Merrill/Merrell Genealogy
Descendants of
Thomas Meryell 1444
Wherstead, Suffolk, England
and
Nathaniel Merrill 1601
Newbury, Massachusetts
A Merrill Memorial, Samuel Merrill, 1928
Church records show Nathaniel Merrill (1) b.1601 to be a descendant of Thomas Meryell b.1444. The definitive source for Nathaniel's pre-1600 ancestors is Samuel Merrill's A Merrill Memorial, published in 1928. Derived files are at:
Descendants of Thomas Meryell, by Jack Merrill
Jack Merrill's Genealogy Site
Merrill Genealogy, Steve Merrill's web site
Historical evidence:
Nathaniel Merrill's ancestry back to Thomas Merrill 1444, as given in A Merrill Memorial, has been cited in hundreds of secondary sources. But hard evidence is lacking.
"We have never found anybody that can tell us where this came from, or documentation to back it up, or even if [Thomas 1444] had a son John. [A Merrill Memorial] has a chapter on "The Wills of Three John Merrills." The youngest of these [will of 1600] is undoubtedly Nathaniel(1)'s grandfather. It is interesting to note that [each] of the earlier Johns had two sons named John that lived to maturity. How do you know which son John in the first generation was the John who wrote his will in the 2nd generation? And which of his two Johns was Nathaniel's grandfather? This doesn't even get back to whether Thomas even had a son John. We have not seen any documentation on Thomas, birth, baptism, d. or will. Despite published lineages going back to Thomas 1444, we are not comfortable [going] back beyond Nathaniel's grandfather." [Howard and Jean Merrill, 5/21/2010].
DNA evidence:
Surprisingly, DNA analysis shows no connection whatever between North American descendants of Nathaniel 1601, and Merrills living today in the UK. DNA testing of one Merrell resident of the UK shows him to be very distantly related to Nathaniel(1) 1601. But their common ancestor lived well before 1400, when surnames came into common usage in England. So it is only coincidence that he and Nathaniel(1) share a common surname.
A
Merrill Memorial, Samuel Merrill, 1928
Church records show Nathaniel Merrill (1) b.1601 to be a descendant of Thomas Meryell b.1444. The definitive source for Nathaniel's pre-1600 ancestors is Samuel Merrill's A Merrill Memorial, published in 1928. Derived files are at:
Descendants of Thomas Meryell, by Jack Merrill
Jack Merrill's Genealogy Site
Merrill Genealogy, Steve Merrill's web site
Historical evidence:
Nathaniel Merrill's ancestry back to Thomas Merrill 1444, as given in A Merrill Memorial, has been cited in hundreds of secondary sources. But hard evidence is lacking.
"We have never found anybody that can tell us where this came from, or documentation to back it up, or even if [Thomas 1444] had a son John. [A Merrill Memorial] has a chapter on "The Wills of Three John Merrills." The youngest of these [will of 1600] is undoubtedly Nathaniel(1)'s grandfather. It is interesting to note that [each] of the earlier Johns had two sons named John that lived to maturity. How do you know which son John in the first generation was the John who wrote his will in the 2nd generation? And which of his two Johns was Nathaniel's grandfather? This doesn't even get back to whether Thomas even had a son John. We have not seen any documentation on Thomas, birth, baptism, d. or will. Despite published lineages going back to Thomas 1444, we are not comfortable [going] back beyond Nathaniel's grandfather." [Howard and Jean Merrill, 5/21/2010].
DNA evidence:
Surprisingly, DNA analysis shows no connection whatever between North American descendants of Nathaniel 1601, and Merrills living today in the UK. DNA testing of one Merrell resident of the UK shows him to be very distantly related to Nathaniel(1) 1601. But their common ancestor lived well before 1400, when surnames came into common usage in England. So it is only coincidence that he and Nathaniel(1) share a common surname.
Most Merrills with ancestors in the northeast US are descendants of Nathaniel(1) b.1601. With few exceptions, the results of traditional research are confirmed by DNA analysis. The definitive source for Nathaniel's pre-1600 ancestors is Samuel Merrill's A Merrill Memorial, published in 1928. Derived files are at:
Descendants of Thomas Meryell, by Jack Merrill
Jack Merrill's Genealogy Site
Merrill Genealogy , Steve Merrill's web site
Back to: Merrill/Merrell Genealogy
\\wd250gb\FrontPage Webs\Content\family2\wherstead.htm 6/19/10 (Web page, filtered)