Speech of Hon. Luke E. Wright, secretary of war, delivered at the centennial celebration of Abraham Lincoln's birth, February 12, 1909, near Hodgenville, Ky
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Luke Edward Wright, Sr. was an American political figure.
Background
Luke Wright, Sr. was born on August 29, 1846, in Pulaski, Tennessee, the son of Archibald Wright and Mary Elizabeth Eldridge, and the great-grandson of Duncan Wright, an emigrant from Scotland. His father was chief justice of the supreme court of Tennessee.
Education
The family removed to Memphis in 1850, where Luke attended the public schools. When the Civil War broke out, a tall rangy boy looking older than his fifteen years, he enlisted in the Confederate army and was assigned to Company G, 154th Senior Tennessee Regiment. Later he became a second lieutenant. For bravery under fire at Murfreesboro in 1863 he was cited for gallantry. After the war he was a student, 1867-1868, at the University of Mississippi, but did not graduate.
Career
He read law in his father's office, was admitted to the bar, and settled down to practice in Memphis. In 1878, during a severe epidemic of yellow fever at Memphis, with other public-spirited and courageous citizens he formed a relief committee that put down panic, provided medical and nursing care for the sick, distributed food, and buried the dead. The nomination of Bryan by the Democrats in 1896 caused him, a life-long Democrat but a conservative by temperament, to bolt the party. In 1900 McKinley appointed him a member of the second Philippine commission. In 1901 he became vice-governor of the Philippines, and a little later, in 1904, governor, succeeding William H. Taft. On February 6, 1905, his title was changed to governor-general. Obstructionism by Filipino politicians made his labor as administrator both difficult and disagreeable. Strong, competent, perhaps a little too unbending, he defied opposition, charted his own course and kept to it. Late in 1905 Roosevelt asked him to become the first ambassador of the United States to Japan. He accepted, regretfully. An associate to the Philippine administration, Dean C. Worcester, characterized Wright's, Sr. withdrawal as a grave mistake, by which " the islands were deprived of the services of a very able and distinguished man, who had the courage of his convictions, and whose convictions were thoroughly sound ". After a year at Tokio he returned to Memphis. In June 1908 Roosevelt called him again to public office, once more to succeed William H. Taft, now Republican nominee for president, this time as secretary of war.
Wright, Sr. served as United States Secretary of War under President Theodore Roosevelt until March 1, 1909. He stressed actions to eliminate unfit officers and sought to take advantage of aviation technology. He served less than a year before resigning. He returned to private life and died on November 17, 1922, in Memphis, Tennessee.
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Politics
From 1896 to 1908, Luke Edward Wright, Sr. belonged to the Democratic Party.
Membership
In 1900, Luke Wright, Sr. became a member of the second Philippine Commission.
Personality
Tall, broad-shouldered, with snow-white hair, eyes a steely gray but with a kindly twinkle in them, Luke E. Wright, Sr. inspired respect in his adversaries, warm affection in his friends. To this it may be added that his outer person was a mirror of his inner traits.
Connections
On December 15, 1868, Luke Edward Wright, Sr. married Katherine Middleton Semmes, the daughter of Raphael Semmes. They had seven children.