January 31, 1934--Monmouth Junction RR Engineer, Alonzo Wright's Funeral

Monmouth Junction Train Station

Veteran railroader and noted musician, Alonzo Francis Wright of Monmouth Junction, was laid to rest on January 31, 1934.  When Wright was a mere lad of twelve, his father, Joel Wright--an engineer on the old Camden and Amboy Railroad--taught him how to run the famous English engine, "John Bull."  He was present when the engine arrived at Bordentown, saw it being assembled at the wharf, and helped feed it wood to burn instead of coal.  In 1865, he moved with his family to Princeton where his father served as an engineer on the Princeton Junction branch.  Joel Wright served as a telegraph operator at Princeton Junction until 1876.  On January 29, 1877, Wright married Kate D. Groendyke.  Before he died, they had celebrated fifty-six years together.  His son, Alonzo, followed in his father's footsteps in working for the railroad.  He also was an ardent church-goer.  Wright served as a Sunday school teacher, was a member of the choir, and the church treasurer.  He was also a talented musician, who performed on the piano, violin, banjo, cornet, accordion, and mouth organ.  This humble, multi-talented man just happened to be descended from English nobility (so he claimed as often as given the opportunity)--his great-grandmother, Harriet Luttrell, was the daughter of the Earl of Carhampton, who once held a seat in Parliament in the British House of Lords.  This is but another example of the colorful characters who have been a part of South Brunswick Township history.  Legend has it that this Alonzo Francis Wright was never wrong (so he claimed as often as given the opportunity).