James Henry Moyle (September 17, 1858 – February 20, 1946) was a prominent American politician in

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

and noted as "one of Utah's most distinguished citizens and one of the Nations' able and devoted servants."

Biography

Moyle was born in

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the Capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Utah, most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the county seat, seat of Salt Lake County, Utah, Sal ...

, Utah Territory to a

Cornish American Cornish Americans ( kw, Amerikanyon gernewek) are Americans who describe themselves as having Cornish ancestry, an ethnic group of Brittonic Celts native to Cornwall and the Scilly Isles, part of England in the United Kingdom. Although Cornish ...

family. He was the grandson of John Rowe Moyle, a Mormon pioneer and master stonemason for the Salt Lake Temple. From about 1879-1881 Moyle served as a

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

for

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...

(LDS Church). Moyle went to the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

where he received a law degree. He set out to the University of Michigan in 1873 over the strong objections of his stake president who felt that going out of Utah to study law would lead an individual to leave the Church. Moyle's return to Utah with a stronger commitment to serving in the LDS Church than he had previously lead to a change in LDS perceptions of the law as a profession and acceptance of law school even outside of Utah as a workable way to enter the profession.

Politics and Public Service

After law school, Moyle returned to Utah and quickly ran for County Attorney being elected in 1886. He was re-elected in 1887 before winning election to the house in the territorial legislature of 1888. He was appointed chairman of the Committee on Education, fitting as he was the only assemblyman who had graduated from a university, and a member of the Committee on Judiciary and Committee on Municipal Corporations and Towns. During his tenure, Moyle assisted in the acceptance of city land where the Utah capitol is currently located today and introduced measures such as "compiling of the laws of Utah Territory," "custody of a Territorial Library," "establishment and support of district schools," creation of "an institution for deaf mutes," and "an act relating to life insurance companies." Moyle was a founder of the

Utah Democratic Party The Utah Democratic Party is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of Utah. Its platform focuses on economic security, equal opportunity, the common good, and American leadership. The party also describes itself as a big tent par ...

. He was the Democratic Party's candidate for governor in the 1900 and 1904 Utah elections, losing to

Heber Manning Wells Heber Manning Wells (August 11, 1859March 12, 1938) was an American politician and banker who served as the first Governor of the State of Utah. Utah gained statehood on January 4, 1896; Wells served as governor from January 6, 1896, until Jan ...

and

John Christopher Cutler John Christopher Cutler (February 5, 1846July 30, 1928) was an Politics of the United States, American politician and the List of Governors of Utah, second Governor of the State of Utah. He served as governor from 1905 to 1909. Biography Cutler ...

respectively and ran on the Democratic and Progressive tickets in 1914 for the Senate, ceding to

Reed Smoot Reed Smoot (January 10, 1862February 9, 1941) was an American politician, businessman, and apostle of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). First elected by the Utah State Legislature to the U.S. Senate in 1902, he served ...

. Moyle served as Assistant Secretary of the Treasury from 1917 to 1921 in the administration of

Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...

, the first member of the LDS Church to be appointed to a subcabinet position. In 1933 he was appointed by President

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

, who knew Moyle well having served together in the Wilson administration, as Commissioner of the

United States Customs Service The United States Customs Service was the very first federal law enforcement agency of the U.S. federal government. Established on July 31, 1789, it collected import tariffs, performed other selected border security duties, as well as conducted c ...

and in 1939 as a special assistant to Treasury Secretary

Henry Morgenthau Henry Morgenthau may refer to: * Henry Morgenthau Sr. (1856–1946), United States diplomat * Henry Morgenthau Jr. (1891–1967), United States Secretary of the Treasury * Henry Morgenthau III (1917–2018), author and television producer of ''Screa ...

Church service

Moyle served as a member of the High Council of the Ensign Stake in Utah for three decades. From 1928 to 1933 he served as

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

of the

Eastern States The eastern states of Australia are the states and territories of Australia, states adjoining the east continental coastline of Australia. These are the mainland Australia, mainland states of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, New South Wales and Q ...

Mission of the LDS Church. This mission covered

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...

the

District of Columbia ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

Rhode Island Rhode Island (, like ''road'') is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is the List of U.S. states by area, smallest U.S. state by area and the List of states and territories of the United States ...

and

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

. Moyle created an innovative radio proselytizing program, in all overseeing the creation of a total of 764 programs on various stations throughout the mission. During his administration West Virginia and Western Maryland were separated off into the East Central States Mission.

Death

Moyle died in 1946 at the age of 87. His son

Henry D. Moyle Henry Dinwoodey Moyle (April 22, 1889 – September 18, 1963) was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and the First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Early life Moyle was born in Salt L ...

became an Apostle of the LDS Church in 1947.LDS Church Almanac

Notes

References

Gordon B. Hinckley Gordon Bitner Hinckley (June 23, 1910 – January 27, 2008) was an American religious leader and author who served as the 15th President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from March 1995 until his death in January 200 ...

(1955). ''James Henry Moyle, the story of a distinguished American and an honored churchman'' (Salt Lake City, Utah:

Deseret Book Deseret Book () is an American publishing company headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, that also operates a chain of bookstores throughout the western United States. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Deseret Management Corporation (DMC), the ...