Orlando C. Merriman

Orlando Crosby Merriman, Sr. (July 27, 1827 – August 2, 1906) was a lawyer, businessman, and Democratic politician who served five terms as the mayor of St. Anthony, Minnesota and one term as the eighth mayor of Minneapolis.

Early life and career Merriman was born in the town of Somerville in St. Lawrence County, New York, to Orramel and Amanda Merriman. He attended local schools and went to college at Gouverneur Wesleyan Seminary, attending his classes in the spring and fall while working as a schoolteacher in the winter and helping with his family farm during the summer. After graduating in 1850, he began to read law under Charles Anthony and was admitted to the bar in 1854.

Merriman married Rosannah Herring on April 3, 1854, and the two soon relocated to Janesville, Wisconsin. Merriman entered into a law practice with David Noggle, Amos Pritchard, and John M. Berry. He later moved to Jefferson, Wisconsin, and began a law firm with the state's first lieutenant governor John Edwin Holmes. While living in Jefferson, he also became active in local politics and served as the local superintendent of schools, as the clerk of the board of supervisors, and as postmaster. In 1859, Merriman moved to St. Anthony, Minnesota to continue his legal career.

Merriman returned to his legal and political career. He formed a law firm with William Lochren and was re-elected mayor of St. Anthony in 1866 and 1867. In 1864, he was appointed by the state legislature (with John Sargent Pillsbury and John Nicols) to help the University of Minnesota deal with a financial crisis. Merriman became involved in various lumber companies in the area and helped construct a lumber mill on Saint Anthony Falls. In 1875, he was elected mayor of Minneapolis with the support of both parties. In 1881, he helped found the First Unitarian Society of Minneapolis.

Electoral history St. Anthony Mayoral Election, 1861 Orlando Crosby Merriman 419 E. W. Cutter 169 St. Anthony Mayoral Election, 1862 Orlando Crosby Merriman 325 St. Anthony Mayoral Election, 1864 Orlando Crosby Merriman 261 B. B. Meeker 1 St. Anthony Mayoral Election, 1864 William Winford Wales 182 Orlando Crosby Merriman 130 St. Anthony Mayoral Election, 1866 Orlando Crosby Merriman 244 Horatio P. Van Cleve 214 St. Anthony Mayoral Election, 1867 Orlando Crosby Merriman 316 David A. Secombe 189 Minneapolis Mayoral Election, 1875 Orlando Crosby Merriman 3,855 Write-Ins and Scattering 40