Intentions to Marry, 1915 Rangiora to Chatham Islands (includes Otago)

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840462, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

1915 is bound in six volumes (a to f) with continuous page numbers. Each volume contains a different set of districts, going from north to south.

1915f contains pages 2619-3266, covering districts from Rangiora to Chatham Islands (includes Otago)

Page 3059

District of Waikouaiti Quarter ending 31 December 1915 Registrar Edward Davis

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

14 October 1915

Arthur James Prescott
Annie Templeton

Arthur James Prescott
Annie Templeton
💍 1915/7281

Bachelor
Spinster

Carpenter
Domestic duties

28
31

Waikouaiti
Waikouaiti

5 years
31 years

Church of St. John, Waikouaiti

9795

14 October 1915

Rev. E. J. Neale

No	66
Date of Notice	14 October 1915
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Arthur James Prescott	Annie Templeton
	💍 1915/7281
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Carpenter	Domestic duties
Age	28	31
Dwelling Place	Waikouaiti	Waikouaiti
Length of Residence	5 years	31 years
Marriage Place	Church of St. John, Waikouaiti
Folio	9795
Consent
Date of Certificate	14 October 1915
Officiating Minister	Rev. E. J. Neale

22 October 1915

John Hay Taylor Wilson
Ellen Beatrice Reid

John Hay Taylor Wilson
Ellen Beatrice Reid
💍 1915/7304

Widower
Spinster

Bootmaker
Domestic duties

59
30

Waikouaiti
Waikouaiti

11 years
6 months

House of Mr. H. T. Wilson, Waikouaiti

9794

22 October 1915

Rev. Alex. Allen

No	67
Date of Notice	22 October 1915
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Hay Taylor Wilson	Ellen Beatrice Reid
	💍 1915/7304
Condition	Widower	Spinster
Profession	Bootmaker	Domestic duties
Age	59	30
Dwelling Place	Waikouaiti	Waikouaiti
Length of Residence	11 years	6 months
Marriage Place	House of Mr. H. T. Wilson, Waikouaiti
Folio	9794
Consent
Date of Certificate	22 October 1915
Officiating Minister	Rev. Alex. Allen

2 November 1915

Matthew Barclay
Annie Catherine Aitcheson

Matthew Barclay
Annie Catherine Aitcheson
💍 1915/7291

Bachelor
Spinster

Railway Porter
Domestic duties

26
20

Waikouaiti
Waikouaiti

3 days
20 years

Methodist Church, Waikouaiti

9787

James Aitcheson, Father

2 November 1915

Rev. Alex. Allen

No	68
Date of Notice	2 November 1915
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Matthew Barclay	Annie Catherine Aitcheson
	💍 1915/7291
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Railway Porter	Domestic duties
Age	26	20
Dwelling Place	Waikouaiti	Waikouaiti
Length of Residence	3 days	20 years
Marriage Place	Methodist Church, Waikouaiti
Folio	9787
Consent	James Aitcheson, Father
Date of Certificate	2 November 1915
Officiating Minister	Rev. Alex. Allen

18 November 1915

David Grant Shand
Annie McLeod

David Grant Shand
Annie McLeod
💍 1915/7303

Bachelor
Spinster

Storeman
Domestic duties

24
26

Waikouaiti
Waikouaiti

24 years
26 years

Presbyterian Church, Waikouaiti

9793

18 November 1915

Rev. J. J. Cairney

No	69
Date of Notice	18 November 1915
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	David Grant Shand	Annie McLeod
	💍 1915/7303
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Storeman	Domestic duties
Age	24	26
Dwelling Place	Waikouaiti	Waikouaiti
Length of Residence	24 years	26 years
Marriage Place	Presbyterian Church, Waikouaiti
Folio	9793
Consent
Date of Certificate	18 November 1915
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. J. Cairney

11 December 1915

John Cushney Diack
Isabella McLeod

John Cushney Diack
Isabella McLeod
💍 1915/7302

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer
Domestic duties

37
36

Waikouaiti
Waikouaiti

37 years
36 years

Presbyterian Church, Waikouaiti

9792

11 December 1915

Rev. J. J. Cairney

No	70
Date of Notice	11 December 1915
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Cushney Diack	Isabella McLeod
	💍 1915/7302
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer	Domestic duties
Age	37	36
Dwelling Place	Waikouaiti	Waikouaiti
Length of Residence	37 years	36 years
Marriage Place	Presbyterian Church, Waikouaiti
Folio	9792
Consent
Date of Certificate	11 December 1915
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. J. Cairney

27 December 1915

William George Fraser
Jane Davidson

William George Fraser
Jane Davidson
💍 1915/7298

William Francis Morrison
Jean Davidson
💍 1915/9151

Bachelor
Spinster

Farmer
Domestic duties

22
22

Merton
Merton

2 years
7 years

House of Mr. Alex. Davidson, Merton

9788

27 December 1915

Rev. A. M. Finlayson

No	71
Date of Notice	27 December 1915
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William George Fraser	Jane Davidson
	💍 1915/7298
BDM Match (65%)	William Francis Morrison	Jean Davidson
	💍 1915/9151
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Farmer	Domestic duties
Age	22	22
Dwelling Place	Merton	Merton
Length of Residence	2 years	7 years
Marriage Place	House of Mr. Alex. Davidson, Merton
Folio	9788
Consent
Date of Certificate	27 December 1915
Officiating Minister	Rev. A. M. Finlayson

28 December 1915

Albert Victor Young
Essie Maxwell

Albert Victor Young
Essie Maxwell
💍 1915/7300

Albert Edward Woodland
Annie Maxwell
💍 1915/8699

Bachelor
Spinster

Painter
Domestic duties

25
27

Waikouaiti
Waikouaiti

3 days
27 years

House of Mr. John Maxwell, Waikouaiti

9790

28 December 1915

Rev. J. J. Cairney

No	72
Date of Notice	28 December 1915
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Albert Victor Young	Essie Maxwell
	💍 1915/7300
BDM Match (61%)	Albert Edward Woodland	Annie Maxwell
	💍 1915/8699
Condition	Bachelor	Spinster
Profession	Painter	Domestic duties
Age	25	27
Dwelling Place	Waikouaiti	Waikouaiti
Length of Residence	3 days	27 years
Marriage Place	House of Mr. John Maxwell, Waikouaiti
Folio	9790
Consent
Date of Certificate	28 December 1915
Officiating Minister	Rev. J. J. Cairney

28 December 1915

John Fraser Henderson
Mary Williamson

John Fraser Henderson
Mary Williamson
💍 1915/7299

Widower
Spinster

Farmer
Domestic duties

49
32

Waikouaiti
Waikouaiti

49 years
32 years

Methodist Church, Waikouaiti

9789

28 December 1915

Rev. Alex. Allen

No	73
Date of Notice	28 December 1915
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Fraser Henderson	Mary Williamson
	💍 1915/7299
Condition	Widower	Spinster
Profession	Farmer	Domestic duties
Age	49	32
Dwelling Place	Waikouaiti	Waikouaiti
Length of Residence	49 years	32 years
Marriage Place	Methodist Church, Waikouaiti
Folio	9789
Consent
Date of Certificate	28 December 1915
Officiating Minister	Rev. Alex. Allen

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).