Wright Genealogy - Western NC

Marty and Karla Grant

[Home] [What’s New?] [Books for Sale] [Christian] [Genealogy] [Search] [Support] [About] [Contact]

Wright Genealogy - Western North Carolina

Welcome to my Wright genealogy pages. I am interested in the Wright surname in Western NC. My own ancestors resided in Surry, Wilkes and Cherokee Co., NC, but I’m interested in other Wright families in the western counties also.

The Wright surname is generally of English and Scottish origin, though there was a tradition of our Wrights being from Ireland. That might refer to Northern Ireland, i.e. Ulster Scots who settled there before moving on to America.

The name can also be spelled Right, Write, Rite, Wrights and Rights. “Wright” is the most common spelling.

Wright was the 34^th most common surname in the United States in 2000. By 2010 it had dropped only one notch to 35^th most common. The aforementioned alternate spellings didn’t make the top 1000 list either time.

My most recent Wright ancestor was my great grandmother Della Christmas Wright (1896-1982), so named because she was born on Christmas Eve in 1896 in Cherokee Co., NC. I had the pleasure of knowing her when I was a child, last seeing her when I was 14. During that visit I asked her about her ancestry. Her memory wasn’t strong enough then to tell me much, but she did tell me a few things. That is when the genealogy bug first bit me. Della married 1^st to Albert Conley (1885-1914) who was killed in a train accident just a few months after they married. Della married 2^nd to Charles Noten George (1890-1952). She was known to her grandchildren and great grandchildren as “Granny George.” She was a child of A. A. and Dulcenia (Waters) Wright.

Aaron Alexander Wright (1847-1907) was born in Cherokee Co., NC. He was known by friends and family as “El” Wright, which is based on his middle name, pronounced as Elexander instead of Alexander in the local accent at the time. He married Annis Dulcenia Waters (1862-1918) in her native Macon Co., NC in 1876. They resided at Rhodo in north eastern Cherokee Co., NC which is between Andrews and Topton. He died tragically in 1907 when accidentally shot by one of his nephews (Auz Wright) who was in a fight with another man nearby (Arthur Postell). Auz pistol whipped Postell which caused the gun to go off, the bullet striking A. A. Wright who was walking home from church nearby on the railroad tracks. He died the next day. “El” Wright was a son of James S. and Caroline (Winfrey) Wright.

James S. Wright (1813-1902) was born in Surry Co., NC. He married Caroline C. Winfrey (1822-1916) there ca 1838. They moved to Cherokee Co., NC about five years later where they remained. James is a son of Aaron and Mary (Murphy) Wright.

Aaron Wright (c1770-1820s) was perhaps born in Surry Co., NC, though tradition says he came from Ireland, but I don’t know if that’s correct. He married Mary Murphy in 1792 in Surry Co., NC. They soon set out for Lincoln Co., KY where many of Mary’s relatives had recently moved. They apparently didn’t like it there for they returned to Surry Co., NC within just a few years. Aaron died in Surry Co., NC in the 1820s. Mary remained in Surry until the 1840s when she joined other family members and migrated southwesterly, settling in Union Co., GA, which bordered Cherokee Co., NC where her son James S. Wright moved at the same time. Mary died after 1850, presumably in Union Co., GA.

I don’t know who Aaron Wright’s parents were. I suspect he’s related to Col. Gideon Wright (c1720s-1781) and his brother Hezekiah Wright (1720s-c1784), but I don’t believe either of them were his father, but perhaps uncles. I could be off track, but Aaron Wright was closely associated with David Riggs (1749-1837) whose wife was Miriam Wright (c1748-1814). One of their sons was named Hezekiah Wright Riggs, which suggests a close relationship to that family. I’ve not been able to determine how Aaron Wright fits in to that family, if he does at all.

Revised: July 18, 2026

[Home] [What’s New?] [Books for Sale] [Christian] [Genealogy] [Search] [Support] [About] [Contact]