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Augustus Romaldus Wright (June 16, 1813 – March 31, 1891) was an American politician and lawyer, as well as a colonel in the
Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting ...
during the American Civil War.


Early life

Augustus Wright was born in
Wrightsboro, Georgia Wrightsboro is an unincorporated community in McDuffie County, in the U.S. state of Georgia. It has an estimated population of 144. History The first permanent settlement at Wrightsboro was made in the 1760s by a colony of Quakers. The community ...
and attended public school in Appling. Wright attended the
Franklin College of Arts and Sciences The Franklin College of Arts and Sciences is the oldest and largest college of the University of Georgia (UGA) in Athens, Georgia. Established in 1801 following the American Revolution, the college was named in honor of American Founding Father B ...
, the founding college of the
University of Georgia , mottoeng = "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of things.""To serve" was later added to the motto without changing the seal; the Latin motto directly translates as "To teach and to inquire into the nature of things." , establ ...
in Athens where he was a member of the
Phi Kappa Literary Society The Phi Kappa Literary Society is a college literary society, located at the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia, and is one of the few active literary societies left in America. Founded in 1820, the society continues to meet every academic ...
. Wright studied law at the
Litchfield Law School The Litchfield Law School of Litchfield, Connecticut, was the first independent law school established in America for reading law. Founded and led by lawyer Tapping Reeve, the proprietary school was unaffiliated with any college or university. (Whi ...
in Connecticut and was admitted to the
State Bar of Georgia The State Bar of Georgia is the governing body of the legal profession in the State of Georgia, operating under the supervision of the Supreme Court of Georgia. Membership is a condition of admission to practice law in Georgia. The State Bar w ...
in 1835—becoming a practicing attorney in Crawfordville, Georgia,Augustus Romaldus Wright
litchfieldhistoricalsociety.org. Retrieved July 22, 2013.
the same year. From 1842 until 1849, Wright served as judge of the superior court of the Cherokee circuit and from 1855 to 1857 as a judge of the
superior court In common law systems, a superior court is a court of general jurisdiction over civil and criminal legal cases. A superior court is "superior" in relation to a court with limited jurisdiction (see small claims court), which is restricted to civil ...
of Georgia.


Political career

In 1856, Augustus Wright was elected to the
U.S. House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...
and served one term from 1857 to 1859. He later served as a delegate to the Georgia Secession Convention and the Confederate Secession Convention.WRIGHT, Augustus Romaldus, (1813 - 1891)
congress.gov. Retrieved July 22, 2013.
President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation throu ...
offered Wright the position of provisional governor of Georgia but Wright declined. Wright subsequently served in the
First Confederate Congress The 1st Confederate States Congress, consisting of the Confederate States Senate and the Confederate States House of Representatives, met from February 18, 1862, to February 17, 1864, during the first two years of Jefferson Davis's presidency, a ...
. Augustus Wright organized "Wright’s Legion" of Georgia volunteers and served as a
colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...
in the Georgia 38th Infantry Regiment for the
Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting ...
in the Army of Northern Virginia.Georgia 38th Infantry Regiment
researchonline.net. Retrieved July 22, 2013.
After the war, Wright served as a member of the Georgia constitutional convention in 1877. He died in 1891 at his home near
Rome, Georgia Rome is the largest city in and the county seat of Floyd County, Georgia, United States. Located in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, it is the principal city of the Rome, Georgia metropolitan area, Rome, Georgia, metropolitan statisti ...
, and was buried in Rome's
Myrtle Hill Cemetery Myrtle Hill Cemetery is the second oldest cemetery in the city of Rome, Georgia. The cemetery is at the confluence of the Etowah River and Oostanaula River and to the south of downtown Rome across the South Broad Street bridge. Geography Three ...
.


References


See also

* Confederate States of America, causes of secession, "Died of states' rights" * List of signers of the Georgia Ordinance of Secession {{DEFAULTSORT:Wright, Augustus Romaldus 1813 births 1891 deaths 19th-century American politicians American slave owners Confederate States Army officers Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Georgia (U.S. state) Deputies and delegates to the Provisional Congress of the Confederate States Georgia (U.S. state) lawyers Georgia (U.S. state) state court judges Members of the Confederate House of Representatives from Georgia (U.S. state) Signers of the Confederate States Constitution Signers of the Provisional Constitution of the Confederate States Signers of the Georgia Ordinance of Secession University of Georgia people 19th-century American judges 19th-century American lawyers Litchfield Law School alumni