Person:Abraham Merrill (1)

Merrill, Abraham, Dea., (died) Nov. 28, 1722.

The graves of Abraham² Merrill and many of his descendants are in the cemetery at Sawyer's Hill, half a mile southeast from the old homestead. The earliest family gravestone is that of Abigail Webster, first wife of Abraham². It is described as a rather thick piece of fine-grained stone, and apparently water-worn. It seems as if it may have been used as a mortar for pounding corn to make hominy, for the back is hollowed like a dish. The inscription, which is rudely cut, reads:

HERE LYES THE BO
DY OF ABIGAIL MERRILL
THE WIFE OF DEA
CON ABRAHAM
MERRILL WHO DIED
AUGUST Y^e 12 1712
AGED YERES 70

This is perhaps the earliest Merrill tombstone in the country. Few earlier gravestones are found in New England cemeteries. A grave beside this one, marked by two rough pieces of granite at head and foot, may be that of Deacon Abraham.

In our examination of the parish register of Lawford, Essex, where we had located the baptismal records of John Shepard and three of his sisters, we also found the following events:

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1637 Abraham the son of Nathaneel Merriles and Susan his wife was baptized Apr 9.