Intentions to Marry, 1916 Rangiora to Chatham Islands

Reference: Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages, Notices of intention to marry, Series 8937, R2840468, Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga, Wellington

1916 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.

1916f contains pages 2397-3014, covering districts from Rangiora to Chatham Islands

Page 2534

District of Dunedin Quarter ending 31 March 1916 Registrar Henry Maxwell

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 1916

William James Cameron.
Mabel Egley.

William James Cameron
Mabel Egley
💍 1916/4743

Bachelor.
Spinster.

Motor Agent.
Dressmaker.

37
29

Dunedin.
Dunedin.

26 years
20 years

House of Rev. E. A. Axelsen, 41 Clyde St., Dunedin.

2052

6 January 1916

E. A. Axelsen.

No	8.
Date of Notice	6 January 1916
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	William James Cameron.	Mabel Egley.
BDM Match (94%)	William James Cameron	Mabel Egley
	💍 1916/4743
Condition	Bachelor.	Spinster.
Profession	Motor Agent.	Dressmaker.
Age	37	29
Dwelling Place	Dunedin.	Dunedin.
Length of Residence	26 years	20 years
Marriage Place	House of Rev. E. A. Axelsen, 41 Clyde St., Dunedin.
Folio	2052
Consent
Date of Certificate	6 January 1916
Officiating Minister	E. A. Axelsen.

7 January 1916

James Baird.
Helen MacKay.

James Baird
Helen Mackay
💍 1916/4744

Widower.
Spinster.

Farmer.

51
39

Dunedin.
Dunedin.

3 days.
3 days.

Chalmers Church, Dunedin.

2053

7 January 1916

E. Adams.

No	9.
Date of Notice	7 January 1916
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	James Baird.	Helen MacKay.
BDM Match (88%)	James Baird	Helen Mackay
	💍 1916/4744
Condition	Widower.	Spinster.
Profession	Farmer.
Age	51	39
Dwelling Place	Dunedin.	Dunedin.
Length of Residence	3 days.	3 days.
Marriage Place	Chalmers Church, Dunedin.
Folio	2053
Consent
Date of Certificate	7 January 1916
Officiating Minister	E. Adams.

10.

7 January 1916

Arthur Rayner.
Charlotte Maria Amy Kearns.

Arthur Rayner
Charlotte Amy Maria Kearns
💍 1916/4745

Bachelor.
Spinster.

Bank Clerk.
Typiste.

34
22

Dunedin.
Dunedin.

5 years
22 years

St. Peter's Church, Caversham.

2054

7 January 1916

J. L. Mortimer.

No	10.
Date of Notice	7 January 1916
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Arthur Rayner.	Charlotte Maria Amy Kearns.
BDM Match (80%)	Arthur Rayner	Charlotte Amy Maria Kearns
	💍 1916/4745
Condition	Bachelor.	Spinster.
Profession	Bank Clerk.	Typiste.
Age	34	22
Dwelling Place	Dunedin.	Dunedin.
Length of Residence	5 years	22 years
Marriage Place	St. Peter's Church, Caversham.
Folio	2054
Consent
Date of Certificate	7 January 1916
Officiating Minister	J. L. Mortimer.

11.

10 January 1916

Thomas Silvester Donlan.
Mary Ellen Dillon.

Thomas Silvester Donlan
Mary Ellen Dillon
💍 1916/4746

Bachelor.
Spinster.

Labourer.

32
30

Dunedin.
Dunedin.

32 years
30 years

St. Joseph's Cathedral, Dunedin.

2055

10 January 1916

Jas. Falconer.

No	11.
Date of Notice	10 January 1916
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Thomas Silvester Donlan.	Mary Ellen Dillon.
BDM Match (95%)	Thomas Silvester Donlan	Mary Ellen Dillon
	💍 1916/4746
Condition	Bachelor.	Spinster.
Profession	Labourer.
Age	32	30
Dwelling Place	Dunedin.	Dunedin.
Length of Residence	32 years	30 years
Marriage Place	St. Joseph's Cathedral, Dunedin.
Folio	2055
Consent
Date of Certificate	10 January 1916
Officiating Minister	Jas. Falconer.

12.

10 January 1916

John Cameron.
Pansy Blackburn.

John Cameron
Pansy Blackburn
💍 1916/5658

Widower.
Spinster.

Wool carder.

49
24

Dunedin.
Dunedin.

9 years
5 mos.

House of Rev. T. W. Newbold, Cumberland Street, Dunedin.

2830

10 January 1916

T. W. Newbold.

No	12.
Date of Notice	10 January 1916
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	John Cameron.	Pansy Blackburn.
BDM Match (93%)	John Cameron	Pansy Blackburn
	💍 1916/5658
Condition	Widower.	Spinster.
Profession	Wool carder.
Age	49	24
Dwelling Place	Dunedin.	Dunedin.
Length of Residence	9 years	5 mos.
Marriage Place	House of Rev. T. W. Newbold, Cumberland Street, Dunedin.
Folio	2830
Consent
Date of Certificate	10 January 1916
Officiating Minister	T. W. Newbold.

13.

11 January 1916

James Kinnear.
Lillian Frances Cole.

James Kinnear
Lilian Frances Cole
💍 1916/4747

Bachelor.
Spinster.

Labourer.

39
18

Dunedin.
Dunedin.

3 years
6 years

St. John's Church, Roslyn.

2056

Charlotte Fanny Seale, Guardian.

11 January 1916

V. G. B. King.

No	13.
Date of Notice	11 January 1916
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	James Kinnear.	Lillian Frances Cole.
BDM Match (92%)	James Kinnear	Lilian Frances Cole
	💍 1916/4747
Condition	Bachelor.	Spinster.
Profession	Labourer.
Age	39	18
Dwelling Place	Dunedin.	Dunedin.
Length of Residence	3 years	6 years
Marriage Place	St. John's Church, Roslyn.
Folio	2056
Consent	Charlotte Fanny Seale, Guardian.
Date of Certificate	11 January 1916
Officiating Minister	V. G. B. King.

14.

11 January 1916

Alexander Hugh Lawrenson.
Ethel Keir Young.

Alexander Hugh Lawrenson
Ethel Keir Young
💍 1916/4748

Bachelor.
Spinster.

Clerk.

24
30

Dunedin.
Dunedin.

24 years
30 years

Knox Church, Dunedin.

2057

11 January 1916

J. C. Jamieson.

No	14.
Date of Notice	11 January 1916
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	Alexander Hugh Lawrenson.	Ethel Keir Young.
BDM Match (95%)	Alexander Hugh Lawrenson	Ethel Keir Young
	💍 1916/4748
Condition	Bachelor.	Spinster.
Profession	Clerk.
Age	24	30
Dwelling Place	Dunedin.	Dunedin.
Length of Residence	24 years	30 years
Marriage Place	Knox Church, Dunedin.
Folio	2057
Consent
Date of Certificate	11 January 1916
Officiating Minister	J. C. Jamieson.

15.

11 January 1916

George Smith.
Sarah Marion Carter.

George Smith
Sarah Marion Carter
💍 1916/4749

Bachelor.
Spinster.

Labourer.

35
34

St. Kilda.
Mornington

35 years
34 years

Church of England, Mornington.

2058

11 January 1916

J. C. Small.

No	15.
Date of Notice	11 January 1916
	Groom	Bride
Names of Parties	George Smith.	Sarah Marion Carter.
BDM Match (94%)	George Smith	Sarah Marion Carter
	💍 1916/4749
Condition	Bachelor.	Spinster.
Profession	Labourer.
Age	35	34
Dwelling Place	St. Kilda.	Mornington
Length of Residence	35 years	34 years
Marriage Place	Church of England, Mornington.
Folio	2058
Consent
Date of Certificate	11 January 1916
Officiating Minister	J. C. Small.

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).