Moulds, Henry George (1895–1954)

Henry George Moulds was an Australian Seventh-day Adventist minister, evangelist, and administrator. In 1951, he became the president of the Trans-Commonwealth Union Conference and later secretary of the Australasian Division.

Henry George Moulds was born on December 7, 1895, in Granville, New South Wales, Australia.¹ Raised in the Adventist faith, he remembered Ellen White visiting his mother’s home and in his formative years attended the Parramatta, Stanmore, and Ashfield churches before being baptized in his youth.²

Before entering denominational employment, Moulds was a fitter and molder.³ Soon after commencing work with the Sanitarium Health Food Company in 1914, he met Lauretta Anne Pearson. She was born in Bathurst, New South Wales, on February 2, 1891.⁴ They were married on January 25, 1916.⁵ Three children were born to Henry and Lauretta Moulds, two of whom survived childhood, Laurel Ellen Grace who was born at Mudgee, New South Wales, on August 21, 1917, and Lenel George, born at Burwood New South Wales on March 19, 1927.⁶

Moulds’s records indicate that he entered denominational service in 1914 without any training in an Adventist institution.⁷ He spent the first eleven years of his denominational career in North New South Wales, working as a literature evangelist in 1916⁸ and the remaining years employed in the health food work. By 1924, he was working as a literature evangelist in the South New South Wales Conference with headquarters in Sydney.⁹ In 1925, he was appointed field missionary secretary of the conference, supervising the publishing.¹⁰ Moulds was given a missionary license. By the beginning of 1928, he had transferred to the West Australian Conference where he was appointed the field missionary secretary.¹¹ On this occasion he was given a ministerial license.¹² Between the end of 1930 and the end of 1935, he conducted evangelism in Perth, Western Australia, where he was ordained on March 16, 1935.¹³ At the end of that year, he moved to South Australia, where he worked at Peterborough.¹⁴

Moulds was consecutively president of the Tasmanian Conference from mid-1936 to 1938,¹⁵ the North New Zealand Conference¹⁶ from 1938 to 1943, and the Victorian Conference beginning at the end of 1944.¹⁷ A delegate to the General Conference session in 1946, he subsequently became a departmental director in the Australasian Union Conference looking after the publishing work and assisting with religious liberty issues.¹⁸ During 1951, Moulds served as the Ppesident of the Trans-Commonwealth Union Conference for a few months.¹⁹ He was appointed the secretary of the Australasian Division at the end of 1951.²⁰

Moulds died on January 11, 1954, at the age of 58.²¹ He had been travelling by car near Sydney in Australia with E. J. Johanson, the division treasurer, when he suddenly became ill and died shortly afterwards.²²

Moulds spent much of his time in his later years as a delegate to many camp meetings and sessions in both Australia and New Zealand as well as the Pacific Islands. He was an outgoing leader and took great interest in those on his team. For example, when a young teacher was asked to establish a new church school at Remuera in Auckland, New Zealand, in 1942, President Moulds spent a whole day helping her find the equipment the new school needed to purchase. It was not an easy task due to wartime restrictions, but the effort gained him the respect of his peers.²³

One sketch of Moulds’s life observed that “because of his kindly nature and understanding heart he became endeared to all who associated with him. His life was dedicated to the work of God.”²⁴

Sources

“Annual Meeting.” Australasian Record, October 21, 1946.

“Brevities.” Australasian Record, January 22, 1951.

“Brevities.” Australasian Record, November 12, 1951.

“Distribution of Labour.” Australasian Record, September 21, 1936.

Henry George Moulds Biographical Records. South Pacific Division of the General Conference Archives.

Jewsin, Edwin P. “Geraldton W. A.” Australasian Record, January 13, 1936.

Maxwell, L. G. “Life Sketch.” Australasian Record, February 8, 1954.

“Monthly Summary of the Australasian Colportage Work.” Australasian Record, September 4, 1916.

“Monthly Summary of the Australasian Magazine Work.” Australasian Record, January 24, 1916.

Roenfelt, E. E. “The Half Yearly Meeting.” Australasian Record, April 18, 1938.

“The West Australian Conference.” Australasian Record, April 30, 1928.

“Brevities.” Australasian Record, December 4, 1944.

Notes

1. Henry George Moulds Biographical Records, South Pacific Division of the General Conference Archives, folder: “Moulds, Henry George,” document: “Biographical Information Blank.”↩

2. L. G. Maxwell, “Life Sketch,” Australasian Record, February 8, 1954, 14.↩

3. Henry George Moulds Biographical Records, South Pacific Division of the General Conference Archives, folder: “Moulds, Henry George,” document: “Biographical Information Blank.”↩

4. Ibid.↩

5. L. G. Maxwell, “Life Sketch,” Australasian Record, February 8, 1954, 14.↩

6. Henry George Moulds Biographical Records, South Pacific Division of the General Conference Archives, folder: “Moulds, Henry George,” document: “Biographical Information Blank.”↩

7. Ibid.↩

8. For example, see “Monthly Summary of the Australasian Magazine Work,” Australasian Record, January 24, 1916, 5; “Monthly Summary of the Australasian Colportage Work,” Australasian Record, September 4, 1916, 6.↩

9. For example, see “Monthly Summary of Australasian Canvassing Work,” Australasian Record, July 7, 1924, 4.↩

10. “South New South Wales Conference and Camp-Meeting,” Australasian Record, November 23, 1925, 5.↩

11. “The West Australian Conference,” Australasian Record, April 30, 1928, 5.↩

12. Ibid.↩

13. Henry George Moulds Biographical Records, South Pacific Division of the General Conference Archives, folder: “Moulds, Henry George,” document: “Moulds, Henry George.”↩

14. Henry George Moulds Biographical Records, South Pacific Division of the General Conference Archives, folder: “Moulds, Henry George,” document: “Biographical Information Blank;” Edwin P. Jewsin, “Geraldton W. A.” Australasian Record, January 13, 1936, 7; L. G. Maxwell, “Life Sketch,” Australasian Record, February 8, 1954, 14.↩

15. “Distribution of Labour,” Australasian Record, September 21, 1936, 32.↩

16. E. E. Roenfelt, “The Half Yearly Meeting,” Australasian Record, April 18, 1938, 8.↩

17. “Brevities,” Australasian Record, December 4, 1944, 8.↩

18. “Annual Meeting,” Australasian Record, October 21, 1946, 8.↩

19. “Brevities,” Australasian Record, January 22, 1951, 8.↩

20. Brevities,” Australasian Record, November 12, 1951, 8.↩

21. L. G. Maxwell, “Life Sketch,” Australasian Record, February 8, 1954, 14.↩

22. Elma Coombe, interview by author, Cooranbong, New South Wales, Australia, January 6, 2020.↩

23. Ibid.↩

24. L. G. Maxwell, “Life Sketch,” Australasian Record, February 8, 1954, 14.↩