Gawler History

Mold (Cr) James

Fast Facts
Type of person Individual
Date of birth c. 1819
Place of birth England
Principal occupation Baker
Date of death 1869
Place of death Gawler

Click here to view an album relating to the Mold Family.

James Mold - c1865


In 1845, James Mold married widow Elizabeth Harris (nee Elizabeth Allen) in Banbury, Lancashire, England and they set sail for South Australia aboard ship ‘Templar’, arriving in November.[1] It seems they initially stayed in Adelaide, with daughter Elizabeth born there in January 1847, but by the time son Joseph James was born in June 1849, the family were residing in Gawler. Baby Joseph only lived 10 months; and as the family were Quakers,[2] he was buried in the ‘Society of Friends Meeting House Cemetery’ in North Adelaide, one of only 17 buried in the tiny graveyard before it closed in 1858.[3]

In 1854 James was working as a miller for Mr Harrison at the Union Flour Mill,[4] when the couple welcomed son Edwin James Mold. By 1859, James had established himself as a baker when their fourth and final child Henry was born. Henry was born at the time when the Admella shipwreck disaster was big news in the colony of South Australia and was given the middle name ‘Admella’ – it isn’t known if the family had any connections to those lost in the wreck but they did donate to the relief fund.

From 1850 the family owned and occupied the property on the north eastern corner of Jacob and Reid Streets (Lot 81 on the original Gawler Town Plan – later to become Woolworths/Big W complex/carpark); it became their shop as well as residence and by 1860 it was a significant establishment of 3 rooms, shop, bakehouse and outbuildings. By 1858 the family also owned land on the north western corner of Dundas and Todd Streets (Lot 30 on the original Gawler Town Plan); initially there were some simple pine cottages on the site which they rented out, but by the 1870s they had a row of five three-bedroom worker’s cottages that they rented out (the cottages have since been reconfigured into 2 residences, contemporary address 4 & 6 Dundas Street).

James Mold was “a staunch advocate for total abstinence” when it came to alcohol;[5] when a Temperance Meeting was held in the old school room in 1856 and a Gawler Temperance Branch formed, he became the secretary. Then ten years later, when that group had lapsed, he chaired a meeting in the Primitive Methodist Chapel and a new Temperance Society was formed.[6][7]

He is perhaps best known for erecting the first public drinking fountain in South Australia. Erected in November 1859[8] at his Jacob street property, the tap, supplied by a well on the premises, “was within a recess covered by a wooden arch shaded by an evergreen, and the motto on the arch was: "Let the thirsty drink." Within the recess were two seats.”[9] In those days when “water was dear and scarce”[9] many would have appreciated being able to “quench their thirst on the hot and dusty days of an Australian summer.”[8] Perhaps James hoped it provided an alterative to Gawler's many hotels!

James also served the community as Councillor for North Ward in 1861-1866 and as President of the Gawler Institute in 1865.[10]

In December 1869, James Mold “ever ready to do an act of kindness”, attempted to stop a team of runaway horses, belonging to George Vosper Bassett that had been left waiting outside the Albion Mill.[11] He was knocked down and trampled, and despite Dr Nott’s attendance he never regained consciousness and died of his injuries a few days later, aged 50.[11] An inquest was held into his death and it was recommended the Corporation of Gawler pass a bylaw that dray wheels be skidded or chained whilst being loaded and unloaded.[12]

Widow Elizabeth Mold (I) was able to keep the bakery business and rental cottages going, but she suffered further hardships. Youngest son Henry Admella Mold died in 1879 of heart failure just before his 20th birthday[13] and daughter Elizabeth Mold (II) lived with a mental health condition. As described by her mother, starting around the time she was 18, Elizabeth (II) had fits every month, is bad for a week afterwards, goes wandering and is not safe to be by herself.[14][15][16] In 1881, when she was 34, Elizabeth (II) was reported for ‘lunacy’ by Edward Clement as she had repeatedly been on his premises, refused to leave and scared his wife and servants; after a court case she was ordered to be taken to the Lunatic Asylum on the certificate of Dr Popham.[14][15][16] She was discharged after 3 ½ months, but apprehended and discharged again in 1884, before dying at Gawler in 1885, aged 38.

Elizabeth Mold Snr (I), passed away three years later in 1888, aged 73. She is buried at Willaston Cemetery in a family plot with her husband James, daughter Elizabeth and son Henry (there is no memorial stone in 2026).

Descendants of James Mold

Only one of James and Elizabeth Mold’s four children went on to have children, their son Edwin James Mold (see details below). He was 15 at the time of his father’s death and must have been of great assistance to his widowed mother in keeping the bakery business running. He is recorded as having been a baker until at least 1889, the year after his mother’s death, but he went on to become a carpenter.[9] Upon his mother’s death he inherited the bakery and residence on Jacob Street and the tenanted row cottages on Dundas Street [4 & 6 Dundas Street]

Edwin married Anna Lamb at St George’s Church on Christmas Day 1883, they went on to have four children (see details below). Their third son Charles Edwin Mold, worked as a machine moulder at May Bros, prior to enlisting for WWI on 13 August 1917. He was killed in action in France on 20 June 1918, aged 27. [see ANZACs and other WWI Personnel]

In an article acknowledging Australian Soldiers who died for their country, The Chronicle (13 Jul 1918) described him as “of bright and cheerful disposition. He was born in Gawler, and had his education in the town. As a youth he was associated with the ambulance classes, and was a player in the Gawler South football team. Later, he displayed marked ability on the piano, and his readiness to assist in this direction was constantly sought after. The Foresters' and R.A.O.B. found him a valued member. He was also a member of St George’s church. Much regret was felt on receipt of the news of his death.”[17]

Two of Edwin’s grandsons (great grandsons of James Mold), Frank Charles George Mold and Henry Edwin Mold went on to serve in WWII [see WWII Personnel]. Edwin passed away in the Mold family home on Jacob Street in 1943, aged 90, not knowing that they would both come home.

Note

Note, the summary about the Gawler Institute in “Gawler Thematic History - Town of Gawler Heritage Review 2020" [18]suggests “The Gawler Institute first occupied premises opposite the Globe and its first President was Mr Mold”,[18] however no sources from the time can be found to show Mr Mold was involved with the Institute when it began in 1857 and accounts show the first President was Mr R J Turner Esq. [19] James Mold was elected Institute President in February 1865.[20]

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Compiled by Nikki Wight - with thanks to Margaret Howse (Gawler National Trust) for sharing photographs and extensive research.

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Mold Family Birth, Death & Marriage Information

MOLD James

b. Abt. 1819, son of Benjamin & Elizabeth Mold

Baptised 15 July 1819 St Peter’s, Liverpool, Lancashire, England

m. 1845 ‘Elizabeth Harris’, Banbury, Lancashire, England

Arrived 1845 aboard ship ‘Templar’, with wife Elizabeth

d. 10 Dec 1869, Gawler, SA, aged 50

Buried Willaston Cemetery (plot 32 Q 2 - with wife Elizabeth)[No memorial on FindaGrave]

ALLEN Elizabeth (HARRIS)(MOLD)

b. Abt. 1815, England

m. 1843 unknown ‘Harris’, Banbury, Lancashire, England

m. 1845 ‘James Mold’, Banbury, Lancashire, England

Arrived 1845 aboard ship ‘Templar’, with husband James

d. 27 Jan 1888, Gawler, aged 73

Buried Willaston Cemetery (plot 32 Q 2 - with husband James)[No memorial on FindaGrave]

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Children of James Mold and nee Elizabeth Harris

MOLD Elizabeth

b. 18 Jan 1847, Adelaide, SA

Never married

d. 6 Feb 1885 Gawler, SA, aged 38

Buried Willaston Cemetery (plot 34 Q 2 – with parents & brother)[No memorial on FindaGrave]


MOLD Joseph James

b. 6 Jun 1849, Gawler, SA

d. 22 Apr 1850, Gawler, SA, aged 10 months

Buried Society of Friends' Meeting House Cemetery, North Adelaide, SA

(one of only about 17 buried in this tiny church graveyard) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friends_Meeting_House,_Adelaide


MOLD Edwin James

b. 4 Jan 1854, Gawler, SA

m. 25 Dec 1883 ‘Anna LAMB’, St George’s Church, Gawler (d. 1930, aged 70)

d. 24 Aug 1943, Gawler, aged 89

Buried Willaston Cemetery (plot 49 F 4 - with wife Anna)[No memorial on FindaGrave]


MOLD Henry Admella

b. 17 Aug 1859, Gawler, SA

d. 10 Jul 1879, Adelaide Hospital, Adelaide, SA, aged 19 & 11 months

Buried Willaston Cemetery (plot 34 Q 2 – with parents & sister)[No memorial on FindaGrave]

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Children of Edwin James Mold & nee Anna Lamb (Grandchildren of James Mold & nee Elizabeth Allen)

Edwin James Mold was the only one of James and Elizabeth’s children to have children, they were:


MOLD Joseph William ‘Joe’

b. 3 Sep 1885, Gawler, SA

m. 29 Apr 1911, ‘Violet Claire Ponton’, Salisbury, SA

d. 5 Apr 1979, SA, aged 93

Buried Centennial Park, Pasadena, SA


MOLD Henry Rupert ‘Jim’

b. 28 Jun 1887, Gawler, SA

m. 30 Jan. 1915,’Hilda Emily HARVEY’, Willaston, SA (d. 1980, aged 87)

  • Gladys Eva Mold (EVANS)(1917-1996)
  • Frank Charles George Mold (1918-2010)(Willaston Cemetery Central Rose 100)[see WWII Personnel]
  • Olive Hilda Mold (TURNER)(1920-2010)(Willaston Cemetery 21 D East Niche Wall)
  • Henry Edwin Mold (1921-1958)(Willaston Cemetery 12 T 2)[see WWII Personnel]
  • Rosa Anna Mold (GURNEY)(1922-2002)
  • Ronald James Mold (1927-2004)

d. 6 May 1955, SA, aged 67

Buried Willaston Cemetery (plot 52 J 4 - with wife Hilda)[2 memorial stones!]


MOLD Charles Edwin

b. 30 Apr 1891, Gawler, SA

d. 20 Jun 1918, France, serving WWI, aged 27 [see ANZACs & Other WWI Personnel]

Buried France


MOLD Florence Mildred Rose 'Rose'

b. 15 Jul 1895, Gawler, SA

Never married

d. 1957, SA, aged 61

Buried Willaston Cemetery (plot 49 F 4 – with brother Edwin)[No memorial on FindaGrave]

Related Articles


References

  1. ↑ Passengers in History: Initiative of the South Australian Maritime Museum, https://passengers.history.sa.gov.au/
  2. ↑ Transcription of Quaker lists 1867-1877 by Charles Stevenson (Genealogy SA) https://www.genealogysa.org.au/ [James Mold, Elizabeth Mold & sons Henry Admella & Edwin James Mold are all listed]
  3. ↑ 'Friends Meeting House, Adelaide' - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friends_Meeting_House,_Adelaide
  4. ↑ (South Australian Register 7 Jul 1854) https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/49204806
  5. ↑ (The South Australian Advertiser 5 Nov 1859) https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/1198908
  6. ↑ Coombe E H (1910) History of Gawler 1837-1908, pg 381.
  7. ↑ Temperance Meeting (Bunyip 7 Apr 1866) https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/130959861
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 (The South Australian Advertiser 5 Nov 1859) https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/1198908
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 (Bunyip 3 Sep 1943) https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/96865194
  10. ↑ South Australian Advertiser (24 Feb 1865) https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/31846886
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 Death of Mr Mold (South Australian Register 11 Dec 1869) https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/41392061
  12. ↑ INQUEST ON MR. JAMES MOLD. (1869, December 17). Gawler Times (SA : 1869 - 1873), p. 3. Retrieved May 19, 2025, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article244999127
  13. ↑ (Gawler Standard 19 Jul 1979) https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/245312657
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 (Bunyip 21 Jan 1881) https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/99826502
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 (Gawler Standard 22 Jan 1881) https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/245314900
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 (Bunyip 21 Jan 1881) https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/99826502
  17. ↑ The Chronicle (13 Jul 1918) https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/87556403
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 Flightpath Architects (2020) Town of Gawler Heritage Review, Adelaide, South Australia. For full acknowledgements see: https://gawlerhistory.com/index.php/Gawler_Heritage_Review_2020 Gawler History Team thanks Flightpath Architects, Ryan Viney and the Town of Gawler for allowing us access to this important document.
  19. ↑ South Australian Register (3 Nov 1857) https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/49210536
  20. ↑ South Australian Advertiser (24 Feb 1865) https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/31846886




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