William Lewis Moody Jr. (January 25, 1865 – July 21, 1954)Who Was Who In America, Vol. 3, 1951-1960. Library of Congress number 43-3789. was an American financier and entrepreneur from

Galveston, Texas Galveston ( ) is a coastal resort city and port off the Southeast Texas coast on Galveston Island and Pelican Island in the U.S. state of Texas. The community of , with a population of 47,743 in 2010, is the county seat of surrounding G ...

, who founded a private bank, an insurance company, and one of the largest charitable foundations in the United States.Foundation Center, Top 100 Assets
/ref> Moody was active in the day-to-day operations of his companies until two days before his death.

Personal life

Moody's parents were Col. William Lewis Moody and Pherabe Elizabeth Moody, née Bradley. Moody was born on January 25, 1865, in

Fairfield, Texas Fairfield is a city in Freestone County, Texas, United States. The population was 2,850 at the 2020 census, down from 3,094 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Freestone County and was founded as such in 1851. Geography Fairfield ...

. After attending

boarding school A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of " room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. As they have existed for many centuries, and now exte ...

s in Virginia, he attended

Virginia Military Institute la, Consilio et Animis (on seal) , mottoeng = "In peace a glorious asset, In war a tower of strength""By courage and wisdom" (on seal) , established = , type = Public senior military college , accreditation = SACS , endowment = $696.8 mill ...

Lexington, Virginia Lexington is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. At the 2020 census, the population was 7,320. It is the county seat of Rockbridge County, although the two are separate jurisdictions. The Bureau of Economic Analysis combines ...

. Following that, he studied law at the

University of Texas The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

before going to work at his father's

cotton Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure cellulose, and can contain minor pe ...

business in Galveston in 1886. On August 26, 1890, Moody married Libbie Rice Shearn. They had four children: Mary Elizabeth (who married Edwin Clyde Northen), William Lewis III, Shearn, and Libbie (who married Clark W. Thompson). Their family home, "The Moody Mansion", is now a museum. Mary later took over many of the family businesses after Moody's death.

Business interests

In 1889, Moody set up the private bank W. L. Moody and Company,. In 1905, he founded

American National Insurance Company American National Insurance Company (ANICO) is a major American insurance corporation based in Galveston, Texas. The company and its subsidiaries operate in all 50 U.S. states and Puerto Rico. Company description American National was founded in ...

, which, at the time of Moody's death, was the biggest one west of the Mississippi River. In 1907, Moody founded City National Bank. He served as President of the bank until he died. In 1953, the bank's name was changed to

Moody National Bank Moody National Bank (MNB) is a nationally chartered bank, founded in 1907, that is based in Galveston, Texas. With assets of nearly $1 billion, Moody Bank is one of the oldest and largest privately owned Texas-based banks. Its trust department, e ...

in his honor. Moody's business interests also included ventures outside of the financial arena. In 1923 Moody purchased the ''

Galveston Daily News ''The Daily News'', formerly the ''Galveston County Daily News'' and ''Galveston Daily News'', is a newspaper published in Galveston, Texas, United States. It was first published April 11, 1842, making it the oldest newspaper in the U.S. state o ...

'', the oldest newspaper in Texas, from Alfred H. Belo. He later expanded his media interests by acquiring the ''Galveston Tribune''. In 1930, Moody founded the National Hotel Company. His holdings at one time included the Galvez Hotel in Galveston and the Menger Hotel in

San Antonio, Texas ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_ ...

. In 1931, the company took control of a financially troubled

Conrad Hilton Conrad Nicholson Hilton Sr. (December 25, 1887 – January 3, 1979) was an American businessman who founded the Hilton Hotels chain. From 1912 to 1916 Hilton was a Republican representative in the first New Mexico Legislature, but became disi ...

's hotels, hiring Hilton to help manage the company. The merger later ended with Hilton taking back some of the hotels he had brought to the group.

Legacy

In 1942, Moody and his wife set up the

Moody Foundation The Moody Foundation is a charitable foundation incorporated in Texas and based in the island city of Galveston. It was chartered in 1942 by William Lewis Moody Jr. and his wife Libbie Rice Shearn Moody ''"to benefit, in perpetuity, present and ...

, to which Moody's estate was transferred after his death. The Foundation awards grants to various civic and environmental causes in Texas. The Moodys' daughter Mary helped run the foundation from its inception until her death in 1986, and members of the family are still involved. Today the Moody Foundation has grown into a $1.197 billion

USD The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...

charitable foundation A foundation (also a charitable foundation) is a category of nonprofit organization or charitable trust that typically provides funding and support for other charitable organizations through grants, but may also engage directly in charitable ac ...

, making grants throughout the state of Texas. The

Moody Coliseum Moody Coliseum is a 7,000-seat multi-purpose arena in University Park, Texas (an inner suburb of Dallas). The arena opened in 1956. It is home to the Southern Methodist University Mustangs basketball teams and volleyball team. It was also home ...

University Park, Texas University Park is a city in Dallas County, Texas, United States of America, in suburban Dallas. The population was 23,068 at the 2010 census. The city is home to Southern Methodist University. University Park is bordered on the north, east and we ...

, as well as Moody Towers on the

University of Houston The University of Houston (UH) is a Public university, public research university in Houston, Texas. Founded in 1927, UH is a member of the University of Houston System and the List of universities in Texas by enrollment, university in Texas ...

campus, are named after Moody.

Texas A&M University Press Texas A&M University Press (also known informally as TAMU Press) is a scholarly publishing house associated with Texas A&M University. It was founded in 1974 and is located in College Station, Texas, in the United States. Overview The Texas A& ...

publishes a series of books called the "W. L. Moody Jr. Natural History Series". At

Rice University William Marsh Rice University (Rice University) is a Private university, private research university in Houston, Houston, Texas. It is on a 300-acre campus near the Houston Museum District and adjacent to the Texas Medical Center. Rice is ranke ...

, one of the

endowed chair A financial endowment is a legal structure for managing, and in many cases indefinitely perpetuating, a pool of financial, real estate, or other investments for a specific purpose according to the will of its founders and donors. Endowments are of ...

s is for the W. L. Moody Jr. Professor of Mathematics, currently held by Robert Hardt; past holders include Morton L. Curtis. Completed in 2011 the home of "

Austin City Limits ''Austin City Limits'' is an American live music television program recorded and produced by Austin PBS. The show helped Austin become widely known in the United States as the "Live Music Capital of the World", and is the only television show to ...

Live at The

Moody Theater Austin City Limits Live at The Moody Theater (ACL Live or Moody Theater) is the theater and studio for ''Austin City Limits'', completed in February 2011 as part of the Block 21 complex. The Moody Foundation of Galveston granted $2.5 million to ...

," was named after Moody in downtown

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...

. On October 21, 2013, it was announced that the foundation gave a $50 million gift to the

University of Texas at Austin The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

to name the college of communication the Moody College of Communication Additionally, on November 12, 2019, the foundation announced a $100 million donation to Southern Methodist University to establish the Moody School of Graduate and Advanced Studies. Also, in downtown

the Moody Center was completed in April 2022 and was dedicated by

Matthew McConaughey Matthew David McConaughey ( ; born November 4, 1969) is an American actor. He had his breakout role with a supporting performance in the coming-of-age comedy '' Dazed and Confused'' (1993). After a number of supporting roles, his first succes ...

. It stands as one of the largest private donations by the

to date.

Gallery

File:The William Lewis Moody Home.jpg, Moody's home, now preserved as a house museum. File:Historical Marker.jpg File:City National Bank -- Galveston.jpg, City National Bank Building, founded by Lewis Moody

Notes

External links