Claud William Wright CB FGS (9 January 1917, Ellenborough, Yorkshire, England – 15 February 2010, Burford, Oxfordshire, England), Aka Willy Wright, was a senior British civil servant who was also an expert in the disciplines of geology, palaeontology, and archaeology.See
Life He was educated at Charterhouse and Christ Church, Oxford. At Oxford, he was influenced by the geologist W. J. Arkell, an interest that became a serious hobby. His professional career was in the War Office/Ministry of Defence, where he reached the rank of Deputy Secretary.
In 1971, he transferred to the Ministry of Education and there was involved with the establishment of the first Ministry of Arts. In these posts, he worked directly with Margaret Thatcher and Lord Eccles.
It was in Wright's hobbies where he made his greatest mark. Whilst working as a civil servant he was, between 1956 and 1958, President of the Geologists' Association.Claud William Wright was also a member of the editorial committee whose work prepared the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, adopted by the XV International Congress of Zoology. See After he "retired" in 1976 he could devote most of his time to his interests. From 1977 to 1983, he was a Research Fellow at Wolfson College, Oxford.Jim Kennedy, "Obituaries: Willy Wright (1917–2010)". Wolfson College Record, 2010 , pages 34–36.
He was married to Alison Readman (1922-2003) with four daughters and a son.
Honours For his work with the Civil Service work he was awarded the CB (1969). He won many prizes, medals, and a Fellowships as an Hon. Associate of the British Museum) for his hobby work. Fifteen genera or species of fossil bear his name: ammonites, starfish, a brachiopod, a snail, and a crab.
Publications He published many articles on such diverse topics as ammonites,Few paleontologists had such an all-encompassing command of a major group of fossils as Wright had of Cretaceous ammonoids. See p.V. This impressive volume had been compiled by him over a period of three and a half decades while working as an "amateur dependent on private resources" and was published in 1996. starfish, invertebrates, Cretaceous crabs, and the Bridlington Giant Flying Lizard.'Giant flying lizard that once stalked Bridlington'. Press cutting from the Leeds Mercury, 16 January 1937.
Collection Wright's collection was split between the Natural History Museum (25,500 pieces in all) and the Wright Library in the Oxford University Museum.
Ferriby boats While walking with his brother beside the River Humber on holiday, Wright found three Bronze Age Ferriby Boats, one of which is now in the National Maritime Museum.
References
Sources
"WRIGHT, Claud William", Who's Who 2010, A & C Black, 2010; online edition, Oxford University Press, December 2010; online edition, March 2010. Accessed 1 September 2010.