The number of immigrants of this name in early times in New England was large, and from them has sprung various lines of descendants not related. Three Wrights settled in Massachusetts in time to be numbered among the pioneers; one at Lynn in 1630-32; another at Plymouth in 1638; and the third was of Rehoboth in 1644. The surname belongs to a numerous and very ancient English family. The ancestry of the American family has been traced for several generations in England. The presumption is strong that the family herein recorded is descended from Samuel Wright, who came to America in 1630 in one of the ships of Winthrop's fleet, and that he was a son of John Wright, of Wright's Bridge, Essex, England. He was chosen deacon of the church of Northampton, and in 1657, after the retirement of the Rev. Mr. Moxon, he was appointed "to dispence the word of God, for the present." He died October 17, 1665. His wife, Margaret, died July 24, 1681. They had three sons, Samuel, James and Judah, and four daughters, Mary, Margaret, Hester and Lydia.
(I) The immediate ancestor of the Troy family is Solomon Wright, born near North Adams, Massachusetts, 1763, and died in Pownal, Vermont, 1837. His parents, who were of Massachusetts birth, resided at Amherst, and Solomon was born while they were en route to a new home they had selected in Pownal, Vermont. Solomon became a farmer, and was actively engaged and prominent in the politics of his day. He was elected judge of Bennington county, Vermont, which would indicate that he was a man of learning and knowledge of the law. He was a devout Christian and member of the Baptist church. He married Eunice Jewett, born at Waybridge, Vermont, and died at Pownal, Vermont. Children:
- Thomas, graduate of Williams College, class of 1803; practiced law at Bennington, Vermont.
- Charles, graduate of Williams College; attorney-at-law at Bennington, Vermont.
- Sarah.
- Ruth.
- Isaac T., an attorney-at-law; practiced at Castleton, New York.
- Pliny, see forward.
These children were all born at Pownal, Vermont, and were all active in politics.
(II) Pliny, son of Solomon and Eunice (Jewett) Wright, was born at Pownal, Vermont, about 1793, and lived and died in his native town. He became a farmer and a large land owner. He was a Whig in politics, served with the Vermont legislature, and was one of the influential men of his day. He married Finette, born in Pittstown, New York, in 1800, died at Pownal, daughter of Joseph Wadsworth, an innkeeper of Pittstown, where he died. Children:
- Adaline;
- Pliny (2);
- Joseph Wadsworth, born 1819;
- Charles, father of Mrs. William H. Frear, of Troy;
- Solomon, see forward.
(III) Solomon (2), son of Pliny and Finette (Wadsworth) Wright, was born at Pownal, Vermont, September 9, 1837. His preparatory education was received in the public schools. He entered Williams College, where he was graduated A.B., class of 1859. After leaving college he returned to Pownal, where he was engaged in woolen manufacture until 1890. In 1891 he located in Troy, New York, where he organized a corporation known as the Wright Health Underwear Company, of which he was president. This corporation absorbed the Aetna Mills, of Troy, which are still operated under that name, and also the Hoosic Valley Mills, which manufactured the cloth used at the Aetna Mills. The Hoosic Valley mill was burned in 1905. The corporation also operated a mill at Hoboken, New Jersey, for the manufacture of underwear, and for about two years operated the Majestic Knitting Mill, at Troy. The company also owned and operated the Mohawk River Mill, at Cohoes. Mr. Wright is president of the Wright Health Underwear Company, and has been since its organization; also a director of the Reserve Fund Corporation of New York City, a company formed to promote and deal in various lines and enterprises. He is a man of force and character, and commands the respect of his associates. He is a member of the Ionic Club of Troy, and other well-known organizations. He is a Republican in politics, and represented Pownal in the Vermont legislature. He married, at Pownal, in 1860, Mary A. Brimmer, born in that town August 16, 1844, died March 30, 1895, at Luxor, Egypt, while on a trip up the river Nile. She was a daughter of Green and Angeline Brimmer. Children:
- Solomon, graduate of Bennington high school; valedictorian; entered Williams College, but failing health prevented his graduation. After a few years of travel abroad he entered business life as a salesman, and is now treasurer of the Wright Health Underwear Company, and operates a commission house in New York City for the sale of the product of his company, the Rob Roy Hosiery Company, and other firms. He resides in Montclair, New Jersey. He married Ida P. Pierce, of Danbury, Connecticut; children: Dorothy P., Mary A., Caroline.
- Wilkinson De Forest, secretary of the Wright Health Underwear Company; resides at Port Washington, Long Island, New York. He married Emily Welles Higenbotham; children:
- Wilkinson De Forest, Jr., born December 2, 1902;
- Emily Welles, August 12, 1904;
- Janet, February 12, 1910.
- A daughter who died in infancy.