Biographical History

Merlo J. Pusey (1902-1985) was a biographer and newspaper editor in Washington, D.C.

Merlo John Pusey was born on February 3, 1902, in Woodruff, Utah. He attended school at the Latter-Day Saint University in Salt Lake City where he was a member of the debate team and elected to the editorship of the school paper, the Gold and Blue. It was during this time at school that Pusey decided to pursue journalism as a career. After he graduated, he worked for the Deseret News as a proofreader, cub reporter, reporter on regular assignments, and assistant city editor. During this time he attended school at the University of Utah, where he majored in English and was awarded a B.A. degree with high honors. After graduation he moved to Washington, D.C. and in November of 1928 he obtained a position as editorial writer for The Washington Post. In 1946 he was promoted to associate editor of The Washington Post, a position he held until his retirement in 1971. Pusey was the author of several books, namely The Supreme Court Crisis, Charles Evans Hughes, and Big Government: Can We Control It?, as well as numerous other articles and publications. Pusey was a member of several organizations that were directed towards the advancement of public welfare. During the depression he filled a part-time position with the Senate Finance Committee. He married Dorothy Richards on September 5, 1928, and they had three sons together. Merlo Pusey died in 1985 at the age of eighty-three years old.