Melvin Leroy Merritt

Melvin Leroy Merritt (October 19, 1879 - April 13, 1961) was an American forester based in Oregon. Copies of Merritt's correspondence and articles on the early history of the Forest Service are held in the Special Collections Library at the University of Oregon and Duke University Forestry Library and his correspondence continues to be quoted in Forest Service publications.
Early life
Merritt's parents left Forestville, New York in 1870 and moved west to Iowa. Merritt was born on October 19, 1879 in West Union, Iowa.
Merritt grew up on his family's farm near Grundy Center in Grundy County. He graduated from Iowa State College in 1904.
Forestry career
After teaching horticulture for one year at Iowa State, he worked as a forester for the Philippine Bureau of Forestry from 1905 to 1909. After an extensive trip by ship from Manila via Singapore and the Suez Canal to Europe, he sailed from Southampton to New York in June 1909 on the Norddeutscher Lloyd liner Kronprinz Wilhem. He arrived at Ellis Island, New York on June 30, 1909. From there went to Washington, D.C. to finalize his transfer to the U.S. Forest Service.
After returning from the Philippines, Merritt initially worked for the Forest Service at Sumpter, Oregon. He later served as Forest Supervisor in Bend and transferred to Portland in 1917.
Melvin Merritt transferred from Portland to Juneau, Alaska as Assistant Regional Forester in 1921. He subsequently returned to Portland in 1934, where he served as Assistant Regional Forester for Oregon and Washington. He retired from the Forest Service in 1943.
Personal life and legacy
Merritt was a member of the Westminster Presbyterian Church in Portland, the Shrine Masonic Lodge of Oregon and had many interests including woodworking, stamp collecting and genealogy. He also maintained extensive correspondence with many friends and relatives until his death. Copies of Merritt's correspondence and articles on the early history of the Forest Service are held in the Special Collections Library at the University of Oregon and Duke University Forestry Library and his correspondence continues to be quoted in Forest Service publications.
Death
Merritt died on April 13, 1961 in Portland. He is buried along with his spouse Nellie Isabell Brown at Lincoln Memorial Mausoleum in Portland.

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