Intentions to Marry, 1913 Hawke's Bay, Wellington, Marlborough, Nelson, Westland

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840452, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

1913 is bound in three volumes - Auckland, Taranaki (1913a), Hawke's Bay, Wellington, Marlborough, Nelson, Westland (1913b), and Canterbury, Otago, Southland, Chatham Islands (1913c).

Page 299

District of Masterton Quarter ending 31 December 1913 Registrar William Miller Easthope

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

13 October 1913

Gerodons Burgess
Jessie Agnes Cox

Geradono Burgess
Jessie Agnes Cox
💍 1913/7699

Bachelor
Spinster

Coach Trimmer
Domestic duties

31
30

Masterton
Masterton

9 months
13 months

The house of J. J. Bredman

13/7487

13 October 1913

Rev A. J. Thompson, Presbyterian

No	63
Date of Notice	13 October 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Gerodons Burgess	Jessie Agnes Cox
BDM Match (94%)	Geradono Burgess	Jessie Agnes Cox
	💍 1913/7699
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Coach Trimmer	Domestic duties
Age	31	30
Dwelling Place	Masterton	Masterton
Length of Residence	9 months	13 months
Marriage Place	The house of J. J. Bredman
Folio	13/7487
Consent
Date of Certificate	13 October 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev A. J. Thompson, Presbyterian

23 October 1913

Samuel Percival Lett
Ada Elizabeth Cottle

Samuel Percival Lett
Ada Elizabeth Cottle
💍 1913/7697

Bachelor
Spinster

Carpenter
Domestic duties

30
22

Masterton
Masterton

3 years
22 years

The Church

13/7485

23 October 1913

Rev A. J. Thompson, Presbyterian

No	64
Date of Notice	23 October 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Samuel Percival Lett	Ada Elizabeth Cottle
	💍 1913/7697
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Carpenter	Domestic duties
Age	30	22
Dwelling Place	Masterton	Masterton
Length of Residence	3 years	22 years
Marriage Place	The Church
Folio	13/7485
Consent
Date of Certificate	23 October 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev A. J. Thompson, Presbyterian

24 October 1913

Horace Wilfred Rishworth
Nora Catherine Bennett

Horace Wilfred Rishworth
Nora Catherine Bennett
💍 1913/9018

Bachelor
Spinster

Surgeon Dentist
Domestic duties

33
23

Masterton
Masterton

4 years
23 years

St. Matthews Church

8720

24 October 1913

Rev H. Watson, Anglican

No	65
Date of Notice	24 October 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Horace Wilfred Rishworth	Nora Catherine Bennett
	💍 1913/9018
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Surgeon Dentist	Domestic duties
Age	33	23
Dwelling Place	Masterton	Masterton
Length of Residence	4 years	23 years
Marriage Place	St. Matthews Church
Folio	8720
Consent
Date of Certificate	24 October 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev H. Watson, Anglican

3 November 1913

Clarence Charles Smith
Elsie Richards

Clarence Charles Smith
Elsie Richards
💍 1913/9019

Bachelor
Spinster

Accountant
Music teacher

24
26

Masterton
Masterton

3 days
26 years

St. Matthews Church

8721

3 November 1913

Rev B. Ashcroft, Anglican

No	66
Date of Notice	3 November 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Clarence Charles Smith	Elsie Richards
	💍 1913/9019
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Accountant	Music teacher
Age	24	26
Dwelling Place	Masterton	Masterton
Length of Residence	3 days	26 years
Marriage Place	St. Matthews Church
Folio	8721
Consent
Date of Certificate	3 November 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev B. Ashcroft, Anglican

21 November 1913

Pita Rawhira Paku
Erehapete Urapene

Pita Rawhira Paku
Iuhapeti Urapane
💍 1913/9113

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer
Domestic duties

24
21

Homewood Masterton
Homewood Masterton

24 years
1 year

The Church of the Seven Rules of Jehovah, Okutete

8792

21 November 1913

Rev Aparahama Anaru, of Rules of Jehovah

No	67
Date of Notice	21 November 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Pita Rawhira Paku	Erehapete Urapene
BDM Match (85%)	Pita Rawhira Paku	Iuhapeti Urapane
	💍 1913/9113
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer	Domestic duties
Age	24	21
Dwelling Place	Homewood Masterton	Homewood Masterton
Length of Residence	24 years	1 year
Marriage Place	The Church of the Seven Rules of Jehovah, Okutete
Folio	8792
Consent
Date of Certificate	21 November 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev Aparahama Anaru, of Rules of Jehovah

24 November 1913

Francis Ernest Harrington
Edith Silvester

Francis Ernest Harrington
Edith Silvester
💍 1913/7698

Bachelor
Spinster

Storeman
Domestic duties

24
21

Masterton
Masterton

2 years
2 years

The Presbyterian Manse, Masterton

13/7486

24 November 1913

Rev A. J. Thompson, Presbyterian

No	68
Date of Notice	24 November 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Francis Ernest Harrington	Edith Silvester
	💍 1913/7698
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Storeman	Domestic duties
Age	24	21
Dwelling Place	Masterton	Masterton
Length of Residence	2 years	2 years
Marriage Place	The Presbyterian Manse, Masterton
Folio	13/7486
Consent
Date of Certificate	24 November 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev A. J. Thompson, Presbyterian

3 December 1913

Ebenezer John Warner Loader
Violet May Duffy

Ebenezer John Warner Loader
Violet May Duffy
💍 1913/9020

Bachelor
Spinster

Teamster
Post-mistress

27
22

Masterton
Masterton

3 years
4 years

St. Matthews Church

8722

3 December 1913

Rev H. Watson, Anglican

No	69
Date of Notice	3 December 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Ebenezer John Warner Loader	Violet May Duffy
	💍 1913/9020
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Teamster	Post-mistress
Age	27	22
Dwelling Place	Masterton	Masterton
Length of Residence	3 years	4 years
Marriage Place	St. Matthews Church
Folio	8722
Consent
Date of Certificate	3 December 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev H. Watson, Anglican

15 December 1913

Ebenezer Martin Swinerd
Mary Ryan Redman

Ebenezer Martin Swinerd
Mary Ryan Redman
💍 1913/7694

Bachelor
Spinster

Painter
Music teacher

32
25

Masterton
Masterton

11 months
22 years

The Wesleyan Church

13/7483

15 December 1913

Rev E. Swinerd, Baptist

No	70
Date of Notice	15 December 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Ebenezer Martin Swinerd	Mary Ryan Redman
	💍 1913/7694
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Painter	Music teacher
Age	32	25
Dwelling Place	Masterton	Masterton
Length of Residence	11 months	22 years
Marriage Place	The Wesleyan Church
Folio	13/7483
Consent
Date of Certificate	15 December 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev E. Swinerd, Baptist

16 December 1913

William Ritchie
Lillian Adelina Brown

William Ritchie
Lillian Adelina Brown
💍 1914/7303

Bachelor
Spinster

Shepherd
Lady help

29
22

Te Roto, Masterton
Bridge Creek, Masterton

1 year
2 years

Presbyterian Church, Lansdowne, Masterton

1164

16 December 1913

Rev A. J. Thompson, Presbyterian

No	71
Date of Notice	16 December 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Ritchie	Lillian Adelina Brown
	💍 1914/7303
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Shepherd	Lady help
Age	29	22
Dwelling Place	Te Roto, Masterton	Bridge Creek, Masterton
Length of Residence	1 year	2 years
Marriage Place	Presbyterian Church, Lansdowne, Masterton
Folio	1164
Consent
Date of Certificate	16 December 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev A. J. Thompson, Presbyterian

14 December 1913

Hartley Myers
Sarah Ann Hellas

Hartley Myers
Sarah Ann Hillas
💍 1913/9021

Bachelor
Spinster

Cabinetmaker
Domestic duties

31
21

Masterton
Mauriceville

2 years
21 years

The house of J. J. Hellas, Mauriceville

8723

14 December 1913

Rev S. J. Serpell, Wesleyan

No	72
Date of Notice	14 December 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Hartley Myers	Sarah Ann Hellas
BDM Match (97%)	Hartley Myers	Sarah Ann Hillas
	💍 1913/9021
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Cabinetmaker	Domestic duties
Age	31	21
Dwelling Place	Masterton	Mauriceville
Length of Residence	2 years	21 years
Marriage Place	The house of J. J. Hellas, Mauriceville
Folio	8723
Consent
Date of Certificate	14 December 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev S. J. Serpell, Wesleyan

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).