William Henry Moody

Moody's Family Tree

William H. Moody's father was Henry Lord Moody. Henry was born in Newbury, MA, on October 20, 1821. He was a farmer who moved the family from Newbury to Salem and then to Burley Farm in Danvers. After briefly moving to Salem, he opened a grocery in Haverhill. He died April 16, 1902, in Haverhill.

​

Moody's mother was Melissa Augusta Emerson Moody. Melissa was born in either Nottingham or Salem, NH, on May 10, 1835. She and Henry were married on January 21, 1853. They had three children together, and their household sometimes included relatives, farm laborers, and domestic servants. She died of consumption on August 10, 1885.

​

Moody had two younger siblings. Andrew Arthur Moody was born April 15, 1858, in Newbury. He graduated from Haverhill High School in 1876 and went on to attend several years at Harvard University. By 1880, he had developed lung difficulty. He died of consumption in Haverhill on May 16, 1881, at age 23.

​

Mary Emerson Moody was born between 1864 and 1872 and attended Haverhill High School and Bradford Academy. She enjoyed traveling and spent time in Washington, DC, South America, and Europe. She died on March 29, 1927, following an operation for appendicitis.

​

The first in the Moody family to arrive locally was also named William Moody. The first William Moody came to Ipswich in the summer of 1634 on board the Mary and John. In the spring of 1635, he moved to Newbury (later the Byfield section). On December 23, 1853, William Henry Moody was born in this same house, which still stands today.