Born in Amherst, Massachusetts and raised in Weybridge, Vermont, Wright graduated from Middlebury College in 1815, studied law, attained admission to the bar, and began a practice in Canton, New York.

Wright became a member of the Albany Regency, the coterie of friends and supporters of Martin Van Buren who led New York's Democratic Party beginning in the 1820s.

[3] In addition, he was an early adherent of the Democratic-Republican Party, and served in local offices including member of the Vermont House of Representatives.

[10] Through Skinner, Wright became acquainted with Martin Van Buren and other members of the group known as the Albany Regency, which came to dominate the Democratic Party in New York.

[11] Wright was admitted to the bar in 1819 and began to travel through upstate New York looking for a place to establish himself in a legal career.

[12] Upon arriving in Canton, Wright met Medad Moody, a family friend from Weybridge who persuaded him to settle there.

[13] Wright began a law practice and was soon involved in politics as a Democratic-Republican, and served in local offices including justice of the peace, overseer of roads, town clerk, and school inspector.

[17] In 1822, several of Canton's young men formed a militia company, which they elected Wright to lead with the rank of captain.

[20] Wright resigned in 1829, when his assumption of the New York State Comptroller's post required him to spend the majority of his time in Albany.

[22] When Wright took his seat in January 1824, he became involved in an Albany Regency effort to remove DeWitt Clinton from the Erie Canal Commission.

[23] In 1826, Senator Jasper Ward was accused by the press of corruption in the legislature's approval of acts of incorporation for two insurance companies.

[27] In the two-member 20th District, Wright and his running mate Rudolph Bunner defeated Clintonians Nicoll Fosdick and Elisha Camp.

[30] The comptroller was elected by a joint ballot of the state legislature for a three-year term and the legislators selected Wright to fill the vacancy.

[31] During his term, he focused on the Bucktail priority of avoiding debt, arguing for limited canal maintenance and construction paid for from available funds rather than financing more expansive improvements over time.

[40] When Van Buren succeeded Jackson as president in 1837, Wright supported his plan for an Independent Treasury to replace the Bank of the United States.

[48] When Wright told the emissaries his refusal was firm, they returned to Baltimore, then spent the next day sending messages by telegraph in an effort to get him to reconsider.

[52] When anti-rent tenants caused unrest in Delaware County, Wright declared a state of insurrection and dispatched the militia to restore order.

[53] On August 27, 1847, Wright suffered a heart attack or stroke while at the post office in Canton, which his friends believed was brought on by overwork while tending to outdoor chores at his farm in hot weather.

[54] In addition, Wright had recently given up alcohol after years of heavy drinking, and quitting suddenly may have had a negative effect on his health.

[56] Wright's death was sudden and surprised his political supporters, who had been planning to offer him as a candidate in the 1848 presidential election.

[64] The Silas Wright House at 3 East Main Street in Canton is now a museum and the home of the St. Lawrence County Historical Association.