William Wierman Wright

William Wierman Wright (July 27, 1824 – March 9, 1882) was a well known nineteenth century American railroad engineer and civil engineer. He was born in York Springs, Pennsylvania.

Wright was born in York Springs, Pennsylvania on July 27, 1824, being the son of William Wright (1788-1865) and Phoebe Wierman (1790-1873), one of six children. Wright's family were well-known Quakers in Adams county and he finished his education at the Academy at Gettysburg, under the charge of Herman Haupt.

In 1847, Wright joined the corps of engineers working on the Pennsylvania railroad and remained until 1854. He started under chief engineer Samuel W. Mifflin (1805-1885) who was in charge of the mountain division, extending from Jack's narrows to the Allegheny summit. Mifflin at that time was one of five principal assistants to William B.Foster, Associate Engineer in charge of the Eastern Division. The names of the other assistants were Edward Tilghman, A. Worral, Strickland Kneass, and Thomas T. Wierman (1813-1887), another Adams County resident. During this period, Wright also worked for Herman Haupt as his assistant engineer.

By 1854, Wright was the principal assistant engineer in charge of the Western Division of the railroad's mainline. In 1855 he became the Chief Engineer of the Memphis & Charleston Railroad, replaced by Thomas W. Seabrook. The road was the first railroad in the United States to link the Atlantic Ocean with the Mississippi River. Wright returned to the Pennsylvania railroad in 1859 and remained there until the beginning of the Civil War.

In 1857, he went to Honduras, Central America to work with John C. Trautwine of Philadelphia who was chief engineer of a party surveying a line from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean for the Honduras Interoceanic Railway.

In May 1862, Wright along with Eben C. Smeed, I.B. Nevins, G. F. spear, W.R Fulton, and Samuel Longmand was recruited by Herman Haupt as a civilian foreman to help rebuild the Fredericksburg railroad from Aquia Creek.

In September of that year, Wright was ordered by Haupt to take charge of Cumberland Valley Railroad operations along with another Western Division civil engineer for the Pennsylvania Railroad, Joseph D. Potts (1829-1893).

In November 1862, Wright was assigned by Haupt as Chief Engineer and Superintendent of Richmond, Fredericksburg, and Potomac Railroad to rebuild the wharves at Acquia creek as well as fifteen miles of the railroad to Fredericksburg, Virginia controlled by the Union army with Adna Anderson acted as chief engineer of construction. After rebuilding the bridges and wharves for the road, Wright was forced to abandon Acquia creek on September 6, 1862, due to Lee's victory at the Second Battle of Bull Run. Wright returned to Acquia creek in November 1862 while Lee had destroyed the railroad line from its terminus at Acquia creek all the way to Fredericksburg. Wright rebuilt the road again but was forced to again abandon the railroad in June 1863 when Lee's advance to Gettysburg forced Union forces to retreat from their Fredericksburg positions. Wright left the military railroad and returned home to Pennsylvania.