Lewis Howell Merritt and Hephzibah Jewett Merritt and sons

Leonidas Merritt (February 20, 1844 – August 9, 1926) was an American politician and businessman and one of the Seven Iron Brothers, iron ore pioneers. Merriitt was born in

Chautauqua County, New York Chautauqua County is the westernmost county in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 127,657. Its county seat is Mayville, and its largest city is Jamestown. Its name is believed to be the lone surviving rem ...

. He moved to

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

in 1856 and settled in Oneota (Duluth) which was annexed to

Duluth, Minnesota Duluth ( ) is a Port, port city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of St. Louis County, Minnesota, St. Louis County. Located on Lake Superior in Minnesota's Arrowhead Region, the city is a hub for cargo shipping. The population ...

. Merritt was involved in the railroad, banking, and mining businesses. Merritt served in the Minnesota Cavalry Company B during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

. He served on the West Duluth, Minnesota Village Council and as the Duluth, Minnesota Commissioner of Finance from 1921 to 1925. Merritt served in the

Minnesota House of Representatives The Minnesota House of Representatives is the lower chamber of the U.S. state of Minnesota's Minnesota Legislature, legislature. It operates in conjunction with the Minnesota Senate, the state's upper chamber, to write and pass legislation, whic ...

in 1893 and 1894 and was a Republican. His great-nephew Brian Merritt Bergson also served in the

Minnesota Legislature The Minnesota Legislature is the bicameral legislature of the U.S. state of Minnesota consisting of two houses: the Senate and the House of Representatives. Senators are elected from 67 single-member districts. In order to account for decenn ...

.Minnesota Legislators: Past & Present-Leonidas Merritt
/ref> Mountain Iron Lenoidas Merritt IMG 1449

References

1844 births 1926 deaths People from Chautauqua County, New York Politicians from Duluth, Minnesota Businesspeople from Minnesota People of Minnesota in the American Civil War Republican Party members of the Minnesota House of Representatives 19th-century members of the Minnesota Legislature {{Minnesota-MNRepresentative-Republican-stub