Robert C. Wright (November 5, 1944 – February 22, 2014) was an American politician from

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

. He served as a Republican member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, 159th district from 1981 to 1992 and as a judge on the Delaware County Court of Common Pleas from 1992 to 2008.

Early life and education

Wright was born in

Chester, Pennsylvania Chester is a city in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located in the Philadelphia metropolitan area (also known as the Delaware Valley) on the western bank of the Delaware River between Philadelphia and Wilmington, Delaware. ...

to Mary Maloney Wright and the Honorable Robert A. Wright. He graduated from Chester High School in 1962. Wright graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree from

George Washington University The George Washington University (GW or GWU) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally-chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Originally named Columbian College, it was chartered in 1821 by ...

in 1966 and received his law degree from

Villanova University School of Law The Charles Widger School of Law (known as Villanova Law) is the law school of Villanova University, a private Roman Catholic research university in Villanova, Pennsylvania. It was opened in 1953 and is approved by the American Bar Association (A ...

in 1969.

Career

From 1970 to 1991, Wright worked as an attorney in his father's practice and was a director on several boards including the Chester Water Authority and the Chester

Boys and Girls Club Boys & Girls Club may refer to: * Boys & Girls Clubs of America * Boys & Girls Clubs of Canada * Gloria Wise Boys and Girls Clubs, Bronx, United States * Essex Boys and Girls Clubs, in Essex and East London, England * The Boys' and Girls' Clubs ...

. He also served as the Solicitor for the Chester Housing Authority and President of the Delaware County Republican Council.

Pennsylvania House of Representatives

Wright was elected to the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, 159th district on September 15, 1981 in a special election to serve the remainder of the 1981 term after

Arthur Earley Arthur Franklin Earley (September 4, 1925 – June 9, 1981) was an American politician who served as a Republican Party (United States), Republican member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, ...

died of a heart attack. He served five consecutive terms and resigned from the House on January 5, 1992.

Delaware County Court of Common Pleas

Wright was elected to the Delaware County Court of Common Pleas in 1992 and served until he retired in 2008. Wright and his father Robert A. Wright were the first father and son to serve on that court at the same time. In 2014, Wright died at age 69 of complications of

amyotrophic lateral sclerosis Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as motor neuron disease (MND) or—in the United States—Lou Gehrig's disease (LGD), is a rare, Terminal illness, terminal neurodegenerative disease, neurodegenerative disorder that results i ...

. He also believed he had

chronic Lyme disease Chronic Lyme disease (CLD) is the name used by some people with non-specific symptoms, such as fatigue, muscle pain, and cognitive dysfunction to refer to their condition, even if there is no evidence that they had Lyme disease. Both the label ...

, a condition not recognized by medical science. He is interred at Haven Memorial Cemetery in Chester, Pennsylvania.

Personal life

Wright was married to Florence Wright and they had two children together. He was a member of the

Tau Epsilon Phi Tau Epsilon Phi (), commonly known as TEP or T E Phi, is an American collegiate social Fraternities and sororities in North America, fraternity that was founded at Columbia University in 1910. Since its establishment, the fraternity has chartered ...

fraternity at George Washington University.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wright, Robert C. 1944 births 2014 deaths African-American judges African-American state legislators in Pennsylvania Chester High School alumni Neurological disease deaths in Pennsylvania Deaths from motor neuron disease in the United States George Washington University alumni Judges of the Pennsylvania Courts of Common Pleas Republican Party members of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives Politicians from Chester, Pennsylvania Villanova University School of Law alumni 20th-century members of the Pennsylvania General Assembly