 July 1907

Rev. M. Christensen, Lutheran Minister, Palmerston North

No	99
Date of Notice	15 July 1907
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Owen McEwen	Portilla Sophia Burmeister
BDM Match (93%)	John Ewen McEwen	Botilla Sophia Burmeister
	💍 1907/5257
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer
Age	28 years	24
Dwelling Place	Longburn	Kairanga
Length of Residence	28 years	15 years
Marriage Place	Lutheran Church, Palmerston North
Folio	07/4991
Consent
Date of Certificate	15 July 1907
Officiating Minister	Rev. M. Christensen, Lutheran Minister, Palmerston North

100

22 July 1907

Jonathan Adams
Lillian Matilda Jensen

Jonathan Adams
Lillian Matilda Jensen
💍 1907/5245

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer
Dressmaker

26 years
26

Palmerston North
Palmerston North

3 days
3 days

Registrars office, Palmerston North

07/4994

23 July 1907

Robert N. Keeling, Registrar, Palmerston North

No	100
Date of Notice	22 July 1907
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Jonathan Adams	Lillian Matilda Jensen
	💍 1907/5245
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer	Dressmaker
Age	26 years	26
Dwelling Place	Palmerston North	Palmerston North
Length of Residence	3 days	3 days
Marriage Place	Registrars office, Palmerston North
Folio	07/4994
Consent
Date of Certificate	23 July 1907
Officiating Minister	Robert N. Keeling, Registrar, Palmerston North

101

23 July 1907

David Cameron McEwen
Ada Mary Eagle

David Cameron McEwen
Ada Mary Eagle
💍 1907/5265

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer

22 years
22

Longburn
Awapuni

22 years
18 months

House of William F. Eagle, Awapuni

07/5014

23 July 1907

Rev. D. I. Baker, Congregational Minister, Palmerston North

No	101
Date of Notice	23 July 1907
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	David Cameron McEwen	Ada Mary Eagle
	💍 1907/5265
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer
Age	22 years	22
Dwelling Place	Longburn	Awapuni
Length of Residence	22 years	18 months
Marriage Place	House of William F. Eagle, Awapuni
Folio	07/5014
Consent
Date of Certificate	23 July 1907
Officiating Minister	Rev. D. I. Baker, Congregational Minister, Palmerston North

102

23 July 1907

Henry John Beaumont
Alice Elizabeth Perant

Henry John Bannister
Alice Elizabeth Brant
💍 1907/5261

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer
Domestic Service

45 years
27

Newbury
Palmerston North

4 years
3 years

All Saints Church, Palmerston North

07/5010

23 July 1907

Rev. C. C. Harper, Anglican Minister, Palmerston North

No	102
Date of Notice	23 July 1907
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Henry John Beaumont	Alice Elizabeth Perant
BDM Match (78%)	Henry John Bannister	Alice Elizabeth Brant
	💍 1907/5261
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer	Domestic Service
Age	45 years	27
Dwelling Place	Newbury	Palmerston North
Length of Residence	4 years	3 years
Marriage Place	All Saints Church, Palmerston North
Folio	07/5010
Consent
Date of Certificate	23 July 1907
Officiating Minister	Rev. C. C. Harper, Anglican Minister, Palmerston North

103

24 July 1907

Stephen Leonard Parsons
Lilian Edith Armstrong

Stephen Leonard Parsons
Lilian Edith Armstrong
💍 1907/5260

Divorced
Spinster

Clerk
Barmaid

26 years
31 years

Palmerston North
Palmerston North

3 days
6 months

All Saints Church, Palmerston North

07/5009

24 July 1907

Rev. C. C. Harper, Anglican Minister, Palmerston North

No	103
Date of Notice	24 July 1907
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Stephen Leonard Parsons	Lilian Edith Armstrong
	💍 1907/5260
Condition	Divorced	Spinster
Profession	Clerk	Barmaid
Age	26 years	31 years
Dwelling Place	Palmerston North	Palmerston North
Length of Residence	3 days	6 months
Marriage Place	All Saints Church, Palmerston North
Folio	07/5009
Consent
Date of Certificate	24 July 1907
Officiating Minister	Rev. C. C. Harper, Anglican Minister, Palmerston North

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).