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John J. Wright: Devoted reader and leader
Date published: 2/16/2005
Blacks weren’t allowed to read in 1863, when John J. Wright was born. But the man who eventually got a college education—and became a teacher at the Spotsylvania County school later named for him—became a bookworm in the worst way. He often churned butter with one hand and turned pages of a book with another. He stressed self-reliance and self-discipline, principles that helped him get a higher education, even though he was in his 30s before he graduated. He paid for his tuition by waiting tables in Atlantic City and growing cucumbers in Spotsylvania. Wright became a successful businessman who owned hundreds of acres in Spotsylvania and Caroline counties. He raised horses for the government during World War I and sold milk and eggs to his neighbors.
By the time of his death in 1931, Wright had helped local blacks get homes and property, voting rights and an education.
Date published: 2/16/2005
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