Biography.guide
Home › People › Businessperson › Sewell Moody
Portrait of Sewell Moody

Sewell Moody

1834 – 1875

Canadian businessman

Don't just read it — keep itBiographies to ownE-book · Audio · Video From $7 →

About Sewell Moody

Lived 1834 – 1875 (aged 40–41). Sewell Moody was a Canadian businessperson.

Sewell Prescott "Sue" Moody (c. 1834 – November 4, 1875) was a lumberman and Yankee trader from Hartland, Maine, Maine, United States, the son of Joshua Moody and Amy Kendall Bowley. With his brother Thomas, Moody arrived in New Westminster, British Columbia, Canada in about 1861, initially engaging in mining investment and trading. In 1862 he established a business to build British Columbia's first sizeable steam-powered sawmill, at New Westminster.

Moody moved to the Burrard Inlet in 1865, eventually acquiring a bankrupt water-powered sawmill, and established the first non-native settlement in the area, in what is now North Vancouver. Initially known as "Moody's Mills", in 1872 it was formally named Moodyville. Under a firm but paternalistic hand, he provided the settlement with a library and reading room, religious services, a masonic lodge and a school, each being the first on Burrard Inlet, and also funded the extension of the telegraph service from New Westminster. At the same time, he forbade gambling and the sale of alcohol. In July 1869, Moody married Janet Watson (1849–1901) and they had two children, Florence and Sewell Prescott Jr. Moody's lumber business was successful, supplying markets in Great Britain and around the Pacific Rim, and adding a larger steam-powered mill in 1868. This mill was burned in December 1873, but replaced with another, powered by the steam engines from retired warship .

Moody died on November 4, 1875, in the sinking of the passenger steamer SS Pacific following a collision off Cape Flattery, Washington.

Biography shop

Don’t just read it —
keep it.

Full-length biographies made to live with: read them, listen on the way to work, watch them tonight.

  • E-book
  • Audio
  • Video
Browse the shop — from $7

Instant download · yours to keep · every purchase keeps this site free

Important facts

Born
1834
Birth century
Occupation
Nationality
Awards
Person of National Historic Significance
Also known as
Sewell Prescott "Sue" Moody

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped Sewell Moody's

Frequently asked questions

Who was Sewell Moody?

Canadian businessman

When was Sewell Moody born?

Sewell Moody was born in 1834.

When did Sewell Moody die?

Sewell Moody died on 4 November 1875.

What was Sewell Moody's occupation?

Sewell Moody was a businessperson.

What nationality was Sewell Moody?

Sewell Moody was Canadian.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: Sewell Moody

· Wikidata: Q7458224

· DBpedia: Sewell Moody

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Sewell Moody. https://biography.guide/sewell-moody/

MLA: "Sewell Moody." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/sewell-moody/.

Chicago: "Sewell Moody." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/sewell-moody/.

Data last updated: 2026-09-20 · Spot an error? Report a correction.

Page generated 2026-09-27 05:13 UTC