Elmer Truesdell Merrill
Encyclopedia
Elmer Truesdell Merrill was an American
Latin scholar, born at Millville, Massachusetts
. Merrill graduated from Wesleyan University
in 1881. He is primarily remembered for his student edition of the Roman
poet Catullus
and for his studies on the text and tradition of the Letters of Pliny the Younger
, culminating in his 1914 Teubner edition, which constituted an important basis for the works of later scholars.
Merrill taught at the Massachusetts State Normal School
, Westfield, Massachusetts
(1882-1883), at Wesleyan University
(1883-1886), at University of Southern California
(1887-1888), again at Wesleyan (1888-1905) as professor of Latin language and literature, and at Trinity College
, Hartford, Connecticut
(1905-1908). In 1908 he became professor of Latin at the University of Chicago
where he taught until his retirement in 1925.
In 1898-1899, he was professor, in 1899-1900, acting chairman, in 1900-1901, chairman of the work of the American School of Classical Studies in Rome
. After 1906 he was associate editor of Classical Philology
, and in 1906-1907 he served as president of the American Philological Association
. He was ordained a priest in the Episcopal Church in 1895 and received an LL.D from the University of St. Andrews in 1911.
In 1923, the Bibliotheca Teubneriana
published Merrill's scholarly edition of Catullus. His effort was not well received by fellow Classicists, most notably the poet and scholar A. E. Housman, who offered a particularly scathing review. Merrill's student edition of Catullus remained a standard in American classrooms for much of the twentieth century.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Latin scholar, born at Millville, Massachusetts
Millville, Massachusetts
Millville is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 3,190 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Providence metropolitan area.- History :...
. Merrill graduated from Wesleyan University
Wesleyan University
Wesleyan University is a private liberal arts college founded in 1831 and located in Middletown, Connecticut. According to the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, Wesleyan is the only Baccalaureate College in the nation that emphasizes undergraduate instruction in the arts and...
in 1881. He is primarily remembered for his student edition of the Roman
Roman Republic
The Roman Republic was the period of the ancient Roman civilization where the government operated as a republic. It began with the overthrow of the Roman monarchy, traditionally dated around 508 BC, and its replacement by a government headed by two consuls, elected annually by the citizens and...
poet Catullus
Catullus
Gaius Valerius Catullus was a Latin poet of the Republican period. His surviving works are still read widely, and continue to influence poetry and other forms of art.-Biography:...
and for his studies on the text and tradition of the Letters of Pliny the Younger
Pliny the Younger
Gaius Plinius Caecilius Secundus, born Gaius Caecilius or Gaius Caecilius Cilo , better known as Pliny the Younger, was a lawyer, author, and magistrate of Ancient Rome. Pliny's uncle, Pliny the Elder, helped raise and educate him...
, culminating in his 1914 Teubner edition, which constituted an important basis for the works of later scholars.
Merrill taught at the Massachusetts State Normal School
Westfield State College
Westfield State University is a comprehensive, coeducational, four-year public university in Westfield, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1838 by noted educator and social reformer Horace Mann as the first public co-educational college in America without barrier to race, gender and economic class...
, Westfield, Massachusetts
Westfield, Massachusetts
Westfield is a city in Hampden County, in the Pioneer Valley of western Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 41,094 at the 2010 census. The ZIP Code is 01085 for homes and businesses, 01086 for Westfield State...
(1882-1883), at Wesleyan University
Wesleyan University
Wesleyan University is a private liberal arts college founded in 1831 and located in Middletown, Connecticut. According to the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, Wesleyan is the only Baccalaureate College in the nation that emphasizes undergraduate instruction in the arts and...
(1883-1886), at University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
(1887-1888), again at Wesleyan (1888-1905) as professor of Latin language and literature, and at Trinity College
Trinity College (Connecticut)
Trinity College is a private, liberal arts college in Hartford, Connecticut. Founded in 1823, it is the second-oldest college in the state of Connecticut after Yale University. The college enrolls 2,300 students and has been coeducational since 1969. Trinity offers 38 majors and 26 minors, and has...
, Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford, Connecticut
Hartford is the capital of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960, it is the second most populous city on New England's largest river, the Connecticut River. As of the 2010 Census, Hartford's population was 124,775, making...
(1905-1908). In 1908 he became professor of Latin at the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
where he taught until his retirement in 1925.
In 1898-1899, he was professor, in 1899-1900, acting chairman, in 1900-1901, chairman of the work of the American School of Classical Studies in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
. After 1906 he was associate editor of Classical Philology
Classical Philology (journal)
Classical Philology is the title of an academic journal, begun in 1906, published by the University of Chicago Press. It presents articles and essays on Greek and Roman languages and literatures, history, philosophy, religion, art, and society. CP covers a broad range of topics from a variety of...
, and in 1906-1907 he served as president of the American Philological Association
American Philological Association
The American Philological Association , founded in 1869, is a non-profit North American scholarly organization devoted to all aspects of Greek and Roman civilization...
. He was ordained a priest in the Episcopal Church in 1895 and received an LL.D from the University of St. Andrews in 1911.
In 1923, the Bibliotheca Teubneriana
Bibliotheca Teubneriana
The Bibliotheca Teubneriana, or Teubner editions of Greek and Latin texts, comprise the most thorough modern collection ever published of ancient Greco-Roman literature...
published Merrill's scholarly edition of Catullus. His effort was not well received by fellow Classicists, most notably the poet and scholar A. E. Housman, who offered a particularly scathing review. Merrill's student edition of Catullus remained a standard in American classrooms for much of the twentieth century.
Works
- Poems of Catullus (1893)
- Fragments of Roman Satire (1897)
- Selected Letters of the Younger Pliny (1903)
- C. Plini Caecili Secundi Epistularum Libri Novem (Teubner, 1914)
- Catulli Veronesis liber (Teubner, 1923)
- Essays in Early Christian History (1924)