George Merritt (businessman)
George Merritt (August 14, 1807 – October 5, 1873) was a New York businessman who owned the Lyndhurst estate on the Hudson River. After his death in 1873, his widow sold the house to financier Jay Gould.
He was born August 14, 1807, in White Creek, New York, to Benjamin and Thankful Merritt. From age five, he attended the Friends Boarding School at Nine Partners. He moved to New York City in 1822 and worked as a dry goods merchant until 1853, spending six years in Georgia.
From 1853 to 1868, Merritt was the owner and president of the New England Car Spring Co., which helped introduce natural rubber railroad car springs to American railroads.
On November 5, 1845, he married Julia Douglas in Troy, New York. Julia, a descendant of Roger Williams, had six children, four of whom survived to adulthood.
Merritt died of Bright’s disease on October 5, 1873, at his Lyndhurst mansion. His funeral was held at the Irvington Parish Church, and he was buried at Sleepy Hollow Cemetery.
In 1864, Merritt bought Knoll, the former estate of William S. Paulding Jr., and hired architect Alexander Jackson Davis to greatly enlarge it. Between 1864 and 1865 the house was expanded in the Gothic Revival style, doubled in size, and renamed "Lyndenhurst" to honor the estate’s linden trees. A new north wing added a four-story tower, a porte-cochere, a larger dining room, two bedrooms, and servants’ quarters. After his death, his widow Julia sold the Irvington house to financier Jay Gould.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 10:11 (CET).