Isaac Merrill (abt. 1824 - 1891)

Born about 1824 in at or near Tunkhannock, Pennsylvania, USA

Ancestors

Descendants

Died 10 Mar 1891 at about age 67 in Bingham, Utah, USA

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ISAAC NEWTON MERRILL

lsaac Newton Merrill, the first child of Adrian and Nancy Merrill was born at or near Tunkhannock, Pennsylvania. in probably 1824. He died at Bingham, Utah, March 11, 1891, at the age of about 67 years. At the time of this publication his birthday has not been found. When he was a small boy, his parents and he and his sisters, Caroline and Ruth, moved to Delaware County, Ohio, and later to the adjoining county of Franklin. There he attended the public schools and later the Presbyterian school started there and named "Central College." He became a good scholar and taught school. I have an old algebra that he used and on the flyleaf is written with pencil --

Isaac N. Merrill, Central College, Ohio."

The date can no longer be read. The old book is almost free from marks, altho both my father and I studied it. My father had also a copy of an English translation of Legender's algebra which had been I saac's.

Mrs. Helen (Rugg) Taylor writes that her mother (Caroline Merrill) told that when the cornerstone of one of the brick buildings of Central College was to be laid, lsaac, who was about 17 years old, wished to attend the ceremony, but he lacked a pair of pants suited to his notion. It was new pants or no go, so Caroline hurried and finished the pants in time for the ceremony. In September, 1925, Mrs. Taylor sent me some kodack views of the remaining buildings. I have used two.

Isaac was a very accurate shot with a rifle - a very much prized accomplishment at that time. That made him an often winner at the shooting match and winning in turn fed the appetite for gambling. Father said that Isaac was always a gambler.

As has been said already, Isaac, Caroline and George attended Central College. The views here given were taken late in 1925. All buildings now remaining are used by the State of Ohio as an asylum for destitute deaf-mutes.

When the discovery of gold in California was announced in 1848, many young men from Ohio hastened to the new Eldorado. With them was Isaac Merrill - never to see again any of his kindred except (I believe) his brother Alfred. Alfred went to the far west many years after and, as I remember, he saw Isaac in northern California. I am not sure about this. Isaac never returned to the eastern states unless as a soldier of the Civil War. His portrait shows the uniform of a Federal soldier. I know nothing of his military career except what follows in connection with his burial.

Years went by and he was lost to his relatives. Then came those two clip- pings from the Salt Lake Daily Tribune:

"Isaac N. Merrill, an old soldier of General Connor’s command, for twenty-six years a resident of Bingham (Utah), the discoverer of the well known Yosemite mine, and at one time Recorder of the West Mountain Mining District, died yesterday morning, March. 11, 1891, at the Yosemite mine, aged about 67 years."

On March 14, the same paper said,

"The funeral of I. N. Merrill took place in Odd Fellows’ Hall in Bingham yesterday under the auspices of the Grand Army. A detail from the city consisting of Comrades Swan, Squires, Campbell, Alves and Kaign joined with Comrades Butler, Guilliani, May, Keyser and Clays of Bingham in conducting the funeral services. The services at the hall consisted of singing by a choir, prayer by the chaplain and a feeling address reviewing the life and character of the deceased by his old friend Col. M. M. Kaign.

The body was then followed by a large procession down the canon to Bingham cemetery, where the deceased had expressed a desire to be buried. Here at the grave the funeral services and ritual of the G. A. R. were performed and the lovable old man was left in his last resting place. Peace be to his ashes and loving regard to his memory.

The pallbearers were P. Clays, H. M. May, J. O. Campbell, George Crowley and W. H, Squires."

Some lawyers and detectives believe that there is “always a woman in the case." The old family stories tell that Isaac had a love affair with a girl named Emma and grandmother spoke of her as “Em." It was supposed that the adverse ending of that matter was a factor in his deciding to follow the “Forty-niners." Also, it is said that he named a mine which he discovered the “Emma mine," altho he was never able to say “Emma mine" of the other Emma.

Another story was that he and a partner accumulated a considerable fortune and spent it in building a dam to turn the course of some river near Marysville, California. They expected to more than replace the fortune spent by placer mining in the old bed of the river. Just as the dam was finished, a mountain flood swept the dam away and left the partners penniless. From that event we know nothing until he arrived in Utah with the soldiers of Gen. Connor. From the excerpt following, it appears that he might have been in California from about 1850 to 1862. How long his military service lasted, we do not know, but he was in Bingham in 1865 and lived there 26 years until his death in 1891. After hearing of Isaac’s death, my father wrote to Col. M. M. Kaighn (before mentioned) and the following is an excerpt from Kaighn’s reply:

“Your brother died on March 10 [printed notice says 11th] at the Yosemite mine, Bingham, sometime between 7:30 in the morning and 3:00 o’clock in the afternoon, probably from heart failure. He had been drinking pretty hard for a week before. He left a few hundred dollars in money and a few articles of personal property and a half-interest in a mine called the ‘°Yampa" in Bingham. . . Your brother was one of the whitest souled men I ever knew. I have know him intimately for twelve years, was associated with him in business matters and made the address at his funeral in Bingham. l have no relative living who is dearer to me than was the dear old man. He had hosts of friends and not an enemy. He died peacefully without any fear of death. .... " Sincerely Yours, M. M. Kaighn.

Bingham is at the bottom of a deep gorge and the town is 50 feet wide and two miles long. A narrow street runs between the two rows of houses. The mountains surrounding are made largely of copper ore - one of the largest bodies known. Two good views of Bingham and the works are shown in the National Geographic Magazine of January, 1926.

Biography

Isaac is the child of Adrian Merrill and Mercy Unknown. ^[1]

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Sources

• Jim Sparling, firsthand knowledge. See the Changes page for the details of edits by Jim and others.

1. ↑ Entered by Jim Sparling, Jun 8, 2011