Intentions to Marry, 1911 Auckland, Taranaki

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840445, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

1911 is bound in three volumes - Auckland, Taranaki, (1911a), Hawke's Bay, Wellington, Marlborough, Nelson, Westland (1911b), and Canterbury, Otago, Chatham Islands (1911c).

Page 300

District of Gisborne Quarter ending 30 June 1911 Registrar Henry Ewart Hill

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

3 May 1911

Ernest Hewing
Ada Mary Bowes

Ernest Lewing
Ada Mary Bowes
💍 1911/3306

Bachelor
Spinster

Builder
Domestic Duties

29
32

Gisborne, Poverty Bay
Ormond, Poverty Bay

6 years
3 years

The Private Residence of The Bride's Parents, Ormond, Poverty Bay

11/2947

3 May 1911

Rev. Ernest Guy Walker, Presbyterian Minister

No	74
Date of Notice	3 May 1911
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Ernest Hewing	Ada Mary Bowes
BDM Match (96%)	Ernest Lewing	Ada Mary Bowes
	💍 1911/3306
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Builder	Domestic Duties
Age	29	32
Dwelling Place	Gisborne, Poverty Bay	Ormond, Poverty Bay
Length of Residence	6 years	3 years
Marriage Place	The Private Residence of The Bride's Parents, Ormond, Poverty Bay
Folio	11/2947
Consent
Date of Certificate	3 May 1911
Officiating Minister	Rev. Ernest Guy Walker, Presbyterian Minister

2 May 1911

John Henry Sedge
Bessie Beatrice Webster

John Henry Gedge
Bessie Beatrice Webster
💍 1911/4083

Bachelor
Spinster

Telegraphist
Nurse

23
23

Gisborne, Poverty Bay
Gisborne

3 years
2 years

Holy Trinity Church, Gisborne

11/3855

2 May 1911

Rev. Leslie Dawson Thomas, Church of England

No	75
Date of Notice	2 May 1911
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Henry Sedge	Bessie Beatrice Webster
BDM Match (97%)	John Henry Gedge	Bessie Beatrice Webster
	💍 1911/4083
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Telegraphist	Nurse
Age	23	23
Dwelling Place	Gisborne, Poverty Bay	Gisborne
Length of Residence	3 years	2 years
Marriage Place	Holy Trinity Church, Gisborne
Folio	11/3855
Consent
Date of Certificate	2 May 1911
Officiating Minister	Rev. Leslie Dawson Thomas, Church of England

3 May 1911

Colin Sale Arlidge
Mary Frances Mary Beere

Colin Dale Arlidge
Nony Frances Mary Beere
💍 1911/4084

Bachelor
Spinster

Accountant
Domestic Duties

46
45

Gisborne, Poverty Bay
Gisborne, Poverty Bay

28 years
28 years

Holy Trinity Church, Gisborne

11/3856

3 May 1911

Rev. Leslie Dawson Thomas, Church of England

No	76
Date of Notice	3 May 1911
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Colin Sale Arlidge	Mary Frances Mary Beere
BDM Match (91%)	Colin Dale Arlidge	Nony Frances Mary Beere
	💍 1911/4084
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Accountant	Domestic Duties
Age	46	45
Dwelling Place	Gisborne, Poverty Bay	Gisborne, Poverty Bay
Length of Residence	28 years	28 years
Marriage Place	Holy Trinity Church, Gisborne
Folio	11/3856
Consent
Date of Certificate	3 May 1911
Officiating Minister	Rev. Leslie Dawson Thomas, Church of England

3 May 1911

William Elliot
Patricia Soleson

William Elliot
Patricia Dobson
💍 1911/3092

Bachelor
Spinster

Station Manager
Domestic Duties

28
23

Gisborne, Poverty Bay
Gisborne, Poverty Bay

4 days
4 days

Presbyterian Church, Gisborne

11/2780

3 May 1911

Rev. William Grant, Presbyterian Minister

No	77
Date of Notice	3 May 1911
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Elliot	Patricia Soleson
BDM Match (91%)	William Elliot	Patricia Dobson
	💍 1911/3092
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Station Manager	Domestic Duties
Age	28	23
Dwelling Place	Gisborne, Poverty Bay	Gisborne, Poverty Bay
Length of Residence	4 days	4 days
Marriage Place	Presbyterian Church, Gisborne
Folio	11/2780
Consent
Date of Certificate	3 May 1911
Officiating Minister	Rev. William Grant, Presbyterian Minister

5 May 1911

Albert Hoppes
Mary Mathieson

Albert Hopps
Mary Mathieson
💍 1911/490

Bachelor
Spinster

Carrier
Domestic Duties

27
22

Gisborne, Poverty Bay
Te Hapara, Poverty Bay

6 years
3 years

The Office of The Registrar of Marriages, Gisborne

11/1859

5 May 1911

Registrar of Marriages, Gisborne

No	78
Date of Notice	5 May 1911
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Albert Hoppes	Mary Mathieson
BDM Match (96%)	Albert Hopps	Mary Mathieson
	💍 1911/490
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Carrier	Domestic Duties
Age	27	22
Dwelling Place	Gisborne, Poverty Bay	Te Hapara, Poverty Bay
Length of Residence	6 years	3 years
Marriage Place	The Office of The Registrar of Marriages, Gisborne
Folio	11/1859
Consent
Date of Certificate	5 May 1911
Officiating Minister	Registrar of Marriages, Gisborne

8 May 1911

Robert Southey Adams
Annie Constance Bradwell

Robert Southey Adams
Annie Constance Bradwell
💍 1911/3088

Bachelor
Spinster

Shepherd
Domestic Duties

22
29

Station, Poverty Bay
Poverty Bay

9 years
9 years

Presbyterian Church, Gisborne

11/2776

8 May 1911

Rev. William Grant, Presbyterian Minister

No	79
Date of Notice	8 May 1911
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Robert Southey Adams	Annie Constance Bradwell
	💍 1911/3088
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Shepherd	Domestic Duties
Age	22	29
Dwelling Place	Station, Poverty Bay	Poverty Bay
Length of Residence	9 years	9 years
Marriage Place	Presbyterian Church, Gisborne
Folio	11/2776
Consent
Date of Certificate	8 May 1911
Officiating Minister	Rev. William Grant, Presbyterian Minister

8 May 1911

Frederick Kalman
Edith Jessamine McHead

Frederick Kalman
Edith Jessamine McLeod
💍 1911/491

Widower
Spinster

Packer
Cook

44
22

Gisborne, Poverty Bay
Gisborne

16 months
5 years

Office of The Registrar of Marriages, Gisborne

11/1860

8 May 1911

Registrar of Marriages, Gisborne

No	80
Date of Notice	8 May 1911
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Frederick Kalman	Edith Jessamine McHead
BDM Match (95%)	Frederick Kalman	Edith Jessamine McLeod
	💍 1911/491
Condition	Widower	Spinster
Profession	Packer	Cook
Age	44	22
Dwelling Place	Gisborne, Poverty Bay	Gisborne
Length of Residence	16 months	5 years
Marriage Place	Office of The Registrar of Marriages, Gisborne
Folio	11/1860
Consent
Date of Certificate	8 May 1911
Officiating Minister	Registrar of Marriages, Gisborne

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).