Intentions to Marry, 1913 Canterbury, Otago, Southland, Chatham Islands

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840453, 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 354

District of Timaru Quarter ending 31 March 1913 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

10 February 1913

William Rose Laurenson
Annie Straw

William Rose Lawrenson
Annie Straw
💍 1913/3911

Bachelor
Spinster

Carpenter
Domestic duties

44 years
34 years

Timaru
Timaru

1 year
1 year

Chalmers Presbyterian Church, Timaru

13/3486

10 February 1913

Rev. A. Macaulay Caldwell, Presbyterian Minister

No	14
Date of Notice	10 February 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Rose Laurenson	Annie Straw
BDM Match (98%)	William Rose Lawrenson	Annie Straw
	💍 1913/3911
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Carpenter	Domestic duties
Age	44 years	34 years
Dwelling Place	Timaru	Timaru
Length of Residence	1 year	1 year
Marriage Place	Chalmers Presbyterian Church, Timaru
Folio	13/3486
Consent
Date of Certificate	10 February 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev. A. Macaulay Caldwell, Presbyterian Minister

13 February 1913

James D. Arroch
Mary Jane Stewart

James Darroch
Mary Jane Stewart
💍 1913/3977

Bachelor
Spinster

Slaughterman
Dressmaker

26 years
28 years

Timaru
Timaru

11 years
10 years

Chalmers Church, Timaru

13/3528

13 February 1913

Rev. A. Macaulay Caldwell, Presbyterian Minister

No	18
Date of Notice	13 February 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	James D. Arroch	Mary Jane Stewart
BDM Match (90%)	James Darroch	Mary Jane Stewart
	💍 1913/3977
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Slaughterman	Dressmaker
Age	26 years	28 years
Dwelling Place	Timaru	Timaru
Length of Residence	11 years	10 years
Marriage Place	Chalmers Church, Timaru
Folio	13/3528
Consent
Date of Certificate	13 February 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev. A. Macaulay Caldwell, Presbyterian Minister

18 February 1913

Bertie William Johnson
Lilian Julia Scarf

Bertie William Johnson
Lilian Julia Scarf
💍 1913/2115

Bachelor
Spinster

Tailor
Domestic duties

23 years
22 years

Timaru
Timaru

4 months
22 years

Dwellinghouse of W. Scarf, Craigie Avenue, Timaru

13/1556

18 February 1913

Rev. A. E. Hunt, Congregational Minister

No	19
Date of Notice	18 February 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Bertie William Johnson	Lilian Julia Scarf
	💍 1913/2115
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Tailor	Domestic duties
Age	23 years	22 years
Dwelling Place	Timaru	Timaru
Length of Residence	4 months	22 years
Marriage Place	Dwellinghouse of W. Scarf, Craigie Avenue, Timaru
Folio	13/1556
Consent
Date of Certificate	18 February 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev. A. E. Hunt, Congregational Minister

25 February 1913

William John Harkness
Wilhelmina Shaw

William John Harkners
Wilhelmina Shaw
💍 1913/2032

Bachelor
Spinster

Engine Driver
Domestic Servant

23 years
20 years

Lealls
Timaru

23 years
20 years

Manse of Rev. T. Stinson, Timaru

13/1545

25 February 1913

Rev. T. Stinson, Presbyterian Minister

No	20
Date of Notice	25 February 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William John Harkness	Wilhelmina Shaw
BDM Match (98%)	William John Harkners	Wilhelmina Shaw
	💍 1913/2032
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Engine Driver	Domestic Servant
Age	23 years	20 years
Dwelling Place	Lealls	Timaru
Length of Residence	23 years	20 years
Marriage Place	Manse of Rev. T. Stinson, Timaru
Folio	13/1545
Consent
Date of Certificate	25 February 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev. T. Stinson, Presbyterian Minister

25 February 1913

John William Coker
Florence Pope

John William Coker
Florence Pope
💍 1913/3978

Widower
Spinster

Plasterer
Tailoress

31 years
34 years

Timaru
Timaru

31 years
6 years

Manse of Rev. A. Macaulay Caldwell, Timaru

13/3529

25 February 1913

Rev. A. Macaulay Caldwell, Presbyterian Minister

No	21
Date of Notice	25 February 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John William Coker	Florence Pope
	💍 1913/3978
Condition	Widower	Spinster
Profession	Plasterer	Tailoress
Age	31 years	34 years
Dwelling Place	Timaru	Timaru
Length of Residence	31 years	6 years
Marriage Place	Manse of Rev. A. Macaulay Caldwell, Timaru
Folio	13/3529
Consent
Date of Certificate	25 February 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev. A. Macaulay Caldwell, Presbyterian Minister

26 February 1913

William Martin Shore
Harriet Clark

William Martin Thore
Harriet Clark
💍 1913/2030

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer
Domestic Servant

24 years
18 years

Timaru
Timaru

16 months
2 years

Manse of Rev. T. Stinson, Timaru

13/1544

26 February 1913

Rev. T. Stinson, Presbyterian Minister

No	22
Date of Notice	26 February 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Martin Shore	Harriet Clark
BDM Match (98%)	William Martin Thore	Harriet Clark
	💍 1913/2030
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer	Domestic Servant
Age	24 years	18 years
Dwelling Place	Timaru	Timaru
Length of Residence	16 months	2 years
Marriage Place	Manse of Rev. T. Stinson, Timaru
Folio	13/1544
Consent
Date of Certificate	26 February 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev. T. Stinson, Presbyterian Minister

4 March 1913

Arthur Edward Horwell
Elizabeth McBain Meikle

Arthur Edward Horwell
Elizabeth McBain Meikle
💍 1913/3979

Bachelor
Spinster

Salesman
Dressmaker

25 years
24 years

Timaru
Timaru

8 1/2 years
1 1/2 years

Dwellinghouse of Alex. L. Meikle, Church St. West, Timaru

13/3530

4 March 1913

Rev. A. Macaulay Caldwell, Presbyterian Minister

No	23
Date of Notice	4 March 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Arthur Edward Horwell	Elizabeth McBain Meikle
	💍 1913/3979
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Salesman	Dressmaker
Age	25 years	24 years
Dwelling Place	Timaru	Timaru
Length of Residence	8 1/2 years	1 1/2 years
Marriage Place	Dwellinghouse of Alex. L. Meikle, Church St. West, Timaru
Folio	13/3530
Consent
Date of Certificate	4 March 1913
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).