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 2397

District of Timaru Quarter ending 30 June 1914 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

25 April 1914

William Toohey
Anne O'Grady

William Toohey
Annie O'Grady
💍 1914/940

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer
Domestic duties

38 years
23 years

St Andrews
Timaru

12 years
5 years

Roman Catholic Church, Timaru

4533

25 April 1914

Rev. Dean Tubman, Roman Catholic Priest

No	40
Date of Notice	25 April 1914
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William Toohey	Anne O'Grady
BDM Match (96%)	William Toohey	Annie O'Grady
	💍 1914/940
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer	Domestic duties
Age	38 years	23 years
Dwelling Place	St Andrews	Timaru
Length of Residence	12 years	5 years
Marriage Place	Roman Catholic Church, Timaru
Folio	4533
Consent
Date of Certificate	25 April 1914
Officiating Minister	Rev. Dean Tubman, Roman Catholic Priest

28 April 1914

Cecil George Yardley Tomlinson
Annie McInlay

Cecil George Yardley Tomlinson
Annie McKinley
💍 1914/2883

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer
Letterpress Machinist

25
23

Timaru
Timaru

25 years
3 weeks

Chalmers Presbyterian Church, Timaru

6710

28 April 1914

Rev. A. Macaulay Caldwell, Presbyterian Minister

No	41
Date of Notice	28 April 1914
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Cecil George Yardley Tomlinson	Annie McInlay
BDM Match (89%)	Cecil George Yardley Tomlinson	Annie McKinley
	💍 1914/2883
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer	Letterpress Machinist
Age	25	23
Dwelling Place	Timaru	Timaru
Length of Residence	25 years	3 weeks
Marriage Place	Chalmers Presbyterian Church, Timaru
Folio	6710
Consent
Date of Certificate	28 April 1914
Officiating Minister	Rev. A. Macaulay Caldwell, Presbyterian Minister

28 April 1914

Evan Gale
Margaret Florence Fargher

Evan Gale
Margaret Florence Fargher
💍 1914/5806

Bachelor
Spinster

Baker
Domestic duties

46
31

Timaru
Timaru

4 days
10 days

Bank St Methodist Church, Timaru

3316

28 April 1914

Rev. T. A. Joughin, Methodist Minister

No	42
Date of Notice	28 April 1914
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Evan Gale	Margaret Florence Fargher
	💍 1914/5806
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Baker	Domestic duties
Age	46	31
Dwelling Place	Timaru	Timaru
Length of Residence	4 days	10 days
Marriage Place	Bank St Methodist Church, Timaru
Folio	3316
Consent
Date of Certificate	28 April 1914
Officiating Minister	Rev. T. A. Joughin, Methodist Minister

28 April 1914

John Alexander McAuley
Francisca Louisa Pearce

John Alexander McAuley
Francisa Louisa Pearce
💍 1914/5832

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer
Domestic servant

25
24

Timaru
Timaru

3 days
3 days

St Mary's English Church, Timaru

3368

28 April 1914

Archdeacon Jacob, Church of England Clergyman

No	43
Date of Notice	28 April 1914
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Alexander McAuley	Francisca Louisa Pearce
BDM Match (98%)	John Alexander McAuley	Francisa Louisa Pearce
	💍 1914/5832
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer	Domestic servant
Age	25	24
Dwelling Place	Timaru	Timaru
Length of Residence	3 days	3 days
Marriage Place	St Mary's English Church, Timaru
Folio	3368
Consent
Date of Certificate	28 April 1914
Officiating Minister	Archdeacon Jacob, Church of England Clergyman

2 May 1914

John Henry Cock
Alice Arbuckle

John Henry Cock
Alice Arbuckle
💍 1914/5807

Bachelor
Spinster

Labourer
Domestic servant

23
21

Claremont
Timaru

2 years
3 years

Registrar's Office, Timaru

3317

2 May 1914

Alex. Montgomery, Registrar

No	44
Date of Notice	2 May 1914
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Henry Cock	Alice Arbuckle
	💍 1914/5807
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Labourer	Domestic servant
Age	23	21
Dwelling Place	Claremont	Timaru
Length of Residence	2 years	3 years
Marriage Place	Registrar's Office, Timaru
Folio	3317
Consent
Date of Certificate	2 May 1914
Officiating Minister	Alex. Montgomery, Registrar

2 May 1914

Henry William Hunt
May Seaton

Henry William Hunt
May Seaton
💍 1914/5808

Bachelor
Spinster

Butcher
Domestic servant

24
21

Timaru
Timaru

1 month
1 month

Registrar's Office, Timaru

3318

2 May 1914

Alex. Montgomery, Registrar

No	45
Date of Notice	2 May 1914
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Henry William Hunt	May Seaton
	💍 1914/5808
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Butcher	Domestic servant
Age	24	21
Dwelling Place	Timaru	Timaru
Length of Residence	1 month	1 month
Marriage Place	Registrar's Office, Timaru
Folio	3318
Consent
Date of Certificate	2 May 1914
Officiating Minister	Alex. Montgomery, Registrar

6 May 1914

Walter Martin Grayburn
Alice Bowkett

Walter Martin Grayburn
Alice Bowkett
💍 1914/5811

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer
Domestic duties

32
26

Timaru
Timaru

3 days
1 year 9 months

Methodist Church, Woodlands St, Timaru

3320

6 May 1914

Rev. B. Dudley, Methodist Minister

No	46
Date of Notice	6 May 1914
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Walter Martin Grayburn	Alice Bowkett
	💍 1914/5811
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer	Domestic duties
Age	32	26
Dwelling Place	Timaru	Timaru
Length of Residence	3 days	1 year 9 months
Marriage Place	Methodist Church, Woodlands St, Timaru
Folio	3320
Consent
Date of Certificate	6 May 1914
Officiating Minister	Rev. B. Dudley, Methodist Minister

6 May 1914

George Manning
Mary Helen Burness

George Manning
Mary Helen Burnes
💍 1914/5809

Bachelor
Spinster

Fisherman
Domestic servant

25
21

Timaru
Timaru

25 years
4 days

Dwellinghouse of Mrs Manning, Grey St, Timaru

3319

6 May 1914

Rev. J. H. G. Chapple, Unitarian Minister

No	47
Date of Notice	6 May 1914
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	George Manning	Mary Helen Burness
BDM Match (97%)	George Manning	Mary Helen Burnes
	💍 1914/5809
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Fisherman	Domestic servant
Age	25	21
Dwelling Place	Timaru	Timaru
Length of Residence	25 years	4 days
Marriage Place	Dwellinghouse of Mrs Manning, Grey St, Timaru
Folio	3319
Consent
Date of Certificate	6 May 1914
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. H. G. Chapple, Unitarian 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).