Edward E. Merritt

Edward Eleazer Merritt (February 3, 1845 – August 3, 1895) was an American newspaper publisher and Republican politician. He was a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly, representing Clark and Jackson counties during the 1873 session.

Biography Edward Merritt was born in Burlington, Vermont, in February 1845. As a child, he came to Wisconsin with his parents in 1850.

He came to Sparta, Wisconsin, in 1859 and learned the typography trade while working at the Sparta Herald. He then went to La Crosse, Wisconsin, where he worked as a printer. The 40th Wisconsin Infantry was sent to Memphis, Tennessee, to guard railroad and supply lines. While there, Memphis came under attack in a raid by Confederate cavalry in what's known as the Second Battle of Memphis. The 40th responded to the raid, chasing the cavalry from the city. They pursued the rebels after they fled, but did not catch them. The regiment expired at the end of its 100-day enlistment and returned to Wisconsin in September.

After the war, Merritt returned to La Crosse, but moved to Neillsville, Wisconsin, in Clark County, in 1867. He started the Clark County Journal with J. S. Dore, working as associate editor, but left after a few months and moved to St. Louis, Missouri. He returned to Neillsville in the fall of that year, where he started another newspaper, the Clark County Republican. He operated the Republican until 1874, when he sold to Charles J. Cooper.

From 1869 to 1872, he served as a deputy United States marshal.

Electoral history Wisconsin Assembly (1872)