Amos Wright

From 1852 to 1867, Wright represented East York as a Member of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada, and was noted as an ally of George Brown.

Following Confederation, and after William Pearce Howland resigned to become Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, Amos Wright gained his seat in the House of Commons of Canada in a federal by-election on August 14, 1868, and came to represent York West.

In this controversy, religious issues are also said to have played a part; in any case, Wright, a Methodist from an essentially Protestant background, was replaced as Federal Indian Agent in 1883.

The Toronto Daily Patriot and Express even stated he was "as bewildered with unexpected honors as an interesting widow giving herself away in matrimony for the fourth time".

While undoubtedly unfair, this comment serves to hint at the transition which his life encompassed from his early days in farming and involvement in local parish affairs, to the sometimes tumultuous political events of the Federal Parliament, as the new Dominion expanded westward.