Place of Birth: Claiborne, Louisiana
Age at Death: 27 years, 10 months, 26 days
Date of Death: July 15, 1897
Interment source:
Bay View Cemetery Association, Corpus Christi, Texas. Record of Interments
NO HEADSTONE
Biography
The stone of Annie Wright records that she was born 20 August 1869 in Clairborne, Louisiana and died in Driscoll, Texas on 16 July 1897. According to the announcement of her wedding, she was "Annie E. Burch" and the first wife of William Thomas Wright (1869-1965) of south Texas. William Thomas Wright was a cattle drover, county commissioner, and an organizer of Jim Wells County, son ofT. C. Wright and Elizabeth (Adams) Wright. William's grandfather was Joseph Wright who was born 1 May 1800 in Franklin, Gloustershire, England and immigrated to south Texas in 1853 in response to the invitations extended by H. L. Kinney. Joseph died at the home of his son T. C. Wright in Driscoll. Many of the Wright family were involved in raising cattle in this part of Texas. The town of Alfred in Jim Wells County, for example, is named for Alfred Wright who had a ranch center in that area. W. T. Wright was born in Nuecestown, Texas, on June 4, 1869. He started school at the age of six at Robert Adams's Tecolote Ranch elementary school and then from 1884 to 1886 completed his formal education at Goliad College. Immediately after his studies were completed he began his career delivering cattle by contract from ranchers to buyers and was known for his ability to move the herds with sufficient control that they did not stampede. As example, "The Handbook of Texas" notes that he moved more than 30,000 head from Victoria, Texas to places that might be as far away as Monroe, Louisiana. It was probably during one of those drives that William Thomas met Annie. They were married at Houghton, Louisiana on 25 January 1893 (Caller of 10 February 1893 page 6 column 4). Annie returned with her new husband to the coastal bend and became a part of the ranching life. She had a daughter Elizabeth and then in a later pregnancy both she and her infant died in 1897. They were buried together in the same casket in Old Bayview Cemetery, but the child was unnamed so there is no mention of this little one on Annie's tombstone. In the year after Annie's death, widower William Thomas Wright bought EI Carro Ranch, moved its small house to the top of a hill, and began improvements. The following year he married on 18 October 1899 in Monroe, Louisiana to Bertha Halsey, an Alice schoolteacher. From 1904 to 1911 he was county commissioner of Nueces County and consequently was appointed to a committee by Texas Governor Oscar B. Colquitt to help organize Jim Wells County where he was actively involved in ranching. In 1919 W. T. Wright was elected a commissioner of that newly organized county and held that position until 1947. He died on January 5, 1965. His only child by Annie was Elizabeth Wright. Elizabeth married Gene Spence and was active in the Episcopal Church and community programs throughout the state and received many awards for her volunteer efforts in various fields according to her obituary. She died at the age of 90 years on December 16, 1985; and services for her were held at Advent Episcopal Church in Alice, Texas. She had no children so with her death the last descendent of Annie and William Thomas Wright was laid to rest.
Research and transcription: Michael A. Howell