Reference source - 1828 - p. 57, 74

In 1828, Noah Webster published what was then the largest English-language dictionary in American history. Webster’s work is noted for having normalized distinctive spellings from British English, such as “check” rather than “cheque” and “center” rather than “centre”; his motivation for these changes included a degree of nationalism.

Brothers Charles and George Merriam bought the rights to Webster’s Dictionary upon his death in 1843 and published the Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary in 1898. Though dictionaries and their authors are often conceived of as stodgy and humorless, the Merriam-Webster Twitter account has emerged as a source of wit, edification, and occasional indirect political commentary.