The origin of the name of the suburb is unclear. In 1873 Thomas Blacket Stephens purchased of land; his wife Ann named the property Merrimac. In 1906, it was claimed to be named by the American Indian word for swift running waters. It has been suggested that it has been named after the Merrimack River in the New England region of the United States, or USS Merrimac, a Union navy frigate itself named for the river. The land was swampy but Stephens and later his son William Stephens progressively drained the land and turned it into productive farming land, principally used for dairying, but also sheep, cattle and sugarcane. The Stephens family continued to purchase land, increasing the estate to approximately In 1908, the family sold at per acre, believed to the highest price per acre of a property of that size at the time, to a syndicate from Victoria, which subdivided it into small farms known as the Stephens Estate. Merrimac State School opened on 25 July 1917. Merrimac State High School opened on 30 January 1979. St Michael's College opened on 4 February 1985. All Saints Anglican School opened on 28 January 1987. Gold Coast Jewish Day School opened on 1995 at 16A Ghilgai Road and was renamed King Solomon College on 1 January 1996. In 2007 the Gold Coast Montessori College relocated to share the King Solomon College site. Faced with falling student numbers King Solomon College suspended its operation on 18 July 2008. Gold Coast Montessori College closed on 31 October 2008. Two schools merged forming Queensland Independent College on 2 April 2009, closing on 16 June 2017. The Queensland Football School took over the site of the Queensland Independent College to commence operation at January 2020, but the school did not open. Gold Coast Montessori College opened on 13 July 2004. In the, Merrimac had a population of 7,071 people.
Education
Merrimac State Primary School is the one public primary school in the suburb; Merrimac State High School is located in Mermaid Waters. Private schools in Merrimac include St Michaels College, All Saints Anglican School and King Solomon College. Merrimac State School is a government primary school for boys and girls at 2 Boowaggan Road. In 2017, the school had an enrolment of 809 students with 63 teachers and 35 non-teaching staff. It includes a special education program. St Michael's College is a Catholic secondary school for boys and girls at Jondique Avenue. In 2017, the school had an enrolment of 929 students with 71 teachers and 39 non-teaching staff. All Saints Anglican School is a private primary and secondary school for boys and girls at Highfield Drive. In 2017, the school had an enrolment of 1,788 students with 156 teachers and 98 non-teaching staff. The Japanese Language Supplementary School of QueenslandJapanese School of Gold Coast, a weekend Japanese school, holds its classes at All Saints. It maintains its school office in Surfers Paradise. There is no government secondary school in Merrimac. The nearest are Merrimac State High School in Mermaid Waters and Robina State High School in Robina.
