Mrs. Martha B. Wright, who came to Kansas with her family in 1885 and later settled in the Wilmore community, will celebrate her 100th birthday September 12, 1966.She is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Henry Baker, early day Wilmore settlers, and is a sister of Mrs. Alice Grace and Mrs. Ethel Trummel of Wilmore and a sister-in-law of Mrs. Kate Baker, also of Wilmore. A nephew, John Wright, lives at Belvidere, Kans. His father, Jim Wright, lived in the Ridge Summit area until his death.
Mrs. Wright was born in Iowa and grew to womanhood in Missouri, where she married George H. Wright, who was a brother-in-law of Tommy Wilmore, for whom Wilmore was named. Tommy was Wilmore�s first postmaster.
When George and Martha Wright moved to Kansas, their eldest son, Frank, was only six weeks old. They raised five sons and two daughters, homesteaded in the Oklahoma panhandle in 1902 and moved to Arizona in 1924 to reclaim a dairy ranch from desert land. All living children have retired except Frank, who at 81 years, is still logging trees in Oregon.
Mrs. Wright�s husband died in 1945 at the age of 83, and one son, Lucien, passed away in 1961.
Mrs. Wright, who was affectionately known as Aunt Matt, came back to Wilmore many years to spend summers with the Baker tribe and go fishin� with them, and she could catch �me too.
Mother Wright, who lives with her daughter, Mrs. Gladys Chapman in Phoenix, Ariz., suffered a stroke last December and was in the hospital and nursing home until last march. Since then, she has quilted nine large quilts and three baby quilts, besides knitting numerous slipperettes. She still has her sense of humor and her spunk. She is the only remaining charter member of the Patrick Park Woman�s Club at 32nd and Southern in Phoenix.
Mrs. Wright has 18 children, 48 great-grandchildren, and 10 great-great-grandchildren and most of them have quilts from her hands.
Mrs. Wright expects to see all her children for her birthday and hear from her many old friends. Her address is: Mrs. Martha B. Wright, 4131 East McDowell Road, Hyde Park, Sp. 10, Phoenix Ariz., 85008.
Felix Martin McMillen "From Missouri he came to Kansas in 1886 by covered wagon route, accompanying the Baker, Wright and Powell families, well-known Comanche-co., pioneers.", The Wilmore News, October 29, 1926.
Thanks to Nancy Smith for finding, transcribing and contributing the above news article to this web site!
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