Richard T. Merrick
Encyclopedia
Richard Thomas Merrick was a lawyer and Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

 political figure.

Born in Charles County, Maryland
Charles County, Maryland
Charles County is a county in the south central portion of the U.S. state of Maryland.As of 2010, the population was 146,551. Its county seat is La Plata. This county was named for Charles Calvert , third Baron Baltimore....

, Merrick was the son of William D. Merrick, a member of the Maryland legislature and the United States Senate. His brother, William M. Merrick, was a federal judge and congressman from Maryland. At the age of eighteen, Merrick raised a regiment for service in the Mexican-American War. On his return from Mexico, he began to practice law and was elected to the Maryland Legislature. He later moved to Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...

 and represented Illinois at the 1860 Democratic National Convention
1860 Democratic National Convention
The 1860 Democratic National Convention was one of the crucial events in the lead-up to the American Civil War. Following a fragmented official Democratic National Convention that was adjourned in deadlock, two more presidential nominating conventions took place: a resumed official convention,...

 as a delegate for Stephen Douglas. In 1864, he married Nannie McGuire and moved to Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....

 where he became a successful attorney. He defended John Surratt, Jr. against allegations that he was involved in Abraham Lincoln's assassination, and later represented Samuel J. Tilden
Samuel J. Tilden
Samuel Jones Tilden was the Democratic candidate for the U.S. presidency in the disputed election of 1876, one of the most controversial American elections of the 19th century. He was the 25th Governor of New York...

 at the Electoral Commission
Electoral Commission (United States)
The Electoral Commission was a temporary body created by Congress to resolve the disputed United States presidential election of 1876. It consisted of 15 members. The election was contested by the Democratic ticket, Samuel J. Tilden and Thomas A. Hendricks, and the Republican ticket, Rutherford B....

 of 1877. He assisted in the prosecution of the star route scandal
Star route scandal
The Star Route scandal involved a lucrative nineteenth century scheme whereby United States postal officials received bribes in exchange for awarding postal delivery contracts in southern and western areas. On March 3, 1845 Congress had created inland mail routes, eventually known as "Star...

 from 1882 to 1883. He died in 1885 and was buried at Oak Hill cemetery in Georgetown, Washington, D.C. His daughter, Mary Virginia Merrick, was the founder of the National Christ Child Society and is a candidate for canonization.
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