John C. Wright

  General Notes:

The following is taken from "Early Settlement of Friends in the Miami Valley" by Luke Smith Mote....was written about the family of John and Rachel Wright, their two daughters, Susanna (Wright) Hollingsworth and Charity (Wright) Cook. Susanna Hollingsworth was the wife of Isaac Hollingsworth, one of the early settlers, and a younger sister of Charity Cook, both ministers of the gospel well known in early times here, and were acknowledged as such by Bush River meeting, years previous to their coming north. They were the daughters of John and Rachel Wright, of the afore-named place, Newberry County South Carolina. They were of a family of sixteen children born to the above named parents, all of whom attained mature age, were married and settled in life, and to whom common names only were given (seven sons and nine daughters), namely: Mary (Brooks); Charity (Cook); Margaret (Hollingsworth); Joseph; William; John; James; Hannah (Farmer); Rachel (Coats); Susanna (Hollingsworth); Elizabeth (McCoole); Sarah (Brooks); Nathan; Thomas; Kezia (Hanks); and Isaac.

At the request of this patriarchal father they all assembled at his house before his death....his sons and their wives, his daughters and their husbands, the grandchildren and great grandchildren, numbering in all 144.

He reached an advanced age in life, and was a regular attender of Friends meetings, making his home there with hsi daughter, Susanna, who lived no great distance from the meeting place. He generally walked there, back and forth. But one day she was hindered from going, and prevailed on her father to ride her mare. When meeting closed he walked home as usual, never calling to mind how he had come there. Upon entering he door his daughter said to him, "Father, where is the mare?" "Dads me, Sue, I forgot her." was his quick response.

But to return again to the subject of those sisters, (Susanna and Charity), both rotund in form and feature, and mothers of large families, nevertheless they felt it their duty to surmount all hindrances, and "preach Jesus and him crucified." The elder Charity Cook's gife and calling led into extensive service, not only in this country, but abroad. She crossed the ocean twice on a religious visit to England and Ireland.

One time when her husband, Isaac Cook drove his stage wagon into Rahun's Creek, in high water, and drowned his horses, escaping himself by floating ashore on a chunk, she threw off her cloak and swam out, thus saving her life by learning to swim when a girl.

Susanna in stature was some taller than her sister. Her travels in the ministry were less extended, but her discourses were persuasive, and intermingled with much maternal solicitude. Her husband was a stalwart, over six feet in height, and the picture of uncompromising firmness, against all innovations whatever, and his course in life gave full evidence. One day before gthe close of tghe Revolutionary War, a British officer and his squad of cavalry rode up to his corncrib to take away his corn. " Big Isaac", as he was called, stepped in and intercepted their movements. The officer drew his sword to strike him, but nothing daunted, he caught the sword, and whirled him away, saying "Thus far shalt thou go and no farther," and the company left. His wife said she was looking for him to be cut down sometimes, the way he treated the military when they came on their premises. Susanna was a widow from 1809 to 1830, when she closed her useful life at the ripe age merging into her 76th year.

John married Rachel Wells, daughter of Joseph Wells and Margaret Swanson, about 1737 in Hopewell Mm, Frederick, Virginia. (Rachel Wells was born on 3 May 1720 in Anne Arundel, Maryland, USA and died on 23 Dec 1771 in Bush River MM, Newberry, South Carolina ¹.)