The Wright Stuff

Starting a church in Dodge City.

September 24, 1850. Ormond W. Wright is born in New Hampshire. When he moves west in his early 20s, he decides to be a pastor. He settles in Dodge City, where four Presbyterian ministers ordain him in 1877. Rev. Wright first serves the Union Church (a replica of which is in Dodge). He leads the effort to build a new church in 1878 (it is completed two years later). According to several sources, Wright convinces Wyatt Earp and Bat Masterson to serve as deacons–in part because of their status, in part to provide protection.