TheMerriambrothersdesiredacontinuityofeditorshipthatwouldlinkNoahWebster'seffortswiththeirowneditions,sotheyselectedChaunceyA.Goodrich,Webster'sson-in-lawandliteraryheir,whohadbeentrainedinlexicographybyWebsterhimself,tobetheireditorinchief.Webster'ssonWilliamalsoservedasaneditorofthatfirstMerriam-Websterdictionary,whichwaspublishedonSeptember24,1847.
AlthoughWebster'sworkwashonored,hisbigdictionarieshadneversoldwell.The1828editionwaspricedatawhopping$20;in13yearsits2,500copieshadnotsoldout.Similarly,the1841edition,onlyslightlymoreaffordableat$15,movedslowly.Assumingthatalowerpricewouldincreasesales,theMerriamsintroducedthe1847editionat$6,andalthoughWebster'sheirsinitiallyquestionedthismove,extraordinarysalesthatbroughtthem$250,000inroyaltiesovertheensuing25yearsconvincedthemthattheMerriams'decisionhadbeenabundantlysound.
ThefirstMerriam-Websterdictionarywasgreetedwithwideacclaim.PresidentJamesK.Polk,GeneralZacharyTaylor(herooftheMexicanWarandlaterpresidenthimself),31U.S.senators,andotherprominentpeoplehaileditunreservedly.In1850itsacceptanceasaresourceforstudentsbeganwhenMassachusettsorderedacopyforeveryschoolandNewYorkplacedasimilarorderfor10,000copiestobeusedinschoolsthroughoutthestate.Eventuallyschoolusewouldspreadthroughoutthecountry.InbecomingAmerica'smosttrustedauthorityontheEnglishlanguage,Merriam-Websterdictionarieshadtakenonaroleofpublicresponsibilitydemandedoffewotherpublishingcompanies.
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