The Wrights of Montgomery County Arkansas

Note: Much of the information in this post is taken from the books The Wright Book and A Short Line Across America by Pauline Wright.

I’ve come to realize that many people don’t know a lot about their family’s history. As a youth, I had always assumed people were interested in their genealogy, and knew their family tree. But this just isn’t the case. And it’s not necessarily a bad thing. People are simply wired differently. Some are focused on the present and the future, and see less value in the past. Others may feel they don’t really want to know more about their family. Still others simply don’t know how to go about learning their family’s history.

I have always been eager to know as much about my family as possible. Where did they come from? What motivated them to take up roots and settle further west? As for my ancestry, the Short family can easily be traced all the way back to Scotland. The Childers family comes from South Carolina. The Grants and Hewitts from Georgia. The Wrights, Edgars, and Schooleys all lived together in Virginia before making their way west. All these families, and more, are my ancestry.

Eventually, the Wrights and others made their way to Montgomery County, Arkansas. If you are a multi-generation Glenwood, Arkansas native, odds are good that you, in some way, are related to a Wright. You may not even realize it, but if you are a Short, Jester, Collum, Childers, Grant, Tallant, Tidwell, Standley, Standridge, Smith, Forga, Wisenhunt, Wisenant, Pettyjohn… I can go on and on… there are Wrights somewhere in your family. And if you aren’t related to the Wrights, then it’s likely that your family was, in some way, ministered to by a Wright.

The reason? Edmund Wright. Much of Edmund’s large family has remained in the Pike/Montgomery County area. And his family has had a profound impact on the area to the present day.

Edmund was born in Portage county, Ohio in 1839. He was the son of Thomas and Anne Schooley Wright. Thomas, a second-generation Baptist (His father, Joseph, was disowned by the Quakers after marrying a Baptist girl, and Thomas’ wife Anne, was likewise disowned for marrying him). He was a railroad mechanic, and an entrepreneur and businessman. He was well known for his massive barn, into which a horse and wagon could drive in on three separate levels.

In 1859, when Edmund was twenty, the family took up roots and moved to Trinity County, Texas. Thomas had made a land deal, one that prompted him to sell virtually all his property in Ohio. Unfortunately, after arriving in Texas, Thomas found he had been swindled.

Thomas died and was buried near Grovetown, Texas. Edmund’s sisters all married in Texas, while Edmund made his way to Simsboro, Louisiana. There, he met and married his first wife, Narcissa Summerlin. They had three children, Mary Cornillia, Martha Edna, and Thomas Justus.

In 1870 the family moved to Pike County, Arkansas and settled about three miles west of Glenwood. Two years later, Narcissa died. She is buried in a single plot in the middle of a field there where Edmund’s homestead was located.

Edmund was ordained as a minister in 1873, and became pastor of Antioch Missionary Baptist Church. This is now known as Oak Grove Baptist Church in Caddo Gap, just a couple miles west of what is known as the Hopper Bridge on highway 240. Unbeknownst to Edmund, he would there be ministering to the family of a future daughter-in-law, Loretta Grant.

In 1874, Edmund married Ann Tallant. They were parents of James Labon and John Edgar. in 1878, Ann died, and was one of the first to be buried in what became known as the Mt. Tabor Cemetery.

In 1880, Edmund returned to Simsboro, Louisiana, where he and his daughters were all married. His daughters married brothers… John and Thomas Smith. Unfortunately, Edmund’s wife, Mary Vance, died in childbirth.

By 1886, Edmund and his daughters, the Smith families, were back in Montgomery County (Yes, if you are a Smith from Glenwood/Tabor or possibly Hot Springs, you could be a Wright as well). He was, by that time, also a medical doctor, and had married Leah Elvira Short, to which his last four sons, Joel, Bun, Wibb, and Floyd, were born.

Edmund served as a farmer, doctor, and pastor for many years, pastoring a few Missionary Baptist churches in the area, including Bethel, Mt. Pisgah, and the aforementioned Antioch. He even taught a school out of his house in Lucky (North of hwy 70 and the Mt. Tabor community).

In 1899, at the age of fifty-nine Edmund died and was buried on his property, the Mt. Tabor Cemetery, next to his wife, Ann Tallant, and his mother, Anne Jane Schooley. His tombstone spells his name as Edmond, and adds almost a month so his lifespan.

The legacy left by Edmund included nine children, scores of grandchildren, and likely thousands more direct descendants. It was once estimated that, at the death of Edmund’s son Joel’s widow in 1992 at the age of 99, Joel and Loretta “Retter” Wright alone had as many as one hundred fifty direct descendants.

Many of Edmund’s descendants have been called into ministry over the decades. His son, Thomas Justus, took the gospel into Oklahoma. Thomas’ descendants then continued on, all the way to California. Many descendants are still pastoring today. Others serve as deacons, in music ministry, women’s and children’s ministry, teaching bible studies, and in other capacities in their churches. His descendants have taught and are now teaching children of all ages, from elementary schools to universities.

I often tell people that my great grandfather was born in 1839, and I enjoy watching their eyes widen when they consider that was over one hundred eighty years ago. I love being part of a massive family that stretches out over so many years. Why, some of Edmund’s grandchildren were older than his own children!

In January 2020, five of Edmund’s grandchildren were still living – Joe Floyd Wright, Darrel “Buster” Wright, Joel “Coot” Wright, Hazel Britt, and Haskel Wright. Each of them continuing to serve as much as they were able. And there was not a one of these that you couldn’t sit down with and gain a greater Godly insight on life. I know that I have spent many hours gaining wisdom from Dad (Joel) and my uncle Buster.

Additionally, some of these grandchildren, extremely knowledgeable, not only about the Wright family, but the history of Montgomery and northern Pike counties, might be able to sit down and tell you about your own family that you didn’t know.

But the year 2020, however, was not kind. I watched as three of my father’s siblings… including his best friend and a cousin and lifelong friend… and one of his own sons, went on to be with their Heavenly Father. Because of the virus, many were unable to attend their funerals, and our family was not able to go out to New Mexico and join with our uncle Haskel’s family after his passing, though many wanted so badly to go.

Fast forward to August, 2021. Joel Samuel “Coot” is the last of Edmund’s grandchildren living. Dad will be 89 this month. The past twenty months have been difficult for Dad. He and his family weren’t spared from COVID. He attended funeral after funeral last year, including his own son’s funeral as he himself was still weak and recovering from having had the virus. And, ever a pillar of inhuman strength, Dad continued on… his faith and hope not in the least dimmed by his circumstances. Dad knows in whom he has believed, and he knows what awaits him someday.

If you see Dad around town, be sure to say hello. And, if your family is from the area and you aren’t sure, ask him if you are related to him. It won’t take him long to suss out your roots for you. He can tell you a lot about the history of the county… like who shot the feathers off the old Caddo Gap indian statue; where Jona Wright lived a hundred years ago, before he headed west to California to plant churches; where the remnants of Papa Joel’s old walking trail around to the top of Pigeon Roost Mountain can be found; why the community of Bumblebee is called that; where the hot water spring in the Caddo River is located. He might tell you about how he and his brothers would grab wood slats as swatters, throw a rock at a wasp nest, and see who could stand in the same place the longest without running off. He could tell you where to hunt turkey, or the location of a good deer stand. He can probably tell you exactly where some of your ancestors are laid to rest in the Mt. Tabor cemetery. But one thing he might know better than all that is God’s Word. So if you have questions, or just want to talk about the goodness of God, Dad is more than happy to oblige.

Knowing your family history can be very rewarding, but it can only rewarding if it is handed down. I am thankful for the rich heritage that was given to me by my parents, aunts, uncles, and grandparents. As we move forward at breakneck speed towards the return of our Savior and Lord, I hope we can all take time to remember, and be grateful for, those who paved the way for us… without whom, we would not be here today.