James Wright (governor)
| James Wright | |
|---|---|
Portrait by Andrea Soldi
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| 7th colonial governors of Georgia | |
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In office 1760–1776 |
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| Preceded by | Henry Ellis |
| Succeeded by | Archibald Campbell |
| Personal details | |
| Born | May 8, 1716 London, England |
| Died | November 20, 1785 (aged 69) London |
| Spouse(s) | One son; Died 6 years later |
| Profession | Lawyer, jurist, governor |
| Religion | Catholic |
James Wright (May 8, 1716 – November 20, 1785) was an American colonial lawyer and jurist who was the last British Royal Governor of the Province of Georgia. He was the only Royal Governor of the Thirteen Colonies to regain control of his colony during the American Revolutionary War.
James Wright was born in London to Robert Wright. In 1730 his father accompanied Robert Johnson to the Province of South Carolina and served as its Chief Justice until 1739. James followed soon after and began the practice of law in Charleston. In 1747 James was named colonial attorney-general. He also began amassing plantation lands.
Wright returned to London as an agent for the South Carolina colony in 1757. Then, in May 1760, he was named as Lieutenant Governor to Henry Ellis in Georgia. He returned to America and took up residence in Savannah, Georgia. When Ellis resigned he was appointed Governor in November 1760. He was the third, and arguably most popular, Royal Governor of the colony. He sold many of his holdings in South Carolina, acquired land in Georgia, and moved his financial operations as well. With peace temporarily established with the French and Spanish, he successfully negotiated with the Indians and the Crown to open new lands to development. In his early administration, the new lands and economic improvement fostered the development of the Georgia colony.
His first troubles came with the Stamp Act of 1765. But, in spite of efforts by the Sons of Liberty to block its implementation, Georgia was the only colony to import and actually use the revenue stamps. In 1768, Wright established the 12,000 acre settlement known as Wrightsboro, Georgia. Wrightsboro was set aside for displaced Quakers from North Carolina and became home to William Few when his family fled North Carolina after their farm had been burned and James Few, William's brother had been hanged without a trial. As the American Revolution gathered momentum, Georgia remained the most loyal colony—due in part to its recent settlement, with many residents having direct ties through kinship in Great Britain, and, in part as well, to Wright's able administration. Georgia did not send delegates to the First Continental Congress in 1774.
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