Daniel Merrill Monument

Daniel Merrill

Pastor. Educator. Legislator.

Daniel Merrill, the son of Thomas and Sarah Merrill, was born March 18, 1765 in Rowley, Massachusetts. He was converted at the age of thirteen and early received impressions that he should become a minister of the gospel. In January of 1781, Merrill became a soldier in the war for American Independence and served until the close of the conflict in 1783. He subsequently gave his attention to preparing for the noble cause to which he would devote the remainder of his life. He spent over six years studying for the ministry and graduated from Dartmouth College in 1789.

In 1791, Merrill received a license to preach and his first attempt at delivering a message was in the town of Sedgwick. The sermon had a profound effect upon the people. Not only did an immediate revival commence but it endeared the hearts of the people to the young preacher. Merrill traveled as an itinerant for the next eighteen months until finally being ordained as pastor of the congregational church in Sedgwick in 1793. He was the first settled minister in this town. The first meetinghouse for the church and a house for the Merrill family were erected soon afterwards.

Merrill’s character is delineated in Sprague’s Annals of the American Pulpit: “Though he had great firmness and courage, he was remarkable for self control, seldom, if ever, discovering the least irritation or haste of temper. He possessed a naturally vigorous intellect, which had been disciplined and improved by a thorough education. As a Christian, he was devout, consistent and perseveringly active. He had great uniformity of character – at home and abroad, in the family, the social circle, the church, and the world, he always evinced the same high regard to the principles and precepts of the gospel. His reverence for the Bible knew no bounds – it was emphatically the man of his counsel and the guide of his life.” Early in his pastorate, Merrill used his home as a school to teach the scriptures to young men who desired to train for the ministry. Several of his students embraced the principles of the Baptists and this led Merrill to examine his own beliefs.

In 1804, Merrill preached seven sermons on the subject of baptism and the Baptists detailing his change of sentiment. His was not an easy decision. The church in Sedgwick was then the largest church of any kind within the bounds of Maine and division was a real possibility. A town meeting was called, January 28, 1805, to determine if Merrill could continue as pastor on the Baptist platform. The overwhelming majority decided in his favour with those who disagreed abstaining. The occasion caused Merrill to remark that the citizens of Sedgwick were – “the most heavenly and devoted company of practical saints I have seldom, if ever, seen.”

Read more about Daniel Merrill

Read about it in the Ellsworth American

Photo by Holly Gerard