The marriage of Minnie Wright in 1912 (Marriage of Minnie Wright – Old Whittington One Place Study ) sounded such an extravagant affair I thought I would have a quick look at the history of the Wright family. It wasn’t a family that I had heard anything about.
Minnie – full name Florence Gertrude Minnie Wright – was born in 1872. She wasn’t a native of Whittington, she was born in Yorkshire. The 1911 census shows that there were three Wright sisters- Fanny Ann aged 40, Minnie aged 39 and Mary Louise aged 36, All unmarried in 1911 which was quite unusual, and two brothers Henry Horace and Joseph.
Henry Wright, head of the family, was the original ‘self made’ man. He was born in Derbyshire and started his working life as a school teacher. After a couple of years he decided this was not the profession for him and he moved to Doncaster where he worked for the Manchester Carriage Company. After several years he moved to Yorkshire to work for an Iron and Steel Company, he realised that working for someone was not going to make his fortune and decided to start his own business. He became an iron and Steel Merchant in 1877 and built up a very successful business.
In 1902 he was advised by his doctors to move away from Sheffield to the country and he chose Whittington Grange, which was up for sale after the death of Miss Aldam. The advert for the sale of Whittington Grange was posted in the Derbyshire Times 31 May 1902. It was quite a large estate 25 acres 0 roods and 17 perches is roughly just over 25 football pitches.
The map below dated 1892-1914 shows Whittington Grange with the Lodge house indicated near the main road.
(NLS Maps Great Britain OS 25inch 1892-1914)
By 1911 Harry Brearley had also moved to Old Whittington, it is not hard to imagine the two men knew each other both being involved in the steel industry. Henry Wright took an active part in the life of Old and New Whittington opening the grounds of Whittington Grange for flower shows, garden parties and school treats as recorded in his obituary( South Yorkshire Times 30 August 1913). The newspaper reports below certainly paint a picture of how generous Henry Wright could be, some of these events do sound quite lavish affairs.
A garden party was held in the grounds in 1903 and as detailed below it sounds a very grand affair with the descriptions of the ladies clothes well documented in this newspaper report from the Sheffield Daily Telegraph 9 July 1903.
and as confirmed by the advertisement below from the Derbyshire Courier 28 August 1906.
He was also involved with New Whittington Tennis Club and in 1912 invited the members to Whittington Grange. The article below gives a good description of the activities of the afternoon and it sounds as though the afternoon was a great success. It confirms that Henry Wright and Harry Brearley were at least acquaintances and quite possibly good friends, sharing an interest not only in Steel but also in tennis!
At the end of the article it is recorded ” Mr Wright assured the members of his pleasure and said he should be pleased to see them next year”. Sadly I don’t think this would have happened as Henry Wright died on August 20 1913 at the age of 68.
Details of Alderman Wrights Will were printed in the Derbyshire Courier 6 January 1914 and it confirms that Henry Wright was a very successful business man and had built up a considerable fortune.
All of the newspaper reports about Henry Wright describe him as a kind hearted, generous man who gave of his time and gave his money to worthy causes. He was interested in supporting many activities including tennis, bowls and cricket in his local areas. His picture below certainly makes him appear a very kindly upstanding pillar of the community.
Derbyshire Times 20 August 1910
Henry Wrights obituary in the Eckington Woodhouse and Staveley Express 30 August 1913
Henry Wright’s funeral took place at Old Whittington.
The family plot in Old Whittington churchyard (taken from billiongraves.com)
Source : “BillionGraves Index”, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q2TQ-G5ZF : Wed Oct 01 13:49:44 UTC 2025), Entry for Henry Wright.
Old Whittington One Place Study 