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 599

District of East Taieri Quarter ending 31 March 1913 Registrar Gilbert Burness Burns

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

6 January 1913

John Stewart
Nettie Georgina Todd

John Stewart
Nettie Georgina Todd
💍 1913/4877

Bachelor
Spinster

School Teacher

29
33

Mosgiel
Mosgiel

2 weeks
30 years

House of Mr. Todd

13/4430

6 January 1913

Rev. A. H. Kinmont, East Taieri

No	1
Date of Notice	6 January 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Stewart	Nettie Georgina Todd
	💍 1913/4877
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	School Teacher
Age	29	33
Dwelling Place	Mosgiel	Mosgiel
Length of Residence	2 weeks	30 years
Marriage Place	House of Mr. Todd
Folio	13/4430
Consent
Date of Certificate	6 January 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev. A. H. Kinmont, East Taieri

11 January 1913

John McCorkindale
Catherine Taylor

John McCorkindale
Catherine Taylor
💍 1913/2749

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer

27
29

Otokia
Otokia

21 years
29 years

House of Mr. Taylor

13/1719

11 January 1913

Rev. D. McColl, Otokia

No	2
Date of Notice	11 January 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John McCorkindale	Catherine Taylor
	💍 1913/2749
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer
Age	27	29
Dwelling Place	Otokia	Otokia
Length of Residence	21 years	29 years
Marriage Place	House of Mr. Taylor
Folio	13/1719
Consent
Date of Certificate	11 January 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev. D. McColl, Otokia

20 January 1913

David Jones
Jessie Ann Owens

David Toner
Jessie Ann Owens
💍 1913/2747

Bachelor
Spinster

Butcher

27
23

Mosgiel
Mosgiel

3 days
23 years

House of D. Owens

13/1717

20 January 1913

Rev. J. Aitken, Mosgiel

No	3
Date of Notice	20 January 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	David Jones	Jessie Ann Owens
BDM Match (91%)	David Toner	Jessie Ann Owens
	💍 1913/2747
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Butcher
Age	27	23
Dwelling Place	Mosgiel	Mosgiel
Length of Residence	3 days	23 years
Marriage Place	House of D. Owens
Folio	13/1717
Consent
Date of Certificate	20 January 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. Aitken, Mosgiel

27 January 1913

George Watt
Christina Beaton

George Watt
Christina Beaton
💍 1913/4738

Bachelor
Spinster

Butcher

31
17

Mosgiel
Mosgiel

3 days
12 years

House of J. Beaton

13/436

27 January 1913

Rev. H. Nichol, Mosgiel

No	4
Date of Notice	27 January 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	George Watt	Christina Beaton
	💍 1913/4738
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Butcher
Age	31	17
Dwelling Place	Mosgiel	Mosgiel
Length of Residence	3 days	12 years
Marriage Place	House of J. Beaton
Folio	13/436
Consent
Date of Certificate	27 January 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev. H. Nichol, Mosgiel

4 February 1913

Robert Knox
Ethel Lilian Frances Lobb

Robert Knox
Ethel Lilian Frances Lobb
💍 1913/2751

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer

52
36

Kuri Bush
Kuri Bush

3 days
5 years

House of Messrs. Lobb Brothers

13/1720

4 February 1913

Rev. D. K. Fisher, Brighton

No	5
Date of Notice	4 February 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Robert Knox	Ethel Lilian Frances Lobb
	💍 1913/2751
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer
Age	52	36
Dwelling Place	Kuri Bush	Kuri Bush
Length of Residence	3 days	5 years
Marriage Place	House of Messrs. Lobb Brothers
Folio	13/1720
Consent
Date of Certificate	4 February 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev. D. K. Fisher, Brighton

18 February 1913

George Dutton McDonald
Margaret Eliza McIntosh

George Dutton McDonald
Margaret Eliza McIntosh
💍 1913/2553

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer

33
29

Allanton
Allanton

3 years
16 months

House of Mr. Stevenson

13/2072

18 February 1913

Rev. A. H. Kinmont, East Taieri

No	6
Date of Notice	18 February 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	George Dutton McDonald	Margaret Eliza McIntosh
	💍 1913/2553
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer
Age	33	29
Dwelling Place	Allanton	Allanton
Length of Residence	3 years	16 months
Marriage Place	House of Mr. Stevenson
Folio	13/2072
Consent
Date of Certificate	18 February 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev. A. H. Kinmont, East Taieri

15 March 1913

John Nicolas Forster
Mary Owens

John Nicolas Forster
Mary Owens
💍 1913/2752

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer

29
26

Mosgiel
Mosgiel

3 days
26 years

House of H. O. Owens

13/1721

15 March 1913

Rev. F. McDonald, Mosgiel

No	7
Date of Notice	15 March 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Nicolas Forster	Mary Owens
	💍 1913/2752
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer
Age	29	26
Dwelling Place	Mosgiel	Mosgiel
Length of Residence	3 days	26 years
Marriage Place	House of H. O. Owens
Folio	13/1721
Consent
Date of Certificate	15 March 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev. F. McDonald, Mosgiel

17 March 1913

John Steven McPherson
Lily Sinclair

John Steven McPherson
Lily Sinclair
💍 1913/2748

Bachelor
Spinster

Police Constable

25
28

Mosgiel
Mosgiel

3 days
1 month

House of H. G. Sinclair

13/1718

17 March 1913

Rev. J. Aitken, Mosgiel

No	8
Date of Notice	17 March 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Steven McPherson	Lily Sinclair
	💍 1913/2748
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Police Constable
Age	25	28
Dwelling Place	Mosgiel	Mosgiel
Length of Residence	3 days	1 month
Marriage Place	House of H. G. Sinclair
Folio	13/1718
Consent
Date of Certificate	17 March 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. Aitken, Mosgiel

20 March 1913

Edward Herbert Keen
Rosie Smolenski

Edward Herbert Keen
Rosie Smolenski
💍 1913/2746

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer

24
24

Allanton
Allanton

3 days
24 years

Roman Catholic Church, Allanton

13/1716

20 March 1913

Rev. J. Liston, Mosgiel

No	9
Date of Notice	20 March 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Edward Herbert Keen	Rosie Smolenski
	💍 1913/2746
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer
Age	24	24
Dwelling Place	Allanton	Allanton
Length of Residence	3 days	24 years
Marriage Place	Roman Catholic Church, Allanton
Folio	13/1716
Consent
Date of Certificate	20 March 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. Liston, Mosgiel

31 March 1913

James David Knarston
Ellen Coutts

James David Knarston
Ellen Coutts
💍 1913/4421

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer

28
27

Brighton
Brighton

3 days
5 years

House of Mr. Coutts, Otago

13/4022

31 March 1913

Rev. D. K. Fisher, Brighton

No	10
Date of Notice	31 March 1913
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	James David Knarston	Ellen Coutts
	💍 1913/4421
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer
Age	28	27
Dwelling Place	Brighton	Brighton
Length of Residence	3 days	5 years
Marriage Place	House of Mr. Coutts, Otago
Folio	13/4022
Consent
Date of Certificate	31 March 1913
Officiating Minister	Rev. D. K. Fisher, Brighton

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).