Ms68-007: Daniel E. Wright Papers, 1903-1973


Selected papers from the Col. Daniel Wright collection have been scanned and are available as indicated below in PDF PDF logo file format.

Born in Winchester, Virginia, Daniel E. Wright received a B.S. degree in Civil Engineering from Virginia Polytechnic Institute in 1904. He participated in the construction of the Panama Canal and in the public health activities that rid the Canal Zone of yellow fever and malaria. In 1921 Wright received the Theodore Roosevelt Medal of Honor. From 1921 to 1929 he served as a consultant to the Columbian and Panamanian governments. Wright joined the staff of the Rockefeller Foundation in 1929 and worked in Greece and Turkey on water supply and disease control. During World War II he worked with the United Nations Public Health Service (UNPHS) in Burma and then joined the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA) (1944-1949). His papers contain materials dealing with the Panama Canal, the public health activities of the Rockefeller Foundation, UNRRA, and UNPHS. It also includes photographs from his travels and correspondence to his wife. A thorough finding aid is available from the Virginia Heritage database.


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