An Illustrated History of the State of Iowa
being a complete civil, political, and military history of the state from its first exploration down to 1875, by Charles R. Tuttle; assisted by Daniel S. Durrie.  Chicago: R. S. Peale, 1876.

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Unless otherwise noted, biographies submitted by Richard Barton.

Hon. Geo G. Wright, United States senator, was born in Bloomington, Indiana, March 24, 1820, and graduated from the university of that state in 1839. He studied law with his brother, Hon. J. A. Wright, and in 1840, was admitted to the bar. He removed to Iowa the same year, and settled in Keosauqua, Van Buren county, on the 14th of November. In 1847, he was prosecuting attorney for Van Buren county; in 1848, he was elected to the state senate, and served in that capacity two terms; in 1853, he received the whig vote of the general assembly for United States senator, but was defeated; in 1854-5, he was elected chief justice of Iowa; in 1859, he declined a nomination; in 1860, a vacancy occurred in the bench of the supreme court, and Gov. Kirkwood appointed Judge Wright to fill the place. He accepted, and occupied it till the next general election, when he was elected to fill out the unexpired term of Judge Stockton. At the general election in 1865, he was reelected for a term of six years. On the 18th of January, 1870, Judge Wright was elected to the senate of the United States for a full term. In politics, Senator Wright was originally a whig. In 1850, he was nominated, against his earnest protest to the contrary, by the whig convention, in the first district for congress. Although not elected, he succeeded in effecting a considerable reduction of the then overwhelming democratic majority. February 25, 1875, Senator Wright wrote a letter, declining a reelection to the senate; returned to Des Moines and engaged in the practice of law, as senior in the firm of Wright, Gatch & Wright. He has been one of the most faithful friends of his state and country in the political campaigns of the last fifteen years, and especially for the last four or five, but has not accumulated a fortune. He delivered his first speech in the campaign of 1875, on Saturday, September 4th, at Hillsboro, Henry county, Iowa. The State Register thus speaks of it: "We give Senator Wright's speech as completely as possible, for the reason that to him, more than to any other man in Iowa, the people look with the most confidence for an honest, frank and logical discussion of all political questions. His candor and fairness, too, make his speeches (independent of all mere partisanship) of great popular interest and value. Purity and power both considered, Senator Wright stands to-day the highest of all our public men in Iowa. The people implicitly believe in his honesty, because in a lifetime of official service he has never proved else than honest; and they know he is strong, because he has been tried in several of the most exalted positions in our public service, and ever and always found the man for the place, and a leader of the people. This speech which we publish to-day, is worthy of the man and the party." Senator Wright has also been the untiring friend of education, and has often filled responsible positions in relation to school interests, with the greatest fidelity and acceptability. He is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and president of the board of trustees of the Simpson Centennary College, at Indianola. In October, 1843, Senator Wright was married to Miss Mary H. Dibble, of Van Buren county, daughter of Judge Dibble, formerly of New York.