Visitors to the United
Cemeteries (chartered originally as Rosemont, Mount Hope and Evergreen United
Cemeteries in 1905) will usually investigate the special area featuring a
pyramid and the nearby grave of Charles Taze Russell. However, higher up the
hill, across a small road, can be found an area that is also of interest. The
photograph is taken from there and shows the obelisk for William Morris Wright,
born in Ohio October 15, 1848, and died on April 3, 1906.
Wright wrote to CTR in
1887 on the subject of “coming out of Babylon” (see reprints 983). CTR’s detailed
response prompted a further letter (reprints page 996) where Wright had now had
his name taken off his original Congregational Church roll.
At the time of his
death, Wright, originally from Ohio, had been part of the Bible House family in
Pittsburgh for eight years. His death certificate gives his occupation as
insurance adjuster. He was one of the trustees of the original cemetery company
on its incorporation in 1905, and thereby one of the first to sadly require its
services.
The nature of the obelisk
was to allow other family names to be added in due course, but only Wright’s
name is on the base. The other three sides are blank, which strongly suggests
the family were ultimately buried elsewhere. Wright was married and according to a brief obituary in the Pittsburgh Press for April 4, 1906 had four adult sons at the time of his death.
His Watch Tower obituary (found in
reprints page 3765) mentions that he was also a member of the Board of Trustees
of the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society.
Note: He is not to be
confused with James Dennis Wright, one of the Society directors at the time of
CTR’s death.
2 comments:
Many thanks for this information. Interesting is that In the Wm. M. Wright family biography (a book I have) stands that he is buried in Erie Cemetery, Erie, PA. I think now all other family members a buried there but not Wm. M. himself.
He's also mentioned in Studies in the Scriptures Vol. III Thy Kingdom Come, pages 311-12, where he had correspondence with Prof. C. Piazzi Smyth in regards to the section on the Great Pyramid. Thanks for this page! Super interesting!
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