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 049

District of Napier Quarter ending 30 June 1913 Registrar William Buchanan

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

21 April 1913

Arthur Newton
Ivy Clare Butler

Arthur Newton
Ivy Clare Butler
💍 1913/575

Bachelor
Spinster

Butcher
Tailoress

23
22

Gisborne
Gisborne

11 years
7 years

Office of Registrar of Marriages, Napier

13/2382

21 April 1913

W. Buchanan, Registrar

No	52
Date of Notice	21 April 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Arthur Newton	Ivy Clare Butler
	💍 1913/575
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Butcher	Tailoress
Age	23	22
Dwelling Place	Gisborne	Gisborne
Length of Residence	11 years	7 years
Marriage Place	Office of Registrar of Marriages, Napier
Folio	13/2382
Consent
Date of Certificate	21 April 1913
Officiating Minister	W. Buchanan, Registrar

28 April 1913

Johan Anton Lauritsen
Georgina Christina Andersen

Johan Anton Lauritsen
Georgina Christina Anderson
💍 1913/3339

Bachelor
Spinster

Seaman
Domestic Duties

31
21

Port Ahuriri
Port Ahuriri

11 years
21 years

House of Rev. Thos. Tait, Napier

13/3063

28 April 1913

Rev. Thos. Tait

No	53
Date of Notice	28 April 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Johan Anton Lauritsen	Georgina Christina Andersen
BDM Match (98%)	Johan Anton Lauritsen	Georgina Christina Anderson
	💍 1913/3339
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Seaman	Domestic Duties
Age	31	21
Dwelling Place	Port Ahuriri	Port Ahuriri
Length of Residence	11 years	21 years
Marriage Place	House of Rev. Thos. Tait, Napier
Folio	13/3063
Consent
Date of Certificate	28 April 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev. Thos. Tait

29 April 1913

Norman Mackay
Beatrice Sarah Murrow

Norman Mackay
Beatrice Sarah Murrow
💍 1913/3679

Bachelor
Spinster

Watchmaker
Dressmaker

23
19

Napier
Napier

6 years
19 years

St. Augustine's Church, Napier

13/3078

Bartholomew John Murrow, father

29 April 1913

Rev. Canon Tuke

No	54
Date of Notice	29 April 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Norman Mackay	Beatrice Sarah Murrow
	💍 1913/3679
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Watchmaker	Dressmaker
Age	23	19
Dwelling Place	Napier	Napier
Length of Residence	6 years	19 years
Marriage Place	St. Augustine's Church, Napier
Folio	13/3078
Consent	Bartholomew John Murrow, father
Date of Certificate	29 April 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev. Canon Tuke

30 April 1913

Leslie Maitland Morrison
Eveline Thatcher

Leslie Maitland Morrison
Eveline Thatcher
💍 1913/576

Bachelor
Spinster

Dairy Farmer
Domestic Duties

27
30

Hawera
Hawera

8 years
12 years

Office of Registrar of Marriages, Napier

13/2383

30 April 1913

W. Buchanan, Registrar

No	55
Date of Notice	30 April 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Leslie Maitland Morrison	Eveline Thatcher
	💍 1913/576
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Dairy Farmer	Domestic Duties
Age	27	30
Dwelling Place	Hawera	Hawera
Length of Residence	8 years	12 years
Marriage Place	Office of Registrar of Marriages, Napier
Folio	13/2383
Consent
Date of Certificate	30 April 1913
Officiating Minister	W. Buchanan, Registrar

2 May 1913

Edward Barr Lauchlan
Jane Sides Davis Lewis

Edward Barr Lauchlan
Jane Sides Davis Lewis
💍 1913/577

Bachelor
Spinster

Rabitter
Housemaid

25
31

Petane
Eskdale

5 weeks
3 weeks

Office of Registrar of Marriages, Napier

13/2384

2 May 1913

W. Buchanan, Registrar

No	56
Date of Notice	2 May 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Edward Barr Lauchlan	Jane Sides Davis Lewis
	💍 1913/577
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Rabitter	Housemaid
Age	25	31
Dwelling Place	Petane	Eskdale
Length of Residence	5 weeks	3 weeks
Marriage Place	Office of Registrar of Marriages, Napier
Folio	13/2384
Consent
Date of Certificate	2 May 1913
Officiating Minister	W. Buchanan, Registrar

2 May 1913

John Spratt Johnstone
Bridget Mary Dooley

John Spratt Johnstone
Bridget Mary Dooley
💍 1913/3683

Bachelor
Spinster

Station Hand
Cook

21
27

Maraoa
Napier

2 years
1 month

House of Rev. J. A. Asher, Napier

13/3082

2 May 1913

Rev. J. A. Asher

No	57
Date of Notice	2 May 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Spratt Johnstone	Bridget Mary Dooley
	💍 1913/3683
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Station Hand	Cook
Age	21	27
Dwelling Place	Maraoa	Napier
Length of Residence	2 years	1 month
Marriage Place	House of Rev. J. A. Asher, Napier
Folio	13/3082
Consent
Date of Certificate	2 May 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. A. Asher

5 May 1913

Thomas Aland White
Henrietta Ellen Thornton

Thomas Aland White
Henrietta Ellen Thornton
💍 1913/6338

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer
Servant

31
27

Napier
Napier

2 years
6 months

St. John's Cathedral, Napier

13/6099

5 May 1913

Rev. Canon Mayne

No	58
Date of Notice	5 May 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Thomas Aland White	Henrietta Ellen Thornton
	💍 1913/6338
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer	Servant
Age	31	27
Dwelling Place	Napier	Napier
Length of Residence	2 years	6 months
Marriage Place	St. John's Cathedral, Napier
Folio	13/6099
Consent
Date of Certificate	5 May 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev. Canon Mayne

9 May 1913

Arthur Edward Heiford
Mary Harriett Wilson

Arthur Edward Heiford
May Harriet Wilson
💍 1913/3682

Bachelor
Spinster

Grocer
Domestic Duties

32
33

Napier
Napier

32 years
33 years

House of P. B. Wilson, Napier

13/3081

9 May 1913

Rev. J. A. Asher

No	59
Date of Notice	9 May 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Arthur Edward Heiford	Mary Harriett Wilson
BDM Match (95%)	Arthur Edward Heiford	May Harriet Wilson
	💍 1913/3682
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Grocer	Domestic Duties
Age	32	33
Dwelling Place	Napier	Napier
Length of Residence	32 years	33 years
Marriage Place	House of P. B. Wilson, Napier
Folio	13/3081
Consent
Date of Certificate	9 May 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. A. Asher

12 May 1913

Ernest Robert Sanson
Maria May Mill

Ernest Robert Sanson
Maria May Mill
💍 1913/554

Bachelor
Spinster

Gardener
Housekeeper

38
28

Puketapu
Puketapu

3 years
2 1/2 years

Office of Registrar of Marriages, Napier

13/2385

12 May 1913

W. Buchanan, Registrar

No	60
Date of Notice	12 May 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Ernest Robert Sanson	Maria May Mill
	💍 1913/554
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Gardener	Housekeeper
Age	38	28
Dwelling Place	Puketapu	Puketapu
Length of Residence	3 years	2 1/2 years
Marriage Place	Office of Registrar of Marriages, Napier
Folio	13/2385
Consent
Date of Certificate	12 May 1913
Officiating Minister	W. Buchanan, Registrar

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).