The Wright Family


Elinor (_____) Wright

Married: Thomas Wright in 1724, in Clogher, Ireland

Children: Sources:

James Wright

Arms of the Wrights of Gola
Arms of  James Wright of Gola
Azure, two bars argent in chief three leopards heads, or
Title: Captain

Birth: 1615, in Royston, Yorkshire, England

Father: John Wright

Mother: Margaret (Ratcliffe) Wright

Married (1st): Jane Owen in 1638. Jane died in 1641.

Children: Married (2nd): Mary Slacke in 1650

Children: Occupation: Army officer

Notes:
Captain James Wright arrived with Cromwell's army in Dublin in 1649. To finance Cromwell's campaign to put down the "rebellious" Irish who just could not accept English rule, Parliment devised a scheme where every person who contributed was to receive estates and manors of 1000 acres, and lands proportionately less for smaller sums. This Act of Subscription began in 1642 and in 1653 Ireland was declared subdued and the lands were given out. James Wright acquired the estates of Gola and Carrachor in western County Monaghan, in 1666. These were tumultuous times in Ireland. In 1689, James Wright, gentleman, is listed amongst those English Protestants who was forced to forfeit his Irish lands when the Catholic James II set up a parliament in Dublin. There is a story that when the original Irish owner of the lands, Arthur MacMahon, tried to reclaim his land in 1689, James Wright and his neighbour John Slack armed themselves and killed MacMahon on the shores of Drumloo. When James II was defeated by William III at the Battle of the Boyne in 1690, James Wright had his lands restored to him. Bitterness lasted centuries - during the troubles of 1922, the Gola house was burned and the stones of the wrecked house were used  to construct the present Roman Catholic Church and the stone coat of arms was thrown down the well, then 85 feet deep, and 30 feet of rubble was thrown on top.

When James was elderly, his second wife. Mary Slacke prevailed upon him to disinherit his son William born to him and his first wife, Jane Owen in favour of her own son, Joseph. Ironically Joseph’s son died in 1763 without an heir and Gola passed back to the line started by Jane Owen in accordance with that son’s will.

Death: 1700/1

Buried: Tedavnet, County Monaghan

Will: James made his will Nov. 21, 1700 and it was proved May 22, 1701. In it, he desired to be buried in the church at Tedavnet, and disinherited his eldest son William, by his first wife Jane Owen, in favour of his son Joseph by his 2nd wife Mary, leaving the estate of Gola to Joseph, and Drumloo to Thomas.

Arms: Azure, two bars argent in chief three leopards heads, or, with crest a dexter arm, embowed, couped, in armor, habited azure, cuffed argent holding in hand a spear proper, broken of the last.

Sources:

James Wright

Father: James Wright

Mother: Mary (Slacke) Wright

Sources:

Jane (Wright) Maxwell

Birth: 1729, in Falkland, County Monaghan, Ireland

Father: Thomas Wright

Mother: Elinor (_____) Wright

Married: John Maxwell

Children: Death: 28 November 1765, in Glaslough, County Monaghan, Ireland

Sources:

John Wright

Birth: about 1587, in Royston, Yorkshire, England

Baptised: 14 May 1587, in Royston, Yorkshire, England

Married: Margaret Ratcliffe about 1610 in Royston, Yorkshire, England

Children: Sources:

John Wright

Father: James Wright

Mother: Mary (Slacke) Wright

Sources:

Joseph Wright

Birth: 1652

Father: James Wright

Mother: Mary (Slacke) Wright
Gola House
Drawing of Gola from The History of the County of Monaghan by Evelyn Philip Shirley, London, Pickering & Co., 1879
scanned by Sharon Oddie Brown
Married: Mary Owen in July 1708. Mary was born in Kilmore, County Monaghan. After the death of Joseph Wright, she married Dacre Hamilton on 16 January 1635. Mary died circa 1785.

Notes: Thomas inherited the estate of Gola. He and his mother, Mary Slacke, built the large Jacobean house at Gola in 1703.

Death: November 1731

Sources:

Richard Wright

of Dartry

Father: James Wright

Mother: Mary (Slacke) Wright

Sources:

Sarah (Wright) Mitchell

Father: James Wright

Mother: Mary (Slacke) Wright

Married: Thomas Mitchell, of Drumreaske

Sources:

Thomas Wright

Father: James Wright

Mother: Mary (Slacke) Wright

Married: Elinor in 1724, in Clogher, Ireland (??? see death date)

Children: Occupation: Solicitor in Monaghan town, and merchant
Carrachor House
Carrachor House, in Scotstown, County Monaghan
composite of photos by Sharon Oddie Brown

Notes: Thomas inherited Carrachor House in Scotstown, County Monaghan as well as the estate of Drumloo upon the death of his father in 1700. (The inheritance was unusual - James had disinherited his eldest son, by his his first wife, and give his primary estate, Gola, to his second son, and his secondary estate, Drumloo, to his third son Thomas). Drumloo is a townland of 137 acres in County Monaghan.

Death: 1725 (??? see marriage date, Jane birth date). Thomas died intestate & letters of administration were taken out by his wife, Eleanor & his eldest son, John.

Sources:

William Wright

Birth: 1640

Father: James Wright

Mother: Jane (Owen) Wright

Married: Emily Scott in 1659

Children: Notes: William was the eldest son of his father, James Wright, but was disinherited in favour of children from James's second marriage. Ironically, the estate he would have inherited, Gola, passed back into his family in later generations when Isabella Wright married James Wood, who assumed the name James Wood Wright.

Sources:
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