Intentions to Marry, 1914 Canterbury, Otago, Southland, Chatham Island

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840456, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

1914 is bound in three volumes - Auckland, Taranaki (1914a), Wellington, Hawke's Bay, Marlborough, Nelson, Westland (1914b), and Canterbury, Otago, Southland, Chatham Islands (1914c).

Page 2383

District of Temuka Quarter ending 30 September 1914 Registrar Alfred Roberts

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 July 1914

Michael Thomas Wadley
Florence Louisa Hearn

Michael Thomas Wadley
Florence Louisa Hearn
💍 1914/2573

Bachelor
Spinster

Farm Laborer
Domestic duties

23
19

Rangitata Island
Rangitata Island

4 days
4 days

Residence of M. Hearn, Rangitata Island

6324

Clara Maria Hearn, Mother

6 July 1914

Rev. A. H. Norris

No	31
Date of Notice	6 July 1914
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Michael Thomas Wadley	Florence Louisa Hearn
	💍 1914/2573
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farm Laborer	Domestic duties
Age	23	19
Dwelling Place	Rangitata Island	Rangitata Island
Length of Residence	4 days	4 days
Marriage Place	Residence of M. Hearn, Rangitata Island
Folio	6324
Consent	Clara Maria Hearn, Mother
Date of Certificate	6 July 1914
Officiating Minister	Rev. A. H. Norris

10 July 1914

Francis James Carroll
Mata Rehutepa

Francis James Carroll
Mata Rehu Tepa
💍 1914/2572

Bachelor
Spinster

Chauffeur
Household duties

21
18

Timaru
Temuka

6 months
18 years

Church of England, Temuka

6323

Ihaia Rehutepa, Father

10 July 1914

Rev. A. H. Norris

No	32
Date of Notice	10 July 1914
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Francis James Carroll	Mata Rehutepa
BDM Match (93%)	Francis James Carroll	Mata Rehu Tepa
	💍 1914/2572
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Chauffeur	Household duties
Age	21	18
Dwelling Place	Timaru	Temuka
Length of Residence	6 months	18 years
Marriage Place	Church of England, Temuka
Folio	6323
Consent	Ihaia Rehutepa, Father
Date of Certificate	10 July 1914
Officiating Minister	Rev. A. H. Norris

13 July 1914

William Paterson
Margaret Nairn Grant

William Paterson
Margaret Nairn Grant
💍 1914/2566

Bachelor
Spinster

Farm Laborer
Domestic duties

32
22

Temuka
Temuka

7 years
22 years

Presbyterian Manse, Temuka

6318

13 July 1914

Rev. C. Macdonald

No	33
Date of Notice	13 July 1914
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Paterson	Margaret Nairn Grant
	💍 1914/2566
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farm Laborer	Domestic duties
Age	32	22
Dwelling Place	Temuka	Temuka
Length of Residence	7 years	22 years
Marriage Place	Presbyterian Manse, Temuka
Folio	6318
Consent
Date of Certificate	13 July 1914
Officiating Minister	Rev. C. Macdonald

14 July 1914

William George Weir
Mildred Coombs

William George Weir
Mildred Coombs
💍 1914/2574

Bachelor
Spinster

Hotel Assistant
Domestic duties

33
30

Temuka
Temuka

12 months
7 years

Church of England, Temuka

6325

14 July 1914

Rev. A. H. Norris

No	34
Date of Notice	14 July 1914
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William George Weir	Mildred Coombs
	💍 1914/2574
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Hotel Assistant	Domestic duties
Age	33	30
Dwelling Place	Temuka	Temuka
Length of Residence	12 months	7 years
Marriage Place	Church of England, Temuka
Folio	6325
Consent
Date of Certificate	14 July 1914
Officiating Minister	Rev. A. H. Norris

28 July 1914

John Joseph Lane
Margaret Elizabeth Hanifin

John Joseph Lane
Margaret Elizabeth Hanifin
💍 1914/2569

Bachelor
Spinster

Laborer
Domestic duties

27
21

Temuka
Temuka

3 days
1 week

Roman Catholic Church, Temuka

6320

28 July 1914

Rev. F. Kerley

No	35
Date of Notice	28 July 1914
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Joseph Lane	Margaret Elizabeth Hanifin
	💍 1914/2569
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Laborer	Domestic duties
Age	27	21
Dwelling Place	Temuka	Temuka
Length of Residence	3 days	1 week
Marriage Place	Roman Catholic Church, Temuka
Folio	6320
Consent
Date of Certificate	28 July 1914
Officiating Minister	Rev. F. Kerley

28 July 1914

Robert Campbell
Margaret Lynch

Robert Campbell
Margaret Lynch
💍 1914/2570

John Russell
Margaret Lynch
💍 1914/1488

Bachelor
Spinster

Laborer
Domestic duties

30
27

Temuka
Temuka

2 days
3 days

Roman Catholic Church, Temuka

6321

28 July 1914

Rev. F. Kerley

No	36
Date of Notice	28 July 1914
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Robert Campbell	Margaret Lynch
	💍 1914/2570
BDM Match (67%)	John Russell	Margaret Lynch
	💍 1914/1488
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Laborer	Domestic duties
Age	30	27
Dwelling Place	Temuka	Temuka
Length of Residence	2 days	3 days
Marriage Place	Roman Catholic Church, Temuka
Folio	6321
Consent
Date of Certificate	28 July 1914
Officiating Minister	Rev. F. Kerley

5 August 1914

William Richard Black
Emma Oldfield

William Richard Black
Emma Oldfield
💍 1914/2724

Bachelor
Spinster

Butcher
Domestic duties

27
26

Temuka
Temuka

4 days
26 years

Church of England, Temuka

6525

5 August 1914

Rev. A. H. Norris

No	37
Date of Notice	5 August 1914
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Richard Black	Emma Oldfield
	💍 1914/2724
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Butcher	Domestic duties
Age	27	26
Dwelling Place	Temuka	Temuka
Length of Residence	4 days	26 years
Marriage Place	Church of England, Temuka
Folio	6525
Consent
Date of Certificate	5 August 1914
Officiating Minister	Rev. A. H. Norris

24 August 1914

Francis Peter Shannahan
Elizabeth May Elsom

Francis Peter Shannahan
Elizabeth May Elsom
💍 1914/2571

Bachelor
Spinster

Carpenter
Dressmaker

28
24

Winchester
Winchester

3 years
11 years

Roman Catholic Church, Temuka

6322

24 August 1914

Rev. F. Kerley

No	38
Date of Notice	24 August 1914
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Francis Peter Shannahan	Elizabeth May Elsom
	💍 1914/2571
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Carpenter	Dressmaker
Age	28	24
Dwelling Place	Winchester	Winchester
Length of Residence	3 years	11 years
Marriage Place	Roman Catholic Church, Temuka
Folio	6322
Consent
Date of Certificate	24 August 1914
Officiating Minister	Rev. F. Kerley

1 September 1914

William George Wurm
Elizabeth Ann Clinch

William George Louie Wurm
Elizabeth Ann Clinch
💍 1914/2732

Bachelor
Spinster

Fireman
Household duties

23
26

Temuka
Temuka

3 days
26 years

Church of England, Temuka

6526

1 September 1914

Rev. A. H. Norris

No	39
Date of Notice	1 September 1914
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William George Wurm	Elizabeth Ann Clinch
BDM Match (88%)	William George Louie Wurm	Elizabeth Ann Clinch
	💍 1914/2732
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Fireman	Household duties
Age	23	26
Dwelling Place	Temuka	Temuka
Length of Residence	3 days	26 years
Marriage Place	Church of England, Temuka
Folio	6526
Consent
Date of Certificate	1 September 1914
Officiating Minister	Rev. A. H. Norris

9 September 1914

Frederick Charles Blanch
Margaret Elizabeth Mallett

Frederick Charles Blanch
Margaret Elizabeth Mallett
💍 1914/2567

Bachelor
Spinster

Builder
Dressmaker

27
25

Temuka
Temuka

4 days
6 months

Presbyterian Church, Temuka

6319

9 September 1914

Rev. C. Macdonald

No	40
Date of Notice	9 September 1914
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Frederick Charles Blanch	Margaret Elizabeth Mallett
	💍 1914/2567
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Builder	Dressmaker
Age	27	25
Dwelling Place	Temuka	Temuka
Length of Residence	4 days	6 months
Marriage Place	Presbyterian Church, Temuka
Folio	6319
Consent
Date of Certificate	9 September 1914
Officiating Minister	Rev. C. Macdonald

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).