John E. Merritt, 1920.

The ore docks at Duluth, 1903. These docks were originally begun by the Merritts, but the family was barely able to utilize them before losing their mining interests to John D. Rockefeller.

Alfred Merritt, and his wife Jane, c.1900. While Leonidas led the mining operation, it was Alfred that brought suit against John D. Rockefeller.

The first train depot, built by the Merritts at Mountain Iron was part of a larger railroad project heavily bankrolled by John D. Rockefeller, 1893.

The boom town of Merritt (not named by the Merritts) that sprang up near the Biwabik Mine, 1892.

Leonidas Merritt on the Vermillion Trail, 1892.

The Merritts' first mining operation on the Mesabi, c.1892.

From left to right: Leonidas, John, and Bert Merritt exploring, 1890.

Leonidas and Elizabeth Merritt, around the time merchantable ore was discovered on the Mesabi, c.1890.

Lewis H. and Hephzibah J. Merritt, c.1880.