Representative Morgan Moore Moulder

Morgan Moore Moulder (August 31, 1904 – November 12, 1976) was a Democratic U.S. Representative from Missouri who served seven consecutive terms in the United States Congress from 1949 to 1963. He was born in Linn Creek, Camden County, Missouri, where he attended the public schools, later continuing his education in the public schools of Lebanon, Missouri. He pursued higher education at the University of Missouri before enrolling at Cumberland University in Lebanon, Tennessee, where he received an LL.B. degree in 1927.

After completing his legal education, Moulder was admitted to the bar in 1928 and commenced the practice of law in his hometown of Linn Creek, Missouri. That same year he entered public service when he was elected prosecuting attorney of Camden County, Missouri. He was reelected to three succeeding terms and served in that capacity until 1938. At the conclusion of his tenure as prosecuting attorney, he returned to private law practice, continuing to build his legal career and reputation in the region.

During World War II, Moulder expanded his public service at the federal level. From 1943 to 1946, he served as a special assistant to the United States attorney for the Western District of Missouri, participating in the enforcement of federal law during a period of national mobilization and postwar transition. In April 1947, he was appointed by the Governor of Missouri to serve as a judge of the circuit court in the Eighteenth Judicial Circuit. He held this judicial position until December 31, 1948, gaining further experience in the administration of justice shortly before entering Congress.

In 1948, Moulder was elected as a Democrat to the Eighty-first Congress and took office on January 3, 1949. He was subsequently reelected to six succeeding Congresses, serving continuously in the U.S. House of Representatives from January 3, 1949, to January 3, 1963. Representing Missouri as a member of the Democratic Party, he contributed to the legislative process during a significant period in American history marked by the early Cold War, the Korean War, and the beginnings of the modern civil rights movement. As a member of the House of Representatives, he participated in the democratic process and represented the interests of his constituents in Missouri.

During his congressional service, Moulder served on the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), which played a prominent role in investigating alleged communist influence and subversion in the United States during the early Cold War. In 1950, while serving on HUAC, he heard testimony from figures such as Lee Pressman and Max Lowenthal, among others, in hearings that reflected the era’s intense concern over internal security and political loyalty. His work on this committee placed him at the center of some of the most controversial and widely watched proceedings in mid-twentieth-century congressional oversight.

Moulder’s legislative record also reflected a moderate stance on civil rights for a member from a border state. He did not sign the 1956 Southern Manifesto, a document in which many Southern lawmakers opposed the Supreme Court’s decision in Brown v. Board of Education. He voted in favor of the Civil Rights Act of 1957 and the Civil Rights Act of 1960, both of which were early federal efforts to protect voting rights and strengthen civil rights enforcement. In addition, he supported the 24th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which abolished the poll tax in federal elections, further aligning his record with the advancement of voting rights.

After seven terms in Congress, Moulder chose not to seek renomination in 1962. At the conclusion of his service in the House on January 3, 1963, he returned to Missouri and resumed the practice of law in Camdenton, near his native Linn Creek. He continued his legal work there, remaining engaged in his profession and community during his later years.

Morgan Moore Moulder died on November 12, 1976. He was interred in Old Linn Creek Cemetery, near Camdenton, Missouri, close to the area where he had been born, practiced law, and built his long career in public service.