Benjamin Merrill

Captain Benjamin Merrill ( – June 19, 1771) was an American Regulator, military officer, gunsmith and planter who served in the militia of Rowan County, North Carolina. He sided with the Regulator Movement in North Carolina, and was captured following the Battle of Alamance on May 16, 1771. Shortly thereafter, he was executed as a rebel by Governor William Tryon.

Early life

Merrill was born in Hopewell, New Jersey. He became a gunsmith and plantation owner. His lands included a river with a strong current "...sufficient to power the machinery used in boring out the barrels." He was married to Jemima Smith, daughter of Andrew Smith of Hopewell, and was known to have had eight to ten children. Governor Tryon sent General Hugh Waddell through Rowan and Mecklenburg to raise troops. Waddell enlisted almost one hundred in Mecklenburg and about the same number in Rowan. At this time, Captain Merrill had also rallied a company of three hundred men, most of whom were Baptists,

Battle aftermath A plaque from the Alamance Battleground commemorating Merrill's execution.

From May 30 to June 20, 1771, the court of oyer and terminer was held at Hillsborough for the trial of the Regulators captured at Alamance. Twelve were convicted of high treason, and six of them were sentenced to be hanged, drawn, and quartered for their part in the uprising, including three officers of the colonial militia who had joined ranks with the Regulator's: Merrill, Captain Robert Messer, and Captain Robert Matear.

"Benjamin Merrill a Captain of the militia, at the hour of his execution, left it in charge of the officers to solicit me to petition His Majesty to grant his plantation and estate to his wife and eight children. He died under a thorough conviction of his crime and the justice of his sentence, and addressed himself to the spectators to take warning by his suffering. His Majesty's indulgence to this request would, I am persuaded, be dutifully and affectionatley received by his unhappy widow and children." —Wme. Tryon

The request was granted, although later played down by the Patriots of the Revolution. Merrill and his five companions were hanged on June 19, 1771, near Hillsborough, North Carolina.

Memorial There is a memorial plaque placed along Old Halifax Rd., in Hillsborough, North Carolina marking the place of the execution.