In 1834 Warren resident Nathaniel Merrill built a farmhouse here just north of Merrill Brook. In the 1860s the Merrill family built an addition and converted the farmhouse to an inn known as Merrill’s Mountain Home, or Merrill’s Mountain House, holding about 35 guests. In 1878 Nathaniel died, and his son Amos L. Merrill took over the operation. He and his wife Mary Olin Merrill welcomed guests up until 1910.
Amos Merrill was a multitalented proprietor and interesting character. His granddaughter, Marjorie S. Davis, recalled that in addition to being a farmer, hotelier, craftsman, hunter, trapper and fisherman, he was a self-taught fiddler and a whiz at math and riddles. A 1902 piece in Forest and Stream magazine noted Merrill’s skill as a catcher of bears, some of whom were preying on his sheep.
In 1915, the old inn succumbed to fire. Though the fields that framed the inn have long since reverted to forest, foundations and cellar holes can be seen in the woods on either side of the Carriage Road here, a short distance north of the bridge over Merrill Brook. There is also a deep well hole (use caution, especially with children) on the west side. Some interesting artifacts can be found in the area, but please leave them where you found them. It is illegal (and wrong) to remove artifacts from the White Mountain National Forest.
The cache is a green pill bottle.