USA > Maine > Genealogical and family history of the state of Maine, Volume IV > Part 41
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(VIII) Ithamar Bowles, youngest son of Asa and Betsey (Emerson) Merrill was born July 14, 1831, in Dexter, and is now living in that town. He was educated in the public schools of his native town, and is still en- gaged at the occupation which he learned from his father, although nearly eighty years of age. He is a Baptist in religion, a Repub- lican in politics and a member of the Masonic order, affiliating with Dexter Lodge of his home town. He was a soldier of the civil war, enlisting September 10, 1862, in Company E, Twenty-second Maine Infantry, and was discharged August 14, 1863. He was married in Dexter to Mary Augusta Toward, born May 20, 1844, in Freedom, Maine, daughter of James and Olive (Ireland) Toward. Her father was a son of James and Sally (Carr) Toward. The former was a son of the immi- grant who landed at Boston and believed to be of Scotch birth. The children of Ithamar B. Merrill were: Elmer Delmont, Cleo Maud and Edna Clifton. The elder daughter is the wife of R. W. Hughes, of Foxcroft, having a son, Donald, and daughter, Mary; and the younger daughter is wife of Charles F. D. Marsh, an attorney of Dexter. The latter has a daughter, Isabel.
(IX) Dr. Elmer Delmont, eldest child and only son of Ithamar Bowles and Mary A. (Toward) Merrill, was born at Dexter, Maine, February 24, 1865. He was educated in the schools of his native town and at the Coburn Classical Institute, and was graduated from the Hahnemann Medical College of Philadelphia in 1886. Dr. Merrill at once es- tablished himself at Foxcroft, Maine, where he has since resided. He is a Republican in politics. He attends the Congregational church, and takes much interest in the Masonic order. He belongs to Mosaic Lodge of Fox- croft, to Piscataquis Royal Arch Chapter, and to Saint John's Commandery, Knights Tem- plar, of Bangor. He is also a member of Kora Temple, and of Onawa Lodge, Knights of Pythias. On November 27, 1888, Dr. Elmer
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Delmont .Merrill married Lora M. Dyer, daughter of T. F. and Frances W. Dyer, of Foxcroft, Maine, who was born at New Sha- ron, March 5, 1862. Dr. and Mr. Merrill have an adopted daughter, Marion Dyer Mer- rill, born at Foxcroft, December 26, 1898.
(For preceding generations see Daniel Merrill II.) (III) Daniel (2), eldest son MERRILL of Daniel (I) and Sarah (Clough) Merrill, was born March 15, 1671, and received a homestead in Newbury by the will of his father. His es- tate was administered on September 29, 1725. He took to wife Esther Chase, also of New- bury, and they had several children, among them Edmund, Moses and Daniel. The cor- respondence of their Christian names to the Merrills who were the town builders of New Gloucester, Maine, which was an outgrowth of Cape Ann and thereabouts, is a remarkable co- incidence, if it is not a fact that they were the sons of Daniel (2) of Newbury. It seems to us but fair to assume in lieu of other satis- factory evidence that he whose biography fol- lows in this article was the grandson of Daniel (2). In the inchoate beginning of New Gloucester there were among the primi- tive fathers an Edmund, a Moses, and a Dan- iel Merrill, supposedly brothers. They were all adherents to the Shaker faith, and they were among the first to be elected to office in the new township.
(V) Amos, a presumptive grandson of Daniel (2) Merrill, was born in New Glou- cester, and married Mary Twombly. The vital statistics give births of Amos, Hiram and Andrew.
(VI) Amos (2), eldest son of Amos (I) and Mary (Twombly) Merrill, was born in New Gloucester, January 23, 1802, died Jan- uary 3, 1837. He was a farmer, a man of good works and temperate habits. He mar- ried Joanna, daughter of Jabez and Abigail (Chipman) Haskell. Children : Charles D., Benjamin W., traced below, Lucy A., Mary O. and Vesta A.
(VII) Benjamin Wadsworth, second son of Amos (2) and Joanna (Haskell) Merrill, was born in New Gloucester, January 13, 1830. When Benjamin W. was seven years old his father was frozen to death, having been caught in a blizzard, and as he left a large family Benjamin W. decided to get his own living, and to that end left home barefooted, in April, and walked to Raymond, Maine, where he bound himself out to a farmer, remaining until he reached his majority. Being a hard
worker and being possessed of good judgment, he soon had money enough to buy a farm of his own, and he later became one of the largest real estate owners in town. As a Republican he held many town offices, serving at one time as chairman of the board of selectmen. He married Jane L., daughter of Joseph Libbey, of Standish, Maine, and by her he had two children : Emma J., who is a teacher in the Auburn schools, and Irving L., traced below.
(VIII) Hon. Irving L., son of Benjamin W. and Jane L. (Libbey) Merrill, was born in North Raymond, September 7, 1864. He studied the preliminary branches in the North Raymond schools, finishing his education at the Gorham Normal, Bridgton Academy, and Eastman National Business College at Pough- keepsie, New York. At the age of seventeen he began teaching school, and thus earned money to pursue his education. In 1887 he en- tered the employ of the Gurney Nursery Com- pany, of which concern he was made partner in 1896. He was elected by the Republicans to the aldermanry of Auburn, serving two years, served as president of board, and was made mayor in 1908, in a hotly contested election. He is a Mason, holding the chairs of senior deacon of Tranquil Lodge, high priest of Bradford Royal Arch Chapter, stand- ard bearer of Lewiston Commandery, and a member of the Arabic Order of the Mystic Shrine. He has also been initiated into the mysteries of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. He is also member of Benevolent Protective Order of Elks, Lewiston. He married, March 10, 1888, Nettie F., daughter of Benjamin W. and Frances (Drinkwater) Mason. They have one child, Clyde H., who took a special course in pharmacy at the Uni- versity of Maine, passed the board of phar- macy, being registered pharmacist, Septem- ber, 1908; entered the Bowdoin Medical School same year. Mr. Merrill possesses a pleasing personality, and his popularity is attested by his frequent elevation to positions of public trust.
(For preceding generations see Nathaniel Merrill I.)
(III) John, eldest child of
MERRILL Nathaniel (2) and Joanna (Kinney) Merrill, was born February 16, 1663, in Newbury, and resided in that town and Haverhill. He was a house carpenter and removed to the last named town in 1697. Two years later, he resided in Brad- ford and was again in Haverhill in 1700 and later. He died May 15, 1705, his widow be- ing made executrix of his estate July 9, 1705.
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He married Lucy Webster, daughter of John (2) and Ann (Batt) Webster and grand- daughter of John (1) Webster, a pioneer of Ipswich. She was born December 15, 1664, in Newbury, and was still living in Haverhill in 1718. Their children were: Nathaniel, Abel, Lucy, Abigail, John, Hannah, Steven, Enoch and Nathan.
(IV) John (2), third son of John (I) and Lucy (Webster) Merrill, was born April 2, 1696, in Haverhill, and was living in York, Maine, in 1718. He subsequently returned to Haverhill, whence he removed about 1736 to Concord, New Hampshire, being one of the pioneers of that town. He was elected dea- con of the church there December 17, 1730, and was an active and useful citizen of the infant colony. He maintained the first ferry over the Merrimac River and built his house at the lower end of Main street, where the roads part. The location is described as on a hill, and this was probably at the corner of the present Maine and West streets. The original well continued in use as late as fifty years ago. He married Lydia Haines, probably of York, and a daughter of Thomas Haines, of Ames- bury, who had two sons living in York in 1706. The baptism of their first three chil- dren is recorded in Haverhill. Among his de- scendants were seven ministers, two lawyers and two physicians, and he had forty-three grandchildren bearing the name of Merrill. The names of his children were: Moses, Thomas, John, Hannah (died in infancy), Jonathan, Hannah, Nathaniel, Sarah, Anne, Abigail and Lydia.
(V) Nathaniel, the fifth son of John (2) and Lydia (Haines) Merrill, was born No- vember 4, 1738, in Concord, New Hampshire, and removed to Fryeburg, Maine, in 1763, subsequently locating in Brownfield, where he was a farmer, a justice of the peace, and died in 1824. He married Anne Walker and they were the parents of Nathaniel, John, Sarah, Lydia, Isaac, Moses, James W., Samuel C., Mary, Nancy, Ruth, Thomas H., Betsey E. and Judith W.
(VI) Moses, fourth son of Nathaniel (3) and Anne ( Walker) Merrill, was born March 17, 1777, in Brownfield, Maine, and resided, a farmer, in that town, where he died August 31, 1870. He married Sally, daughter of Enoch and granddaughter of Thomas Merrill, and their children were: Enoch, Hannah, Lucius, Judith E. and Moses .C. The eldest son settled in Gray, Maine, where he died in 1908, the second in Auburn, and the youngest in Portland, Maine.
(VII) Lucius, second son of Moses and Sally (Merrill) Merrill, was born January 8, 1821, in Brownfield, and settled in 1848 at Auburn, Maine, where he died July 10, 1895. He was a carpenter by occupation, as was his brother, Moses, and did considerable building in the city of Auburn. He married, September 8, 1848, Anne E. Jones, born October 8, 1823, died July 27, 1906, daughter of the Rev. Eli- jah Jones, of Minot, Maine. They were the parents of William J., Charlissa R., George Perkins, Ruth C., Lucius H., Harriet S. and Horace C. Merrill. One child, Preston, died in infancy.
(VIII) George Perkins, second son of Lu- cius and Anne E. (Jones) Merrill, was born May 31, 1854, in Auburn, where he grew to manhood. After an attendance at the public schools and the Lewiston Falls Academy, he entered the University of Maine, working his own way, and graduating with the degree of B. S. in 1879. Four years later his alma mater conferred upon him the degree of Mas- ter of Science, and that of Doctor of Philoso- phy in 1889. After his graduation he pur- sued post graduate courses at Wesleyan and Johns Hopkins universities. In 1879 and 1880 he was assistant in chemistry at Wesleyan University, working with Professor W. O. At- water on the chemistry of foods. In 1880-81 he was connected with the fishery census at Washington, D. C. In July of the latter year he became connected with the geological de- partment of the United States National Mu- seum, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, and in 1897 was made head curator of its de- partment of geology. In addition to other duties, he was lecturer on the economic aspects of geology in the Maryland Agricultural Col- lege, 1890-91, and since 1893 has been pro- fessor of geology and mineralogy in the Cor- coran Scientific School of Columbian (now George Washington) University. He is the author of several standard works, including "Stones for Building and Decoration,' "Rocks, Rockweathering and Soils," "The Non-Metallic Minerals" and "Contributions to the History of American Geology," besides many valuable papers in scientific journals. He was a contributor to the Standard Dic- tionary, Johnson's Universal Encyclopedia, Russell Sturgis's Dictionary of Architecture and Building, and Bailey's Cyclopedia of Agriculture. In 1897 he was an official dele- gate to the international geological congress at St. Petersburgh, and incidentally travelled ex- tensively throughout Russia (including Ar- menia) and Europe. He married, in Novem-
George P. Merrill.
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ber, 1883, Sarah, daughter of Joseph R. Far- rington, of Portland, Maine. She died in 1894, leaving four children: Joseph Farring- ton, Anne Margaret, Mildred Hastings and Ruth. In February, 1900, he married Kath- erine L. Yancey, daughter of Edward B. and Susan (Jeffries) Yancey, of Virginia. She is the mother of one daughter, Katherine Doro- thy.
(VIII) Lucius Herbert, third son of Lucius and Anne E. (Jones) Merrill, was born Oc- tober 1, 1857, in Auburn, and received his early educational training in the common schools of that town, followed by a course in the Edward Little high school. In 1880 he entered the Maine State College (now Uni- versity of Maine), from which he was gradu- ated in 1883 in the course of chemistry. Dur- ing the two succeeding years, he was an as- sistant curator in the department of lithology and physical geology of the United States Na- tional Museum. In 1886 he received an ap- pointment as a chemist in the Maine Agri- cultural Experiment Station, and was ap- pointed an instructor in the University of Maine in 1897. In the succeeding year, he became the professor of biological chemistry in that institution, although still continuing his connection with the Experiment Station. In 1907 he became full professor of biological and agricultural chemistry and a year later resigned from the position of the Experiment Station. The latter position he had held con- tinuously for twenty-two years, with the ex- ception of half a year's leave of absence, which was spent in foreign travel and study. The degree of Doctor of Science was conferred upon him in 1907. He married, June 24, 1893, Lydia M. Buffum, daughter of Charles Buf- fum, of Orono, by whom he had one child, Katherine B. Mrs. Merrill died March 12, 1907.
(For preceding generations see Nathaniel Merrill I.) (III) Nathaniel (3), second MERRILL son of Nathaniel (2) and Jo- anna (Kinney) Merrill, was born February 8, 1665, in Newbury, Massa- chusetts. He died in Haverhill, Massachusetts, July 4, 1758. A will made by him was dated June 6, 1738. His wife bore the name of Re- becca, and upon her decease, December 9, 1689, he took to wife Sarah Woodman. Is- sue: Nathaniel, born 1688; Hannah, 1692; Sarah, Peter, Mary, Rebecca, Samuel, who is memorialized in this article; Elizabeth, John, Joseph and Benjamin.
(IV) Samuel, third son of Nathaniel (3)
and Sarah (Woodman) Merrill, was born Au- gust 4, 1711. Although there is some dis- crepancy about the date and birthplace of this Samuel, he made oath to the fact that he was born in 1711, and he has been commonly as- signed to Salisbury for a birthplace. Some authorities name Haverhill and allege a dif- ferent date. This undoubtedly is the Samuel who lived in North Yarmouth, Maine, from 1737 to 1743, returning to Salisbury in that year and remaining till 1751, then in North Yarmouth till he went to New Gloucester, Maine, where he resided and died on April 30, 1772. He was by occupation a farmer, and was constable at North Yarmouth, and joined the first church there August 21, 1737. New Gloucester was settled by inhabitants from the Cape Ann town. It was then the home of the ruthless savage and the haunt of wandering moose, monarchs of the forest, growling bears, hungry wolves, and the timid deer. Here the unslothful beaver erected his dam with almost human ingenuity, and the soaring eagle, em- blem of American liberty, built its nest. To the northwest, no smoke from a friendly habi- tation circled skyward. Samuel, who was then at North Yarmouth, joined the struggling col- ony, and was immediately recognized as a leading spirit among them. He was made the first moderator and selectman. He was twice married, the name of his second wife being Anna. He was the father of: Samuel, Ben- jamin, Judah, Hannah and Elizabeth.
(V) Benjamin, second son of Samuel Mer- rill, was born February 17, 1740, in North Yarmouth, baptized April 4, 1741, and joined the church August 26, 1764. He removed to Greene, near Lewiston on the west bank of the Androscoggin, November 15, 1775. He made the first permanent settlement in what was once Lewiston Plantations, then Little- borough, from Moses Little, of Newbury, and finally Greene, in honor of General Greene. Mr. Merrill moved his family and goods in an ox cart to his log cabin, and the snow lay a foot deep, and tilled the soil for a livelihood. He married Margaret, daughter of Amos and Hannah (Larrabee) Harris, who was born March 18, 1738, in Yarmouth.
(VI) Benjamin (2), son of Benjamin (I) and Margaret (Harris) Merrill, was born March 4, 1801, in Greene, and learned the wheelwright's trade. He settled in Athens, Somerset county, Maine, and became the vil- lage blacksmith and wagon maker. About 1835 he went from there to Fairfield, Maine, and in 1842 to Lowell, Massachusetts. In 1847 he removed to Tomah, Wisconsin, and there
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passed the remainder of his life, dying March 7, 1885. In religious belief Mr. Merrill was a sincere Universalist. He was an earnest sup- porter of the Abolitionist movement, and did all in his power to aid the cause. He was married in 1829 to Mary Eastman Raymond, born June 6, 1800, in Harpswell, daughter of Edward and Lydia (Coombs) Raymond, and died September 22, 1840, in Fairfield, Maine. Edward Raymond was born December 5, 1771, in Harpswell, and died in Brunswick, June 29, 1853. Lydia Coombs was born August 19, 1776, in Harpswell, and died at Brunswick, December 3, 1855. The children of Benjamin (2) and Mary E. (Raymond) Merrill were : I. Edward R., mentioned below. 2. Anthony, died at La Crosse, Wisconsin. 3. Converse, died at Tomah. 4. Lydia, widow of David Jones, resides in New York. 5. Albert, died at Sparta, Wisconsin.
(VII) Edward Raymond, eldest child of Benjamin (2) and Mary E. (Raymond), was born July 18, 1830, in Athens, was educated in the local schools of Fairfield and learned the blacksmith's trade in Boston. When about sixteen years old he went to Boston and en- tered the employ of D. Tucker, a carriage spring maker, and was subsequently employed in the same work with T. W. Brewer. In 1852 he engaged in the manufacture of springs on his own account at Boston and was getting nicely started in business when the outbreak of the civil war aroused his patriotic impulses and he abandoned his business and left a young family to go to the defense of his coun- try. Before attaining his majority he joined a militia cavalry company known as the Light Dragoons, in which he became a lieutenant. He assisted in recruiting two companies for service in the civil war, and in September, 1861, he became a member of the First Massachu- setts Cavalry. This regiment went into camp at Readville, whence it departed December 25, 1861, and went to Annapolis, Maryland, to join General Burnside's North Carolina expe- dition. This plan was changed, however, and it took part in General Hunter's campaign at Hilton Head. Though there was little serious fighting in this movement, it involved a series of drills and thorough preparation for the com- ing conflict. Mr. Merrill was made lieutenant of Troop A and was at the battle of South Mountain ; at Antietam under General McClel- lan; at Secessionville, South Carolina ; at Get- tysburg under General Meade; with Sheridan through the Shenandoah Valley; and was in about twenty-five battles and engagements in all, seeing some hard service. The affair of
Mine Run, or as it is sometimes called, Par- ker's Store, where Lieutenant Merrill was wounded, occurred in November, 1863. The regiment was attacked by the advance guard of Wade Hampton's division. It happened that Lieutenant Merrill with a small force were picketing the plank road in the direction of Fredericksburg, in the rear of the main army. Hampton surprised and, with his overwhelm- ing numbers, early drove in the First Pennsyl- vania and the First Massachusetts in reserve, forcing them off the plank road and down a side road. It thus happened that this little party of men were then cut off as the advance troops were driven in. But Lieutenant Merrill, who was in command, put on a bold front in his dangerous position, and rode straight into a column of Hampton's men, who as far as could be seen, blocked up the road. Fortu- nately, the road was narrow and flanked by thick woods. At the head of his men, Lieu- tenant Merrill dashed in on the Confederates, who were surprised at his boldness, and from their higher position could easily count his whole force and see that he was unsupported by troops behind. He himself had a hand to hand fight with pistol and sabre. Those who saw it remembered his attempts to run a rebel trooper through with his sword, but was pre- vented by the latter's wearing an overcoat. Lieutenant Merrill was shot in the knee, but contrived to stay on his horse and succeeded in getting under the cover of some woods and thus with his men escaped and got back to the main body. It was a brave and daring deed. From wounds thus received, he was discharged. He was offered a captain's com- mission in the Fifth Massachusetts Cavalry in 1864, and in the First Frontier Cavalry in 1865, both of which he declined. Lieutenant Merrill rode a mahogany bay stallion, called "Old Tom." In a skirmish with Captain Crowninshield's mount, "Old Man," an in- veterate kicker, the charger's skull was frac- tured. Lieutenant Merrill had a black body servant from South Carolina that furnished much musical entertainment for the troops.
After the close of the war, Mr. Merrill settled in the city of New York and again be- gan the manufacture of springs. Having be- come a thorough workman and being indus- trious and shrewd in management, he steadily built up a successful business, which is still carried on by his sons. He was first located on West street, and after the business outgrew his quarters, he removed to Twenty-fifth street. In 1874 he bought land on West Twenty-eighth street, near the river, and built
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a factory expressly for his business. This has been subsequently enlarged until it covers six city lots, and a branch establishment of sim- ilar size was also constructed in Jersey City. The business is now incorporated under the name of the E. R. Merrill Spring Company, and is still under the general supervision of its founder, though the conduct of the business is carried on by his sons. Mr. Merrill is an Episcopalian in religion and was long a mem- ber of St. Peter's Church in New York, being now a pew holder in Trinity Church at New Rochelle, where he has resided since 1905. In youth he was an ardent Democrat, but since the organization of the Republican party has been among its most faithful supporters. He is a member of James G. Rice Post, No. 29, G. A. R., of New York, in which he was many years chairman of the board of adminis- tration, and is also a member of the New York Commandery, Military Order of the Loyal Legion. He has long affiliated with St. John's Lodge, No. I, A. F. and A. M., of New York. He married, January 17, 1859, in New York, Rubina Anna, daughter of James John and Frances (Hedgman) Denham. She was born in September, 1833, in Newark, New Jersey, and died February 15, 1888, at her home in New York. James John Denham was born June 13, 1799, in London, England, and died at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, August 27, 1852. His wife, Frances Hedgman, was born February 2, 1803, in London, and survived her husband more than thirty-one years, dying December 15, 1883, in New York City. Mr. and Mrs. Merrill were the parents of seven children, the first of whom, Edward William, died in infancy. The others are: Rubina Frances, William Converse, John Denham, Benjamin, James Richard and Mary Lydia. The sons are all connected with the E. R. Merrill Spring Company, and the daughters reside with their father in New Rochelle. All received good educations in the city schools of New York and Packard's Business School.
(For preceding generations see Nathaniel Merrill I.)
(V) Thomas, second son of MERRILL Deacon John and Lydia (Haynes) Merrill, was born in Haverhill, where he was baptized in 1729, and died in 1789. He removed with his father to Concord, New Hampshire, where he married (first) Phebe Abbot, by whom he had chil- dren : Thomas, William and Enoch. He re- moved to Hopkinton, and had Amos and Phebe. In 1755 he moved back to Concord, where his wife soon afterward died. In 1756.
he was a lieutenant in the French war. He married (second) Widow Mehitable (Harri- man) Johnson, who bore him Stephen and Mehitable. He removed from Concord to Chester, thence to Pembroke, and thence to Conway. He married (third) Widow Abigail (Goodhue) Ambrose, by whom he had Jona- than Ambrose. His fourth wife was Widow Elizabeth (Abbot) Cummings, by whom he had John, Benjamin, Thomas.
(VI) John (2), eldest child of Thomas and Elizabeth (Abbot Cummings) Merrill, was a prominent physician, and resided in Portsmouth. He married Mary Southgate Boyd. Children : Isabella, Charles Benjamin, John and Mary.
(VII) Colonel Charles Benjamin, eldest son of Dr. John and Mary Southgate (Boyd) Merrill, was born in Portland, April 14, 1827, and died in Portland, April 5, 1891. He was fitted in the Portland schools for Bowdoin, from which college he graduated in the class of 1847. Among his classmates were: Ex- Mayor Marshall, of Belfast; Rev. Dr. John Cotton Smith, of New York; Henry Donald Whitcomb, and General J. S. Whiting, of the Confederate service. After graduating he studied law in the office of Howard & Shep- ley, of Portland, and in the Dane Law School of Harvard, where he received the degree of LL.B. in 1849. He was admitted to the bar and pursued the practice of his profession un- til 1862. He had for a long time been inter- ested in military matters, and had served as major on the staff of General S. J. Anderson in the old militia days. When he felt that his country called for his services to maintain its integrity he enlisted in the army, and July 16, 1862, was commissioned lieutenant-colonel of the Seventeenth Maine Volunteers, and was mustered into service with his regiment at Camp King, August 18, 1862. He was with this organization at the first battle of Fred- ericksburg, the Cedars, Chancellorsville, Get- tysburg, Wapping Heights, Auburn, Locust Grove, Mine Run, North Anna, Anderson House, first and second Deep Bottom, Peebles' Farm, and in the Spottsylvania campaign, for the most of the time in command of the regi- ment. For his soldierly bearing and gallant conduct in these actions he received the special commendation of Major-Generals Berry, Bir- ney, Egan and Wood. Colonel Merrill re- signed and was honorably discharged October 12, 1864. After leaving the army and return- ing to Portland he resumed practice of law, but losing his law library in the great fire of 1866, he abandoned the profession and en-
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