Selah Merrill, was an
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
CongregationalistCongregational churches are Protestant Christian churches practicing Congregationalist church governance, in which each congregation independently and autonomously runs its own affairs....
clergyClergy is the generic term used to describe the formal religious leadership within a given religion. A clergyman, churchman or cleric is a member of the clergy, especially one who is a priest, preacher, pastor, or other religious professional....
man, an educator, archaeologist of the American Palestine Exploration Society, and
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
diplomat.
He was born at
Canton CentreCanton is a rural town, incorporated in 1806, in Hartford County, Connecticut. The population was 8,840 at the 2000 census, and has grown to 10,292 as of the 2010 census. It is bordered by Granby on the north, Simsbury on the east, Avon and Burlington on the south, New Hartford on the west, and...
,
ConnecticutConnecticut is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, and the state of New York to the west and the south .Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, the major U.S. river that approximately...
on May 2, 1837 and died on January 22, 1909 at
Fruitvale, CaliforniaFruitvale is a neighborhood in east Oakland, California, in the United States. It is located about two miles southeast of Lake Merritt and is home to Oakland's largest Latino population, with Latinos comprising 49.5% of Fruitvale's population . Fruitvale's ZIP code is 94601...
. He was the son of Lydia Richards and Daniel Merrill and was a member of the fifth generation of the Merrill family in America. The Merrills were descended from an old and esteemed Masschusetts family and his original immigrant ancestor was Nathaniel Merrill from
WhersteadWherstead is a village and a civil parish located in county Suffolk, England. Wherstead village lies south of Ipswich. It is an ancient settlement, and from its soil the plough has brought to light many evidences of occupation by Romans and by early Britons. In the Domesday Book the place is...
,
County Suffolk, EnglandSuffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
and was one of the earliest settlers in
Newbury, MassachusettsNewbury is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 6,666 at the 2010 census. Newbury includes the villages of Old Town , Plum Island and Byfield, home of The Governor's Academy , a private preparatory school.- History :Newbury Plantation was settled and incorporated...
.
After graduating from
Williston SeminaryThe Williston Northampton School, or "Williston," is a private co-educational preparatory school for boarding and day students in seventh grade through postgraduate year located in Easthampton, Massachusetts. The campus offers a range of extra-curricular activities in the arts and athletics...
in
Easthampton, MassachusettsEasthampton is the second largest city in Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States. The town is on the southeastern edge of an area called the Pioneer Valley near the five colleges in the college towns of Northampton and Amherst, MA...
, he studied at
Yale CollegeYale College was the official name of Yale University from 1718 to 1887. The name now refers to the undergraduate part of the university. Each undergraduate student is assigned to one of 12 residential colleges.-Residential colleges:...
, but did not graduate.
