PART III
MARRIAGE REGISTRY
13. Marriages taking place through the Registry are governed by the provisions of the Marriage Ordinance (Cap. 181). Notice of intended marriage is exhibited at the Registry for 15 clear days, after which the Registrar issues a Certificate which enables the marriage to be solemnized at a licensed church, or as a civil marriage before the Registrar. The Governor may grant a licence shortening the period of notice, or a special licence dispensing with notice.
Sub-Registry at Kowloon.
14. On 8th August, 1956, a Sub-Registry for marriages was opened in Kowloon. This had become imperative because the heavy and progressive increase in the number of marriages taking place each year was resulting in severe congestion of business at the Registry in the Supreme Court Building, which was the one and only Registry for the entire Colony.
The new Sub-Registry is located on the third floor of the Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank Building, 664 Nathan Road, Mongkok, and for the first few months it operated only as a branch office, for receiving and posting notices of marriage, issuing forms and answering inquiries. Later, arrangements were made for marriages to be performed there, as well as in the main Registry in Hong Kong, and the first marriage was performed there on 4th March, 1957. In this Kowloon Sub- Registry marriages are performed in the afternoons only.
Marriages registered.
15. The total number of marriages registered in 1956/57 was 5,859, 906 (18%) more than the previous year's record total of 4,953. Of the 5,859 marriages, 5,474 were between Chinese parties, 4,960 took place in the Marriage Room of the Registry in the Supreme Court Building, Hong Kong, and 85 in the
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