Dr. Craig Wright had been a clinical instructor in the Department of Periodontics at OSU for five years when he made the decision to go into private practice. He decided Dublin, Ohio would be an ideal location for a start-up practice — at the time there were only two dentists practicing in town and only 681 residents! But Muirfield Golf Course was completed and the first house in Muirfield was under construction. That was 1974.
He found a small white three bedroom house on S. High Street in Dublin that became available and, he thought, would be the perfect location for a new dental practice. Dr. Wright and his wife Jane began remodeling the house, doing much of the work themselves. Adam, their 1 1/2 year old son, played in his playpen in what would be the reception room while his parents steamed 7 layers of wallpaper from the walls.
Decorating that first office involved purchasing and painting unfinished wood furniture for the reception room, adding cushions and curtains made by Jane. Dental equipment consisted of one chair, a dental unit, and an x-ray unit in one room. The second room had a chair, just an old manual pump chair converted to look more updated. The kitchen served as a laboratory where Dr. Wright fabricated gold crowns for his patients.
The first patients were welcomed on February 15, 1975. Dr. Wright had hired an assistant who, at 19 years old, had no previous dental office experience. Dr. Wright’s teaching skills were brought back into play and with three weeks of training, his assistant was ready for patients.
Four patients were treated on the practice’s first day. Of the those four one has since passed away, one moved away and two are still Dr. Wright’s patients, as is his original assistant!
Early in the development of the practice Dr. Wright added to his staff. An endodontist, a periodontist and an orthodontist joined him in caring for patients. And so, Dublin Dental Associates was born.