Intentions to Marry, 1910 Canterbury, Otago, Chatham Islands

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840444, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

1910 is bound in three volumes - Auckland, Taranaki, Hawke's Bay (1910a), Wellington, Marlborough, Nelson, Westland (1910b), and Canterbury, Otago, Chatham Islands (1910c).

Page 277

District of Timaru Quarter ending 31 December 1910 Registrar Alexander Montgomery

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

115

3 November 1910

Henry Markham Dexter
Catherine Cagney

Henry Markham Dexter
Catherine Cagney
💍 1910/7653

Widower
Spinster

Accountant
Telephonist

42 years
28 years

Timaru
Oamaru

4 years
28 years

Dwellinghouse of John Cagney, Thames St, Oamaru

10/8034

3 November 1910

Monsignor John McKay, Roman Catholic Priest

No	115
Date of Notice	3 November 1910
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Henry Markham Dexter	Catherine Cagney
	💍 1910/7653
Condition	Widower	Spinster
Profession	Accountant	Telephonist
Age	42 years	28 years
Dwelling Place	Timaru	Oamaru
Length of Residence	4 years	28 years
Marriage Place	Dwellinghouse of John Cagney, Thames St, Oamaru
Folio	10/8034
Consent
Date of Certificate	3 November 1910
Officiating Minister	Monsignor John McKay, Roman Catholic Priest

116

12 November 1910

George Ernest Sharpe
Marion Woodley

George Ernest Sharpe
Marion Woodley
💍 1910/7405

Bachelor
Spinster

Clerk
Household Duties

26 years
26 years

Waimataitai
Timaru

2 years
4 years

Dwellinghouse of Henry Woodley, Otipua Road, Timaru

10/4732

12 November 1910

Rev. A. B. Todd, Presbyterian Minister

No	116
Date of Notice	12 November 1910
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	George Ernest Sharpe	Marion Woodley
	💍 1910/7405
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Clerk	Household Duties
Age	26 years	26 years
Dwelling Place	Waimataitai	Timaru
Length of Residence	2 years	4 years
Marriage Place	Dwellinghouse of Henry Woodley, Otipua Road, Timaru
Folio	10/4732
Consent
Date of Certificate	12 November 1910
Officiating Minister	Rev. A. B. Todd, Presbyterian Minister

117

15 November 1910

Denis Hertnon
Annie Catherine Cunningham

Denis Hertnon
Annie Catherine Cunningham
💍 1910/7947

Bachelor
Spinster

Bricklayer
Household duties

22 years
22 years

Timaru
Timaru

22 years
2 years

Roman Catholic Church, Timaru

10/8307

15 November 1910

Rev. John Tubman, Roman Catholic Priest

No	117
Date of Notice	15 November 1910
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Denis Hertnon	Annie Catherine Cunningham
	💍 1910/7947
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Bricklayer	Household duties
Age	22 years	22 years
Dwelling Place	Timaru	Timaru
Length of Residence	22 years	2 years
Marriage Place	Roman Catholic Church, Timaru
Folio	10/8307
Consent
Date of Certificate	15 November 1910
Officiating Minister	Rev. John Tubman, Roman Catholic Priest

118

14 November 1910

George Martin
Mary Elms

George Martin
Mary Elms
💍 1910/7406

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer
Dressmaker

32 years
23 years

Pages Road, Timaru
Timaru

5 months
4 years

The Manse, Russells Square, Timaru

10/7733

14 November 1910

Rev. L. Stinson, Presbyterian Minister

No	118
Date of Notice	14 November 1910
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	George Martin	Mary Elms
	💍 1910/7406
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer	Dressmaker
Age	32 years	23 years
Dwelling Place	Pages Road, Timaru	Timaru
Length of Residence	5 months	4 years
Marriage Place	The Manse, Russells Square, Timaru
Folio	10/7733
Consent
Date of Certificate	14 November 1910
Officiating Minister	Rev. L. Stinson, Presbyterian Minister

119

19 November 1910

Tobias Philip Stapleton
Theresa Taylor

Johnas Philip Stapleton
Theresa Taylor
💍 1910/7967

Bachelor
Spinster

Railway Employee
Household Duties

33 years
26 years

Timaru
Timaru

4 years
14 years

Roman Catholic Church, Timaru

10/8303

19 November 1910

Rev. John Tubman, Roman Catholic Priest

No	119
Date of Notice	19 November 1910
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Tobias Philip Stapleton	Theresa Taylor
BDM Match (94%)	Johnas Philip Stapleton	Theresa Taylor
	💍 1910/7967
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Railway Employee	Household Duties
Age	33 years	26 years
Dwelling Place	Timaru	Timaru
Length of Residence	4 years	14 years
Marriage Place	Roman Catholic Church, Timaru
Folio	10/8303
Consent
Date of Certificate	19 November 1910
Officiating Minister	Rev. John Tubman, Roman Catholic Priest

120

23 November 1910

Alfred William Burridge
Grace Stechmann

Alfred William Surridge
Grace Stechmann
💍 1910/7369

Bachelor
Spinster

Painter
Tailoress

26 years
21 years

Timaru
Timaru

3 days
21 years

Registrar's Office, Timaru

10/4719

23 November 1910

Alex Montgomery, Registrar

No	120
Date of Notice	23 November 1910
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Alfred William Burridge	Grace Stechmann
BDM Match (98%)	Alfred William Surridge	Grace Stechmann
	💍 1910/7369
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Painter	Tailoress
Age	26 years	21 years
Dwelling Place	Timaru	Timaru
Length of Residence	3 days	21 years
Marriage Place	Registrar's Office, Timaru
Folio	10/4719
Consent
Date of Certificate	23 November 1910
Officiating Minister	Alex Montgomery, Registrar

121

29 November 1910

Frederick Charles Langrish
Isabella Christina Gray

Frederick Charles Langrish
Isabella Christina Gray
💍 1910/7348

Bachelor
Spinster

Butcher
Household duties

31 years
24 years

Timaru
Timaru

31 years
24 years

Dwellinghouse of James Gray, Brown St, Timaru

10/7756

29 November 1910

Rev. A. Macaulay Caldwell, Presbyterian Minister

No	121
Date of Notice	29 November 1910
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Frederick Charles Langrish	Isabella Christina Gray
	💍 1910/7348
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Butcher	Household duties
Age	31 years	24 years
Dwelling Place	Timaru	Timaru
Length of Residence	31 years	24 years
Marriage Place	Dwellinghouse of James Gray, Brown St, Timaru
Folio	10/7756
Consent
Date of Certificate	29 November 1910
Officiating Minister	Rev. A. Macaulay Caldwell, Presbyterian Minister

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).