George, Charles and Homer Merriam were the founders of G. and C. Merriam, Publishers of Webster's Unabridged Dictionary. Thirza was the daughter of Homer Merriam and the wife of H. Curtis Rowley. Arthur Merriam Rowley (Gramp) is Thirza's and H. Curtis's son. Arthur married Earla Steade (Gogo) and produced two children Earla, my mother, and Douglas, my uncle. That is the history in a nut shell. Douglas has a son John Rowley and a grandson, Seth. His wife is my Aunt Helen. I have two sisters, Pamela Carson and Sally Carson and a daughter, Victoria Grice. My sister, Pamela, now deceased, had a son she adopted from Nepal. His name is Ram Sharan Thapa. Ram Sharan is now married to Niruja Hamal Thakuri. -- Gail S. Carson

Family Hall of Fame:

Pamela Carson, former owner of the Boston restaurant, Friends and Company, used her business skills and resources to found Educate the Children, Inc. (ETC), based in Ithaca, NY and Kathmandu, Nepal. She was its first director.

ETC is a non-profit organization sponsoring many imaginative community development programs in Nepal. ETC won the first Meade2001 Award in 1999. The award is a centenial celebration of Margaret Mead's celebrated belief that a handful of people can make a tremendous difference in the lives of others. Pamela Carson certainly did.

She passed away October 6, 2000 after a three year battle with gastric cancer. We all miss her very much. The Boston Globe wrote an excellent obituary covering significant events throughout her life.

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world." -- Quote attributed to Margaret Mead.

I may also include a map of the location of our family's origin