History
Settlement of the site began sometime in the late 1860s or early 1870s through the efforts of Dr. Alexander Murchison, who arrived from Polk County, Georgia, who organized a Methodist church in April 1871. In the 1870s, Judge William Wallace Meritt's visit and speech impressed the residents so much that they named the town after him. The community received a post office in 1884. Two years later the tracks of the Gulf, Colorado, and Santa Fe Railway reached the settlement, which stimulated cotton production, helped stores, and began a newspaper. By the early 1890s the railroad had established Merit as a shipping point for area farmers. At that time the town had a steam cotton gin, a gristmill, some 20 other businesses, and 300 residents. By the eve of World War I the community's population had increased to 500, and the number of businesses to more than 25, including two banks.
In 1912, robbers stole $4,500 by blasting open the bank vault with nitroglycerin. A 1921 fire, the Great depression, and World War II led to a population drop which recent suburban growth has reversed. In 1945 the town had an estimated 300 residents and six businesses. Three years later the Merit and Floyd school districts were consolidated under the name Bland, after Fletcher B. Bland. The number of Merit residents declined to 185 in the early 1950s. During the 1970s its population began to grow again, and in 1988 through 2000 the town reported a population of 215.
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