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 612

District of Buller Quarter ending 31 December 1907 Registrar Herbert Logie

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

19 October 1907

Michael Joseph McNamara
Helena Veronica O'Brien

Michael Joseph McNamara
Helena Veronica O'Brien
💍 1907/7453

Bachelor
Spinster

Miner

27
25

Addisons
Addisons

3 years
25 years

In the Roman Catholic Church Addisons

07/7184

19 October 1907

Rev E Bergin R.C.

No	33
Date of Notice	19 October 1907
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Michael Joseph McNamara	Helena Veronica O'Brien
	💍 1907/7453
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Miner
Age	27	25
Dwelling Place	Addisons	Addisons
Length of Residence	3 years	25 years
Marriage Place	In the Roman Catholic Church Addisons
Folio	07/7184
Consent
Date of Certificate	19 October 1907
Officiating Minister	Rev E Bergin R.C.

5 November 1907

Bernard Richard Sapper
Annie Pain

Bernard Richard Gapper
Fannie Pain
💍 1907/7454

Bachelor
Spinster

School Teacher

28
29

Westport
Westport

4 days
29 years

In the Roman Catholic Church Westport

07/7185

5 November 1907

Rev J Walshe. R.C.

No	34
Date of Notice	5 November 1907
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Bernard Richard Sapper	Annie Pain
BDM Match (89%)	Bernard Richard Gapper	Fannie Pain
	💍 1907/7454
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	School Teacher
Age	28	29
Dwelling Place	Westport	Westport
Length of Residence	4 days	29 years
Marriage Place	In the Roman Catholic Church Westport
Folio	07/7185
Consent
Date of Certificate	5 November 1907
Officiating Minister	Rev J Walshe. R.C.

21 November 1907

John Maddock Knaden
Minnie Merchant

John Maddock Kinaston
Minnie Merchant
💍 1907/7455

Bachelor
Spinster

Miner

32
27

Westport
Westport

7 Months
6 Months

In the Residence of Mrs Fuller Gladstone Street Westport

07/7186

21 November 1907

Rev J R Dart. Church of England.

No	35
Date of Notice	21 November 1907
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Maddock Knaden	Minnie Merchant
BDM Match (91%)	John Maddock Kinaston	Minnie Merchant
	💍 1907/7455
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Miner
Age	32	27
Dwelling Place	Westport	Westport
Length of Residence	7 Months	6 Months
Marriage Place	In the Residence of Mrs Fuller Gladstone Street Westport
Folio	07/7186
Consent
Date of Certificate	21 November 1907
Officiating Minister	Rev J R Dart. Church of England.

3 December 1907

Joachim George Sorensen
Florence Louisa Jordan

Joachin George Sorensen
Florence Louisa Jordan
💍 1907/7456

Bachelor
Spinster

Master Mariner

30
21

Westport
Westport

6 days
6 days

In the residence of Mr Frank Findley Hospital Road Westport

07/7187

3 December 1907

Rev. J R Dart. Church of England.

No	36
Date of Notice	3 December 1907
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Joachim George Sorensen	Florence Louisa Jordan
BDM Match (98%)	Joachin George Sorensen	Florence Louisa Jordan
	💍 1907/7456
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Master Mariner
Age	30	21
Dwelling Place	Westport	Westport
Length of Residence	6 days	6 days
Marriage Place	In the residence of Mr Frank Findley Hospital Road Westport
Folio	07/7187
Consent
Date of Certificate	3 December 1907
Officiating Minister	Rev. J R Dart. Church of England.

4 December 1907

Arthur Henry Bartlett
Catherine Keir Simpson

Arthur Henry Bartlett
Catherine Keir Simpson
💍 1907/7470

Bachelor
Spinster

Fireman

23
21

Westport
Westport

3 years
4 years

In the residence of Mr George Simpson Henley Street Westport

07/7193

4 December 1907

Mr F W J Aereus Presbyterian Church

No	37
Date of Notice	4 December 1907
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Arthur Henry Bartlett	Catherine Keir Simpson
	💍 1907/7470
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Fireman
Age	23	21
Dwelling Place	Westport	Westport
Length of Residence	3 years	4 years
Marriage Place	In the residence of Mr George Simpson Henley Street Westport
Folio	07/7193
Consent
Date of Certificate	4 December 1907
Officiating Minister	Mr F W J Aereus Presbyterian Church

4 December 1907

William Harold Greenwood
Mary Taylor

William Harrold Greenwood
Mary Taylor
💍 1907/7462

Bachelor
Spinster

Shunter

29
23

Westport
Westport

4 years
23 years

In the Wesleyan Church Westport

07/7192

4 December 1907

Rev. W. A. R. Pratt. Wesleyan.

No	38
Date of Notice	4 December 1907
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Harold Greenwood	Mary Taylor
BDM Match (98%)	William Harrold Greenwood	Mary Taylor
	💍 1907/7462
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Shunter
Age	29	23
Dwelling Place	Westport	Westport
Length of Residence	4 years	23 years
Marriage Place	In the Wesleyan Church Westport
Folio	07/7192
Consent
Date of Certificate	4 December 1907
Officiating Minister	Rev. W. A. R. Pratt. Wesleyan.

6 December 1907

Percival Henry Adams
Rose Anna Jephcoate

Percival Harry Adams
Rose Anna Jephcoate
💍 1907/7459

Bachelor
Spinster

Turner

33
24

Westport
Westport

5 years
24 years

In the residence of Mrs M A Jephcoate Brougham Road Westport

07/7189

6 December 1907

Rev J R Dart. Church of England.

No	39
Date of Notice	6 December 1907
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Percival Henry Adams	Rose Anna Jephcoate
BDM Match (95%)	Percival Harry Adams	Rose Anna Jephcoate
	💍 1907/7459
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Turner
Age	33	24
Dwelling Place	Westport	Westport
Length of Residence	5 years	24 years
Marriage Place	In the residence of Mrs M A Jephcoate Brougham Road Westport
Folio	07/7189
Consent
Date of Certificate	6 December 1907
Officiating Minister	Rev J R Dart. Church of England.

9 December 1907

William Milligan
Elsie McLean

William Milligan
Elsie McLean
💍 1907/7458

Bachelor
Spinster

Benchman

28
17

Westport
Westport

5 years
17 years

In the residence of Mr Francis McLean Cape Foulwind

07/7188

9 December 1907

Rev. J R Dart. Church of England.

No	40
Date of Notice	9 December 1907
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Milligan	Elsie McLean
	💍 1907/7458
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Benchman
Age	28	17
Dwelling Place	Westport	Westport
Length of Residence	5 years	17 years
Marriage Place	In the residence of Mr Francis McLean Cape Foulwind
Folio	07/7188
Consent
Date of Certificate	9 December 1907
Officiating Minister	Rev. J R Dart. Church of England.

16 December 1907

Thomas Thomson
Bertha Madglena Josephson

Thomas Thomson
Bertha Madglena Josephson
💍 1907/7461

Bachelor
Spinster

Mine Surveyor
School Teacher

31
24

Westport
Westport

4 days
24 years

In the Wesleyan Church Westport

07/7191

16 December 1907

Rev. W. A. R. Pratt. Wesleyan.

No	41
Date of Notice	16 December 1907
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Thomas Thomson	Bertha Madglena Josephson
	💍 1907/7461
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Mine Surveyor	School Teacher
Age	31	24
Dwelling Place	Westport	Westport
Length of Residence	4 days	24 years
Marriage Place	In the Wesleyan Church Westport
Folio	07/7191
Consent
Date of Certificate	16 December 1907
Officiating Minister	Rev. W. A. R. Pratt. Wesleyan.

27 December 1907

Henry Reynold Evans
Beatrice Hopkins

Henry Reynold Evans
Beatrice Hopkins
💍 1908/3750

Bachelor
Spinster

Miner

30
22

Westport
Westport

5 days
1 year

In the Church of England

08/1164

27 December 1907

Rev J R Dart. Church of England.

No	42
Date of Notice	27 December 1907
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Henry Reynold Evans	Beatrice Hopkins
	💍 1908/3750
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Miner
Age	30	22
Dwelling Place	Westport	Westport
Length of Residence	5 days	1 year
Marriage Place	In the Church of England
Folio	08/1164
Consent
Date of Certificate	27 December 1907
Officiating Minister	Rev J R Dart. Church of England.

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).