V. Dallas Merrell (1936- ) received many degrees from Brigham Young University and a PhD from the University of Southern California. He served as a mission president of the Utah Salt Lake City Mission and in the Second Quorum of the Seventy.

V. Dallas Merrell was born on 25 January 1936, in Basalt, ID. He was the first of nine children and later in life had nine children of his own. He spent his early years working hard on his family's farm. He earned two undergraduate degrees from Brigham Young University in Economics and Sociology. He also earned a master's degree in Social Psychology from the same university. He earned another master's and also a PhD from the University of Southern California. Later in life he spent his career working for a consultation firm in Washington, D.C. The firm concentrated on improving the leadership and management of organizations.

He served a mission from 1956 through 1958 in the Great Lakes Mission. He came home and married Karen Dixon. He served as President of the Utah Salt Lake City South Mission and was president when the mission changed to the Utah Salt Lake City Mission.

In 1992, he was called to the Second Quorum of Seventy. He served in that capacity until he was honorably released in 1997 after completing his five-year calling. During his lifetime he collected many materials related to the growth and organization of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, this collection represents some of that material.