William Merritt

William D. Merritt, 86, of Troy, died on Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2005, at the Libby Care Center.

He was born on Oct. 23, 1918, at Stanley, Idaho, to Jay and Sadie Binkley Merritt.

Raised on the family ranch, Bill attended school at Stanley.

He married Vella Williams on Oct. 19, 1946, at Hailey, Idaho.

They lived at Challis, Idaho, for a time before moving back to Stanley.

Bill and Vella used to shuttle cars back and forth for people boating on the Salmon River.

Later the family moved to Colbalt, Idaho, where Bill worked for the Cobalt Mine.

They returned to Stanley, where they lived until moving to Libby in 1968.

At Libby Bill did trail work for the U.S. Forest Service, building and cleaning trails. He helped build the Geiger Lake and Wanless Lake trails.

They moved to the Bitterroot where Bill logged for 25 years. After retiring from logging at the age of 75, Bill worked for the Trapper Job Corps.

In 1999, Bill returned to Lincoln County to live at Troy.

He enjoyed snowmobiling and horses.

Preceded in death by his wife Vella, Bill is survived by sons William (Bill) Merritt and his wife Theresa, Troy; James Lee and his wife Prescilla, Glendale, Calif., 14 grandchildren, 26 great-grandchildren and three great-great-grandchildren.

Services will be conducted at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 10, at the Troy Senior Citizens Center.

Local arrangements are by the Nelson & Vial Funeral Home.