This article was published in The Merrill Newsletter . Vol.5, No.3, May 1998. All persons named in this article are Merrills by birth or marriage. A number following the first name indicates the generation.
All locations are in Massachusetts except as indicated.
Franklin County, Massachusetts lies about 100 miles west of Boston. The survivors returned to rebuild, and thanks to the fertile Deerfield River valley, the town prospered. By 1750, the wealthy Deerfield farmers were living in comfortable homes, importing fine silk dresses and expensive musical instruments from Europe. The first Merrills in Franklin County settled in Deerfield and Shelburne in the early 1770's. This is probably the same Nathaniel who served in the Revolution in 1775-77, in Capt.