Tom Wright (bishop of East Carolina) explained

Type:Bishop
Honorific Prefix:The Right Reverend
Thomas Henry Wright
Honorific Suffix:D.D.
Bishop of East Carolina
Church:Episcopal Church
Diocese:East Carolina
Elected:May 24, 1945
Term:1945–1973
Retired:-->
Predecessor:Thomas C. Darst
Successor:Hunley A. Elebash
Ordination:1930
Consecration:October 5, 1945
Consecrated By:Henry St. George Tucker
Birth Date:16 October 1904
Birth Place:Wilmington, North Carolina, United States
Death Place:Porters Neck, North Carolina, United States
Parents:John Maffitt Wright, Josie Young Whitaker
Spouse:Hannah Hagans Knowlton
Children:4

Thomas Henry Wright (October 16, 1904 – April 26, 1997) was fourth bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of East Carolina from 1945 till 1973.

Early life and education

Wright was born on October 16, 1904, in Wilmington, North Carolina, the son of John Maffitt Wright and Josie Young Whitaker. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from in 1926. He then worked as a clerk with the Standard Oil Corporation of New Jersey between 1926 and 1927. Later, he studied at the Virginia Theological Seminary and graduated with a Bachelor of Divinity in 1930. On December 1, 1937, he married Hannah Hagans Knowlton and together had four children. He was awarded multiple honorary degrees of Doctor of Divinity from the University of South in 1946, the Virginia Theological Seminary in 1946, the Washington and Lee University in 1940 and the University of North Carolina in 1965.[1]

Ordained ministry

Wright was ordained to the diaconate in 1929 and to the priesthood in 1930. He was in charge of Trinity Church in Lumberton, North Carolina, between 1929 and 1930, and later assistant at the Chapel of the Cross in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, from 1931 to 1932. Subsequently, he was also chaplain at the University of North Carolina, until becoming national acting secretary of college work of the Episcopal Church in 1933. In 1934, he became chaplain at the Virginia Military Institute and subsequently chaplain at Washington and Lee University and rector of Robert E. Lee Memorial Church in Lexington, Virginia, three posts he retained till 1941. He became Dean of Grace Cathedral in San Francisco in 1941, until resigning to accept the post of rector of St Mark's Church in San Antonio, Texas, in 1943.[2]

Bishop

Wright was elected bishop on May 24, 1945, and consecrated on October 5, 1945, at St James' Church in Wilmington, North Carolina, by Presiding Bishop Henry St. George Tucker.[3] He retired on December 31, 1973.

Notes and References

  1. 1 June 1997 . Bishop Wright of East Carolina Dies . . 214 . 22 . 8.
  2. 1972. Thomas Henry Wright . The Episcopalian . 137. 59.
  3. 21 October 1945 . Dr. Wright Consecrated . . 111 . 17 . 5.