William Emery Merrill (11 October 1837 – 14 December 1891) was an American soldier and military engineer. He was born at Fort Howard, Wisconsin to Captain Moses Merrill, who was killed in the

Battle of Molino del Rey The Battle of Molino del Rey (8 September 1847) was one of the bloodiest engagements of the Mexican–American War as part of the Battle for Mexico City. It was fought in September 1847 between Mexican forces under General Antonio León against ...

. He graduated first in his class at West Point in 1859, and from September, 1860, to July, 1861, was assistant professor of engineering there. In the Civil War, he served as assistant engineer in the Army of the Potomac during the Peninsular campaign and in the northern Virginia campaign, and from July, 1864, to September, 1865, commanded as colonel, the 1st U.S. Veteran Volunteer Engineer Regiment. During the war he received the successive brevets of captain, major, lieutenant colonel, and colonel for gallant services. In March, 1867, he was raised to the regular rank of major and in February, 1883, to that of lieutenant colonel. From 1867 to 1870, he was chief engineer on the staff of General Sherman, then commanding the Military Division of the Missouri, and thereafter until his death he was engaged on engineering work for the government. One of the most notable engineering works of its kind in America was the Chanoine wicket movable dam constructed by him at Davis's Island, 5½ miles below Pittsburgh. In 1889, he represented the United States Engineering Corps at the International Congress of Engineers in Paris. He published ''Iron Truss Bridges for Railroads'' (1870) and ''Improvement of Non-Tidal Rivers'' (1881). He died of heart failure near

Enfield, Illinois Enfield is a village in White County, Illinois, United States. The population was 596 at the 2010 census. Geography Enfield is located at (38.098346, -88.340684). According to the 2010 census, Enfield has a total area of , all land. Demograph ...

on a train while en route to a government project in Shawneetown, Illinois.

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Davis Island Movable Wicket DamCaptain William E. Merrill's Rail Road Bridges and Tunnels Document
This is a lithograph broadside listing of railroad bridges and tunnels in Georgia and Tennessee compiled by Merrill for the Army of the Cumberland in 1864. Writers from Green Bay, Wisconsin Union Army colonels American non-fiction writers United States Military Academy alumni United States Army officers 1837 births 1891 deaths Military personnel from Wisconsin {{AmericanCivilWar-bio-stub