1880s
Mill & East Main Streets

PURCHASE YOUR COPY TODAY!

Thanks to a generous donation by the Ron Nicklaus and Todd Nicklaus families, the Merrill Historical Society has been able to digitize the paper copies of the Merrill Foto News in our archives. We have 1969 through 1999.

The Nicklaus families were adamant that these papers be made available online to everyone. They did not want to have a subscription or any fees to pay. The Society has contracted with Res Carta, a website that works with non-profits, to host these issues of the Foto News so they are available to everyone free of charge. We do have to pay to host this. The Nicklaus Family is supporting two years of hosting as well.

This was a very costly endeavor and just the tip of the iceberg so to speak. We also have paper and microfilm copies of the Merrill Daily Heralds that cover some early years in 1900s through 1978. Many of these papers are not in very good condition, so it may take more money to digitize the fragile papers. We will be looking for a major donor to cover these costs – somewhere between $30,000 and $50,000.

A big thank you again to Ron & Kay, Todd & Camille Nicklaus for their commitment to the Merrill Community in making this project possible.

Please click here to search our Foto News archives. 
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MERRILL HIGH SCHOOL STUDIES MERRILL HISTORY

You have probably seen requests for information on Facebook about people and places in Merrill. These are from Doug Iwen's students. He is a Merrill High School teacher who offers a class to focus on collecting the history of Merrill.

The students do individual research on a building or area that they are interested and produce a 2 minute video of their work. The videos are placed on a map of Merrill so you will know the placement of the buildings they are reviewing.

There is a new group every semester. Here is a link to view the work that has been done by these classes.

Museum

The Historical Society maintains a museum on 2 floors of the History & Culture Center. There are both permanent and temporary exhibits and displays. Please stop in and visit the museum. Go to the Exhibits Page for more information.

Research

We have an extensive document archive of local materials and photographs, along with City Directories and reference books. Please make an appointment if you are interested in information on something specific so we can find the materials ahead of time for you.

Learn More

Railroad Library

The area railroad club members have put together an extensive library of reference materials, including several railroad magazines, maps, artifacts, and books. Call ahead if you have some specific information or railroad you are researching.

Learn More
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We are open to the public for research and exhibits. Our open hours are Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 9 AM to 1 PM. We are also open by appointment if these times do not work for your visit. The Board of Directors have recommended wearing masks when in the building.

If the weather is bad, please call ahead to make sure we are open.

If you have questions, or need something outside of our open hours you may leave a message on the answering machine, 715-536-5652, or email merrillpast@gmail.com.

                                             
$25

Donation Amount

Please add the Memorial Information here and click the button to submit your information and enter your payment.

Thank you for supporting the Merrill Historical Society.

Memorial

Click here to access a portion of the Merrill Historical Society Photo and Document Collection.