Rev. Selah Merrill was born on May 2, 1837, in Canton Centre, Hartford, Connecticut.

He was a clergyman, consul, archeologist, and author. He graduated from Williston Seminary in Easthampton, Massachusetts, and studied theology at the New Haven Theological Seminary, graduating in 1863. He was ordained in the Congregational Church, Feeding Mills, Massachusetts in 1864. He then studied the ancient Hebrew language in Germany at the University of Berlin (1868–1870). He received the degree of M.A. from Yale College; D. D. from Grinnell College in 1875; and an LL. D. from Union College in 1884. He served as a chaplain in the 49th U.S. Colored Infantry, also known as the 11th Louisiana Regiment Infantry, during the American Civil War. From 1874 to 1877, he traveled to Palestine where he worked as an archeologist for the American Palestine Exploration Society. Merrill served as U.S. Consul in Jerusalem in 1882–1885, 1891–1893, and 1898–1907. He was a staunch opponent of the commune at the American Colony, Jerusalem, and sought every opportunity to dismantle it. He also opposed Jewish agricultural settlement in Palestine. He was a virulent anti-Semite and his views influenced the State Department's opposition to Jewish resettlement in Palestine at that time. In 1872 and 1879, he taught at Andover Theological Seminary and became curator of the Biblical Museum there. In 1907, he served as American Consul at Georgetown, British Guyana. Merrill was the author of numerous books including, “East of the Jordan” (1881), “Galilee in the Time of Christ” (1881), “Ancient Jerusalem” (1908), and “The Site of Calvary” (1886).

In 1866, he married Fanny Lucinda Cooke (–1867), in 1868, he married Phila Wilkins (–1870), and in 1875, Adelaide Brewster Taylor (1845–1929). He died on January 22, 1909, in Fruitvale, Alameda County, California.

Lucius Herbert Merrill was born on October 1, 1857, in Auburn, Androscoggin County, Maine.

He was a scientist and educator. He graduated from the University of Maine in 1883. From 1885 to1887, he worked as an assistant curator at the Department of Lithology and Physical Geography in the U.S. National Museum. He joined the University of Maine Experiment Station in 1887 as an analytical chemist and stayed in this position until 1896. In 1888, he was appointed instructor of Biological Chemistry in the College of Agriculture. He was later appointed Professor of Biological Chemistry and Agricultural Chemistry. Towards the end of his career, he was a Professor of Geology and Economic Geology. In 1908, he was awarded a Doctorate of Science from the University of Maine. In 1929, Dr. Merrill was appointed State Geologist. He retired Emeritus from the University of Maine in 1931.

In 1893, he married Lydia Maria Buffum (1854-1907) and in 1910, he married Annie Clifford Moore (1880-1972). He died on January 27, 1935, in Orono, Penobscot County, Maine.

George Perkins Merrill was born on May 31, 1854, in Auburn, Maine.

He was an American geologist and author. He studied at the University of Maine (B.Sc., 1879; M.Sc., 1883; Ph.D., 1889) and worked as an assistant in chemistry at Wesleyan University, Connecticut (1879–1880). In 1881, he was appointed to the Department of Geology of the U. S. National Museum and soon became its assistant curator. In 1897, he was appointed a head curator and stayed in this position until his death. In 1922, he was elected a member of the National Academy of Sciences and was awarded the J. Lawrence Smith gold medal of the Academy for his researches on meteorites. In 1917, he received the honorary degree of Sc. D. from George Washington University. He was a member of the American Philosophical Society, the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, the Washington Academy of Sciences (president 1906-1907), the Geological Society of America (vice-president 1920), the Maryland Academy of Sciences, and many other scientific organizations. He published numerous papers and books on the field of his study. He is also considered a historian of North American geology.

In 1883, he married Sarah Farrington (1858-1894), and in 1900, he married Katherine Lulaia Yancey (1876–1973). He died on August 15, 1929, in Auburn, Maine.