Raymond R. Wright was born on February 5, 1892, in Council Bluffs, Iowa, and attended the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland.

He was subsequently assigned to the Marine detachment aboard the battleship USS New Jersey and sailed to Dominican Republic, where he participated in the foreign shore duties.

Wright then participated with his detachment in the Occupation duties in Haiti and returned to the United States in November 1918, already with the rank of captain.

His next assignment came in June 1933, when he was transferred to San Francisco and appointed assistant chief of staff for Reserves within Western Recruiting Area.

[1] Wright was promoted to the rank of colonel on 1 June 1939 and appointed Paymaster in the Department of Pacific, San Francisco in September of the same year.