ETYMOLOGY
perhaps from cheery + merry; possibly only a jingling combination
EXAMPLE
“…how few of you are enemies to a glass (or two or three) of generous wine, and how much food of such a heating nature, promotes the circulation of the bottle, it is not at all astonishing, that every convivial assistant should go home cherry-merry, after having been a guest at such a repast…”
From: Yorick’s Sentimental Journey Continued,
By John Hall-Stevenson, 1769
Lexicophilia 