Claremont historian Judy Wright died early Saturday. A former mayor, Wright had been ill for six months but went into cardiac arrest Jan. 1 and was in a coma this past week before being removed from the respirator, according to Karen Rosenthal, a friend and another past mayor.

“It is a huge loss for the community,” Rosenthal told me via email. “The flags at city facilities will be flown at half-staff until further notice.”

Wright published “Claremont: A Pictorial History” and “Claremont Women: 1887-1950” and was the go-to person for facts and context about local history — enough so that in my Sunday column I publicly (and innocently) asked for her help regarding the golf carts that used to ply the city’s streets. She read this blog and my column and was always there if I needed her. I’m sorry she won’t be there any longer.

The Courier’s announcement of her death can be read here.