LeVan Merritt
LeVan Merritt was born in Sandy Hook, Connecticut in 1806. He came to Medina in 1833 and for several years worked as a clerk on the canal docks. In 1840 he bought and became operator of a flour mill. In the same year he married Cynthia Loomis of Clarkson, NY and in 1841 built a home at 406 West Avenue. The Merrits had seven children.
Mr. Merritt played an important role in the growth and development of the village of Medina. He was present at the consecration of St. John’s church where he was a regular attendant and vestryman. With the help of a surveyor he laid out, plotted and mapped Boxwood Cemetery. He served several Terms as Trustee, Assessor, and on the Board of Education as well as being a member of the first organized fire company.
Mr. Merrit died in 1886. During his lifetime he saw Medina, on whose streets he set out the first shade trees, grow from a small settlement in the forest to a thriving village with over 4,000 residents.
406 West Avenue
The land on which the house was built in 1841 was designated at the time of purchase as Village lot #84. It was double the normal sized lot having a frontage of 132 feet with a depth of 330 feet. Early pictures show the house surrounded by spacious grounds with an orchard at the back. When Mr. Merritt died in 1886 he left the home to his children and the property passed by will through changes of ownership within the Merritt family until 1916 when it was deeded to John and Lulu Chase. John Chase was the brother of a Merrill Daughter-in-law and the house became known as the ‘Chase House’.
When Mrs. Chase died in 1958, the Village of Medina bought the property and two years later sold it to the Town of Ridgeway to use as a Town Hall. In 1979 the Town built a new museum west of the Museum. The property and the house were leased to the Medina Historical Society who are responsible for its maintenance and preservation.