William W. Wright was born in Marion county, Indiana, on May 6, 1839, being the son of Adam and Judith (Bollibaugh) Wright, natives of North Carolina, as also were their parents. The paternal grandfather of our subject served in the Revolution, died in Marion county aged one hundred and four in the year 1842. The father of William was a stanch Democrat, active in politics and served for sixteen years as probate judge of Marion county. He died on September 12, 1851, aged fifty-two years. The mother of our subject came from a prominent Dutch family and she died in November, 1850, aged fifty. William W. was raised in Indiana until thirteen and then came to Iowa with his brother-in-law, he being his guardian, both parents having died. This gentleman was Thomas Burns and when his ward came of age, a fair estate was delivered to him from the father's property. William remained with Mr. Burns until he was eighteen and then went to do for himself. When twenty-one he settled on the portion left him from his father's estate and later removed to Clarke county and bought land from the proceeds of the sale of the former property. Nineteen years he toiled in Clarke county and in 1882, he came to Idaho and took land near Kendrick. Seventeen years were spent there in its cultivation and he then came to Lookout, where he owns a small tract of timber land and considerable town property. Mr. Wright has one brother, Nathaniel T., with the Capital Mills Company, in San Francisco. Mr. Wright is a zealous and active Republican and has participated in the conventions, both county and state. For twenty years he did service on the school board and has also been a hard worker for good roads in the places where he has resided. Mr. Wright is a member of the Christian church and holds a life scholarship in the Bible department of the Oskaloosa College in Iowa. This was secured in 1863. He is a highly respected citizen, a man of ability and has won the esteem and approbation of the people who know him.