Cline/Kline/Klein Lineage

Icie Omega Huff Diehl (1894-1968) and her husband, Earl Cline Diehl (1893-1958) were second cousins, once removed, by way of their Cline ancestry. Although unusual today, the marrying of cousins occurred often in previous generations. The probability of being distantly related was very common between young couples of German descent in the Shenandoah Valley in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

The connection between Icie and Earl is illustrated in the chart, below.

Christian Kline lineage Samuel Cline lineage

Earl Cline Diehl, Sr. (Generation 1)|

Ida Barbara Cline & Isaac Franklin Diehl (Gen. 2) Icie Omega Huff| |

Frederick & Nancy Miller Kline (Gen. 3) Martha Cline & John H. Huff, Jr.| |

Christian & Rebecca Myers Kline (Gen. 4) Samuel & Sarah Swope Cline| |======================= ===================

| Joseph & Sarah Hartman Kline (Generation 5)

| George & Elizabeth Altaffer Kline, Jr. (Generation 6)

| George & Dorothy Rebman Kline, Sr. (Generation 7)

NOTE: The compiler is deeply indebted to the work of Paul G. Kline and his book, Cline-Kline Family, 1971. It was an invaluable reference in producing this article. The late Dora Cline Fechtmann lovingly cared for many Samuel Cline artifacts during her lifetime and generously shared them. Over the years, many others provided photographs and anecdotes that were important additions to this work. The Plat Plotter application, written by Jason Rushton, is an invaluable tool in locating ancestral farms.

Wayne Diehl – August, 2013, revised November, 2017 and March, 2018

Christian Kline Lineage beginning with Ida Barbara Cline (March 5, 1869-August 31, 1927)

Ida Barbara Cline, the mother of Earl Cline Diehl, Sr., was born about one mile east of Mount Sidney, VA. She married Isaac Franklin Diehl (1870-1945) on Dec. 29, 1892 at the home of her parents, Frederick and Nancy Miller Cline.

The farmhouse where Ida was born no longer stands. The family attended Middle River Church of the Brethren, several miles to the southeast.

Ida was the third of six children born to Frederick M. and Nancy Miller Kline, who are identified, below. Please note that subsequent generations have used the “Cline” spelling.

1. Daniel Christian Cline (1865-1933) married Ida Long and remained on the Frederick Kline farm at Piedmont. Four children. Descendants still living on Frederick Kline farm in 2012.

2. Salome Cline (1867-1950) married John Burkholder. She lived in northern Augusta County and spent much of her life caring for semi-invalid sister, Martha. No children.

3. Ida Barbara Cline (1869-1927) married Isaac Franklin Diehl.4. Martha Ann Cline (1873-1937) Not married.5. Vertie Nancy Jane Cline (1877-1934) Married Kenny Koontz. Had a foster child, Anna Lee

Koontz.6. Lottie Viola Cline (1883-1916) Married Walter Flory and lived in New Hope. Three children.1

1 Kline, Paul G., Cline-Kline Family; Shenandoah Press Dayton, VA 1971, page 31.

Frederick Kline farm on Frames Run near Mount Sidney where Ida Barbara Cline was born. House was in the middle distance in the near grove of trees.

Above: Frederick M and Nancy Miller Kline family, about 1900.Standing, l to r: Solome (Aunt Lomy), Lottie Viola, Daniel Christian, Vertie Nancy Jane.Seated, l to r: Frederick, Nancy, Martha Ann and Ida Barbara.

Ida married Isaac Franklin Diehl on December 27, 1892 at her father's home. She was twenty-three years old. It is written in the family Bible that they were married by her uncle, Rev. John Cline, in the presence of the Cline family.

Great Aunt Mary Diehl Cline told this story about her mother's (Ida's) wedding day. “I told you about when Mama and him was married didn’t I? He (Frederick Kline) didn’t want any of his girls to get married you know. And so, Mama and Papa was married there though. And Papa said the next morning when they started to come down to Sunnyside neighborhood, where they’s gonna live, Grandpap Kline wouldn’t eat breakfast with them, and he was sittin’ on the fence post when they went down the road. He never said a word. He hated to give her up, I reckon. He wasn’t a very friendly person. That’s the way I remember him.Ida Barbara Cline, about the time of her

marriage.

Ethel Diehl Bauserman had these recollections of Ida: “Aunt Ida was a very sweet woman, and I always liked her. She seemed to have so much fun and get along with Grandma (Mary Showalter Diehl). She was a very pretty person and had the most beautiful hair. I still remember her hair in the prettiest waves. She had it long and tucked it up. She had blonde, kind of blonde hair.

“Every summer they would have “watermelon company.” I can still remember that right out here in the yard. They'd put up the old table, and they had "watermelon company" every Sunday evening.

"It would be most of the nieces and nephews and their families or cousins or somebody like that. And they'd save up the rinds and put them in a big old bucket and take them up to the pigs. They would take watermelons every week. You know they picked them. I believe they said they picked them on Friday evening so they'd get cold. They'd put them in the cellar. Sometimes they'd get 15 or 20 and put them in the basement so they'd get cool. Now I can remember seeing all kinds of cousins - so I guess the cousins had come there ever since Matthias had lived there, you know. And they just kept on coming. Every year they'd come for watermelons. And they always called them "watermelon company."

Mary Diehl Cline, daughter of Ida, told this story of Ida and a Diehl relative: “I know he come in there and loaded up his car with watermelons one day when we was all gone. And that was the only time I ever saw my mother (Ida) mad. She wrote him a letter. She said, 'We wouldn’t mind giving you a couple of watermelons, but we didn’t mean for you to take a whole load.'

“I reckon Mama saw him going out with the load. And then he said, Grandpap (Josiah Diehl) had said, 'Help yourself.' So that’s what he did! (Laughter) Mama got so aggravated. She said, 'That’s hard work!'

“That was the only time, and my mother sat down and wrote him a letter. I don’t know whatever…. didn’t amount to nothin'. He ate the watermelons and enjoyed them, I reckon!”

Ida spent most of her adult life on the Diehl farm at Diehl's Ford on North River, (pictured next page). This photo was taken about 1903 when Ida would have been thirty-five years old. Pictured left to right behind the fence are Josiah Diehl, Shields Koontz (a neighbor), Mary Showalter Diehl, Isaac Diehl and Ida. Left to right in front of the fence are her children Nina, Ellis and Earl. Mary was not yet born.

Isaac, Ida and their family lived in the main section of the house, at left. Josiah and Mary Showalter Diehl lived in the four room section of the house at the far right. The farm is at the end of Beards Ford Road: 7085 Beards Ford Road, Mount Crawford, VA

Isaac and Ida Cline Diehl about 1895.

Isaac and Ida had four children:1. Earl Cline Diehl, Sr. (1893-1958) married Icie Omega Huff. They had six children.2. Nina Arlean Diehl (1897-1977) married Guy Trobaugh. One child, Roxie.3. Ellis Trostle Diehl (1900-1939) married Maude Roadcap. One child. 4. Mary Nancy Diehl (1906-1995) married Earl Cline. Two children.

When Isaac Diehl's father, Josiah, died in 1927, Isaac sold the farm at Diehl's Ford on North River and purchased a farm in New Hope, Augusta County (766 Battlefield Road, Fort Defiance, VA), which was a few miles from where Ida had grown up. She had lived at Diehl's Ford for thirty-five years.

Shortly after moving to New Hope, Ida developed a sore on her finger that did not heal. According to her daughter, Mary Diehl Cline, Ida chose not to go to the doctor because they had just purchased the new farm, and she did not want the expense of medical treatment. Tragically, the finger festered and blood poisoning ensued. Ida died at age fifty-eight, just four months after she and Isaac had moved to the new farm.

Obituary: Thursday, September 1, 1926Mrs. I. F. Diehl dies of Blood Poisoning: New Hope Woman's Finger Becomes Infected from Small Wound in Her Finger. Mrs. Diehl died at her home in New Hope yesterday afternoon about 4 o'clock from blood poisoning. She was born in that section and spent her childhood there. Her married life was spent in the North River section, moving to New Hope only four months ago. Mrs. Diehl had been ill for about a month having contracted blood poison through a wound in her finger.

Farm at New Hope, VA where Isaac and Ida moved in 1927.

Bone dish and monogrammed serving spoon from Ida's table.

Frederick M. Kline (May 13, 1839-March 9, 1915) of Christian Kline Lineage

Frederick M. Kline has come down in the oral family tradition as "Grandpap Fred Kline." He was third oldest of seven children born to Christian and Rebecca Myers Kline, five boys and two girls.

1. Rev. John A. Cline (1833-1893) married Mary Wine. Six children.2. Elder Joseph M. Cline (1836-1909) married Lydia Neff. Seven children.3. Frederick M. Kline (1839-1915) married Nancy Miller. Six children.4. Martin Cline (1842-1923) married (1) Margaret Landes, two children and (2) Mary Brower,

seven children. Died in Seattle, Washington.5. Sarah Cline (1845-1925) married Jacob Click. Six children. Lived near Bridgewater, VA.6. Christian Cline (1849-1935) married Amanda Huff and moved after 1880 to Kansas and then to

Missouri. Ten children. Below: Christian and Amanda Huff Cline.

7. Rebecca Cline (1853-1914) married John W. Click. Six children.2

Frederick Cline was likely born near Sangerville, in northwestern Augusta County, VA in 1839.3 His father, Christian, had purchased a 378 acre farm there in 1832.

2 Ibid, page 10.3 Sanger & Hays, “The Olive Branch,” Brethren Publishing House, Elgin IL., 1907. Mary Cline, who was the wife of

Frederick's brother, John, stated that John was born in Sangerville in 1833. This fact establishes the Christian Cline family's residence in that area in the 1830's.

Below: Christian Kline farm at Sangerville. This photo is of the oldest house (far left) on the property which may have been the birthplace of Frederick Kline.

In 1847, when Frederick was eight years old, the family moved to near Piedmont in Augusta County, some eighteen miles to the southeast. Frederick's father was taking over the farm of his in-laws, John and Hannah Spitler Myers, on Middle River at what is today known as Knightly Mill. Middle River Church of the Brethren was less than two miles away and must have been an important part of the family life.

Right: View of the John Myers/Christian Kline farm at Knightly Mill on Middle River, where Christian moved in 1847.

In 1852, Frederick's father, Christian, bought an additional farm of 99 acres a few miles away, just east of Mount Sidney on Frames Run. It may have been intended as a place for his oldest son, John, who was nineteen, to get started. In fact, Christian Kline did sell this farm to John in 1868. Frederick's future wife, Nancy Miller lived on the adjacent farm. It may have been that Frederick lived and worked with his brother as a youth and his interest in Nancy came about as a by-product of their proximity. Otherwise, they would surely have been aware of each other from attending Middle River Church.

Frederick Kline was twenty-two years old at the beginning of the Civil War, a prime age for conscription into the Confederate army. Being staunch members of the Brethren Church, the Klines were conscientious objectors and totally opposed to the war or any participation in it. In March of 1862, Frederick and his brother, Martin, joined a group of about seventy men who planned to cross the lines into the Union through western Virginia. They were captured near present day, Petersburg, WV, brought back to Staunton and soon removed to Richmond where they were imprisoned in Castle Thunder for several weeks. Eventually, they were released upon payment of a $500 fine, each, to the Confederate government which exempted them from service.4 Frederick had certainly remained true to his pacifist principles and was willing to suffer for them. For more information on his abortive trip north and subsequent imprisonment, please see chapter titled, "Christian Kline (1809-1880), His Sons and the Confederate Draft of 1862, and Their Filings with the Southern Claims Commission in 1871."

On August 7, 1864, Frederick Kline and Nancy Miller were married, less than sixty days after the Battle of Piedmont had been fought very nearby. She was seventeen, and he was twenty-five. Nancy was the daughter of Daniel and Rebecca Garber Miller.

We do not know where the new couple made their home for the next five years, but in 1869, Frederick bought the 99 acre Frames Run farm from his brother, John, for $6,000. John turned a nice profit, having paid $4,450 for it the year before. Daughter Ida Cline (Diehl), who was born in 1869, was raised on this farm, along with sisters Martha, Vertie and Lottie.

4 Sanger and Hays, The Olive Branch of Peace; Brethren Publishing House, 1907, page 61.

Below: Frames Run farm, outlined in white (bottom left of photo) and showing proximity to Nancy Miller's home place and her maternal grandfather's farm. Frames Run follows the tree line, and Mt. Sidney is 1 mile northwest.

In 1885, Frederick and Nancy Miller Kline moved their family several miles to the east to a 200 acre farm on Middle River. He exchanged farms with Walter Finley and paid him a premium of $2,480 for the increased acreage.

Grandpap Fred Kline was somewhat eccentric. There are a number of anecdotes about him doing odd things. For example, he was known to take short, round-trip rides on the train by himself. He would

ride his horse to Mount Sidney, catch the train to Staunton and then ride it back to Mount Sidney. On one occasion, he had a hired hand to move a pile of hay, only to have him move it back to the original location. When his wife was not ready to go to church on time, he left her at home and went on alone.

At another time, people were using a river ford near his home and then crossing his land. He felled a tree into the river to prevent their return. When the family purchased a mantle clock with the word "Fashion" painted in gold leaf letters across the glass, he scraped the letter "F" off because, as a conservative Brethren, he felt it wrong to have anything "fashionable."

:

Earliest known photo of Frederick Kline and wife, Nancy.

Mary Diehl Cline had this recollection of him: "It was Christmas time and Mama and Papa (Isaac and Ida Diehl) got Ellis (her brother) a water gun. And, we was going up there to spend the day. When we got there, he said, 'What you got'? Ellis replied, 'A water gun.' Grandpap said, 'No grandchild of mine is gonna have no gun.' And, he took it away from him and threw it way up under the porch. That was the end of that! He didn't believe in guns. That just about to break Ellis' heart, and I didn't like it. I just never did feel the same towards him."

Frederick Kline was a successful farmer. He had a piece of choice bottom land along Middle River. In the early 1900's, the Klines built a new, hilltop home on their farm with an expansive view of the Piedmont area. Descendants of Frederick Kline still live in the home and work the farm.

Frederick Kline was a deacon in Middle River Church of the Brethren and must have enjoyed a level of respect in the congregation.

Pictured, above, is the home that Frederick Kline built in the early 1900's. This photo shows Frederick and wife, Nancy seated near the front door. Son, Daniel Christian is at the far left. Four daughters are also seated on either side of Frederick and Nancy. Daughter, Ida Barbara, was married at the time and is not in the picture.

Above: Modern view of Frederick Kline home and farm at Piedmont. Address is 24 Cline River Road, Grottoes, VA

Below: Frederick and Nancy Miller Kline tombstone at Middle River Church of the Brethren.

Frederick Kline died while butchering on March 9, 1915. According to Mary Diehl Cline, he had asked to have the Isaac Watts hymn, "When I Can Read My Titles Clear to Mansions in the Sky" sung at his funeral. Wife Nancy and Grandpap Fred Kline are buried at Middle River Church of the Brethren which he had attended most of his life.

"When I can Read My Title's Clear to Mansions in the Skies"

When I can read my title clear to mansions in the skies,I bid farewell to every fear, and wipe my weeping eyes.And wipe my weeping eyes, and wipe my weeping eyesI bid farewell to every fear, and wipe my weeping eyes.

Should earth against my soul engage, and hellish darts be hurled,Then I can smile at Satan’s rage, and face a frowning world.And face a frowning world, and face a frowning world,Then I can smile at Satan’s rage, and face a frowning world.

Let cares, like a wild deluge come, and storms of sorrow fall!May I but safely reach my home, my God, my heav’n, my All.My God, my heaven, my All, my God, my heave’, my All,May I but safely reach my home, my God, my heaven, my All.

There shall I bathe my weary soul in seas of heav’nly rest,And not a wave of trouble roll, across my peaceful breast.Across my peaceful breast, across my peaceful breast,And not a wave of trouble roll, across my peaceful breast.

It is interesting to note that Frederick usually spelled his last name with a "K." It is that way on his tombstone and on his will. His wife Nancy's will identifies her with the "C"spelling. His children generally used the "Cline" version of the name.

Pictured, left, are Frederick Kline's wallet and collar box. They were presented to I.W. Diehl by Aunt Lomy Kline Burkholder when he graduated from high school. The pressed glass celeries, dating from 1893, were from the Frederick Kline home.

In 1916, Frederick's daughter, Salome (Aunt Lomy) wrote a poem to memorialize the death of her sister, Lottie, who died at age 33.

A Fond Memory

It is beside the riverWhere the old home cottage stands;

And in this home a loving sister lived.And it was in this home

Where we all loved to goAnd mingle our voices with

The loved ones in the dear old home.

It was beside this silent streamThe 26 day of Oct., 1916 that a very

Dark cloud of sorrow and griefHung over the dear home,

When the death Angel cameAnd claimed a loving

Sister from the dear old home.

And now it is through tearsWe look at the dear home;

And oft we think of the silent voices,And wonder what it all means

That she has goneFrom the dear old home

Where we all loved to roam.

Christian Kline (October 6, 1809- April 29, 1880), progenitor of Christian Kline Lineage

Christian Kline was the youngest child of Joseph Kline and his second wife, Sally Hartman Kline. He was born on the Kline farm about one mile northeast of Mount Sidney, Augusta County, VA. Unfortunately, Christian's father died in 1813 when he was but four years old. His widowed mother was thirty.

Children of Joseph Kline (1767-1813) and his first wife, Mary Basehore Cline:5

1. George Kline (born between 1790 and 1800) and died March 30, 1843,married Marie Garber and stayed on his father's Mount Sidney farm. Children Catherine, Joseph, Mary, Samuel & Anna.6

2. John W. Cline (1796-1878) married Catherine Kipps. Eleven children and lived near Timberville.

3. Joseph Cline, Jr. (1798-?) married Mary Norma ?. Twelve children and lived near Timberville.4. Catherine Cline married Jacob Bushong.7

5. Frederick Cline (1799-1865) married Polly Coffman. Eleven children and lived west of Broadway.

6. Mary Cline (1802-?) married John Wampler. Eleven children and lived near Timberville.7. David Cline (1804-1878) married Susanna Wine. Eleven children and lived near Timberville.

Children of second wife, Sarah (Sally) Hartman, daughter of Henry Hartman. (Her brother, Abraham, was the father of Elizabeth Hartman who married Matthias Diehl.)

8. Samuel Cline (1808-1872) married Sarah (Sally) Swope of Dale Enterprise, VA. Nine children and lived on Middle River at Verona, Augusta County, VA.

9. Christian Kline (1809-1880) married Rebecca Myers, dau. of John and Hannah Spitler Myers. Seven children and lived on Middle River near Piedmont, Augusta County, VA.

All of Joseph Kline's children, excepting George, Samuel and Christian moved from Augusta County. Joseph Kline, Sr. did not leave a will, but wife, Sally, received her 1/3 of the estate and remained on the farm with George, Samuel and Christian. The other children, who had not come of age by the time of Joseph's death, went to live with Cline relatives in Rockingham County. Five of them made their adult homes in the Broadway-Timberville section of Rockingham County.

As a young man, Christian Kline may have been living with his mother in 1830. She is listed as head of a household with one white male, aged twenty to thirty. This would likely have been Christian because he was still unmarried and older brother, Samuel was married in 1830.

Christian Kline married Hannah Myers in 1832. Her parents were John and Hannah Spitler Myers, and they lived a few miles to the southeast on Middle River.

Just married and at the young age of twenty-three, Christian purchased a 378 acre farm near Sangerville, for which he paid $4,826.

5 Kline, Paul G. op cit page 26 Augusta Chancery Court Record 013-1846, page 2.7 Paul Kline stated that Catherine married a Burkett and moved west. The settlement of Joseph Kline's estate shows,

however, that she married Jacob Bushong. Augusta County Chancery Court Records # 1815-046.

Below: View of the Christian Kline farm near Sangerville.

In 1840, Christian was still on this Sangerville farm. His name is listed in the census adjacent to other surnames, particularly Caricofe, associated with that area of northwestern Augusta County. At least five of his older children were born here.

Christian sold his large property in in 1846 and moved his family to a farm on Middle River near Middle River Church of the Brethren. He purchased land from his in-laws, John and Hannah Myers, and also from Samuel Sanger, totaling 144 acres on both sides of the river. The property included a mill used by many farmers within a five mile radius.

Although Christian Kline owned the mill, it was run by John Bushong. Bushong's ledger of accounts for the late 1840's and early 1850's survives and provides an interesting look at who were the mill's patrons as well as what they produced from their land.8

The "Private Account" ledger page from 1848 (see following page) for John Bushong provides some details of his business transactions. On three occasions in October and November of that year, Bushong borrowed amounts of $17.37 1/2, $25.00 and $5 respectively from Christian Kline. The same page also shows a payment of $9.20 to John Huff (Sr.), who lived very near by.

8 Ledger photograph courtesy of Steve Broyles

Below: Nineteenth century view of Christian Cline mill at Knightly. Courtesy of Owen Harner.

The mill was burned in September, 1864 during the Civil War. "On September 28, General Custer took part of the Second Division cavalryment and moved south from Port Republic to the village of New Hope in Augusta County before returning to Mount Crawford. The men of his brigades fanned out across the land as they burned barns, mills, and standing crops and drove off as much livestock as they could manage."9

The mill was rebuilt following the Civil War, and Christian Kline continued to oversee its operation. His son, Joseph Cline, took over the mill after his death. It later became known as the Cline and Wampler Mill and then the Knightly Mill.

In early October, 1870, the Valley was greatly flooded by over nine inches of rain in two days. The "Staunton Spectator" on Oct. 4, 1870, reported that, "Christian Cline's Mill, supposed to have contained 4,000 bushels of wheat was destroyed; also his Saw Mill. It is reported that his dwelling was also destroyed." This was a tremendous personal and financial loss. It was the second time he had lost the mill in six years.

Christian Kline had prospered as a mill owner and farmer. By the time of the 1850 U. S. Census, he had real estate valued at $9,616. In 1860, his holdings had increased to $14,000, and he owned 8 horses, 3 milk cows, 20 other cattle, 15 sheep and 32 swine. The last time that he shows up on the U.S. Census, Christian Kline's property is worth over $20,000, a considerable amount of money, at the time. An 1870 map of Augusta County shows "C Kline" with four farms in the New Hope area of the county.

With the coming of the Civil War, Christian Kline had four sons of military age. Being members of the Brethren Church, they were pacifists and opposed to participation in the war.

9 Heatwole, John L., “The Burning – Sheridan in the Shenandoah Valley”, Rockbridge Publishing, Charlottesville, VA, 1998, p. 43.

In March of 1862, all four of Christian's older sons attempted to make their way across the lines into the Union by going through present day West Virginia. Joseph and John were part of a group of eighteen captured near Moorefield, WV. They were brought to Harrisonburg and imprisoned in the Courthouse for several weeks. Sons Frederick and Martin joined a larger group of seventy, and they were apprehended near Petersburg, WV. These men were brought to Staunton and subsequently sent to Richmond, VA for detention in the infamous Castle Thunder, also for several weeks.

Christian Kline was instrumental in securing the release, not only of his sons, but other Mennonite and Brethren members of these two groups. He, his brother Samuel and another Brethren, Benjamin Byerly, went to Richmond to persuade the Confederate government to grant exemptions for Brethren and Mennonites. They were successful in their work, due in large measure to the influence of John Baldwin, their representative from Augusta County.

The government granted exemptions upon the payment of $500 for each man who did not serve. The Brethren and Mennonites raised the required sums and paid for the release of the prisoners in Richmond and Harrisonburg.

Christian Kline accompanied sons Frederick and Martin back to the Valley. They rode the train from Richmond to Waynesboro. From there, Christian Kline made his way to Harrisonburg and secured the release of his other two sons, Joseph and John.10 Apparently, Christian Kline's sons were able to avoid service for the remainder of the war.11

The rear section of the house, pictured at left, was possibly Christian Kline's. It originally stood at the approximate location from where this photo was taken. According to Dudie Western, the current occupant, this home has been in his family since the front section was built in the 1880's. He said that a very large team of horses drug the rear portion of the house up the hill on a sled to be attached to the new section. This picture was taken from the location that the Christian Kline home was identified on an 1885 map of Augusta County, VA. There was a very destructive flood in

Augusta County in 1870. The "Staunton Spectator" reported on Oct. 4, that, "Christian Clines's Mill, supposed to havve contained 4,000 bushels of wheat was destroyed; also his Saw Mill. It is reported that his dwelling was also destroyed." It overlooks Middle River about 300 yards from the Knightly Mill location: 1429 Knightly Mill Road, Fort Defiance, VA. It is very possible that the nearby river could have risen to this point and carried away a part of Christin Kline's home.

10 David M. Miller wrote an account of this group in 1906 which appeared in A History of the Brethren in Virginia11 For more details on this Civil War episode, see chapter titled, “Christian Kline (1809-1880), His Sons, the Confederate

Draft of 1862 and Their Filings with the Southern Claims Commission in 1871”

Above: Christian Kline farm on Middle River near Knightly, viewed to the southeast on bluff above Middle River.Below: Site of Kline Mill at Knightly.

Christian Kline died of "consumption" or tuberculosis at age 70. He and wife, Rebecca Myers Kline, are buried at Middle River Church of the Brethren. She outlived him by sixteen years. Of their five sons, one was a minister, one an elder and one a deacon in the Church of the Brethren. These three sons remained close by as adults. Of the other two sons, one went to Missouri and the other lived at various points in the West, dying in Seattle, WA. The two daughters married Click brothers and lived in the Bridgewater area.

Samuel Cline Lineage beginning with Martha Ann Cline Huff (June 17, 1852-January 11, 1916)

Martha Cline was born on Middle River, at present day, Verona, Augusta County, Virginia to Samuel and Sarah (Sallie) Swope Cline. She was one of ten children, six boys and four girls, below.

1. Peter Cline (1831-1893) married Rebecca Neff. Brethren Minister at Beaver Creek near Harrisonburg. Seven children. Photo courtesy of Jody Meyerhoeffer.

2. Joseph Cline (1834-1863) married Judy Thompson. Joseph was Captain of Co. F., 52nd VA Inf. CSA. October, 1863 was devasting to this family. Daughter, Laura, aged three, died on the 5th. Son, Samuel, perished on the 12th, aged one year, then Joseph on the 27th.12 One daughter, Nannie, grew to adulthood and married Edward Dennis of Bedford, VA. Joseph owned 75% of Rockland Mill, and his father owned 25%. The mill was burned during the war. Brother, John W., bought the mill in 1871 for $2,500. Photo courtesy of Dora Fechtmann.

3. Mary E. Cline (1836-1909) married (1) William Byers. Two children. William was a Confederate soldier and died in 1863. Mary remarried before 1870 to Isaac Keister, and they lived near her father in Verona. Seven children were born to the second marriage.

4. Sarah Catherine Cline (1839-1880) married Samuel Byers. Lived at Fort Defiance and had five children.

5. Samuel Cline (1842-1909) married Mary Huff (1846-1926). They moved to Castleton, Reno County, Kansas in the 1880's and had ten children.

6. Jacob Cline (1844-1848). Buried on the Joseph Cline farm in the family cemetery at Mount Sidney. Jacob had been lost to history until 1985 when I. W. Diehl and the writer were cleaning up the Joseph Kline cemetery at Mount Sidney and found his tombstone lying on the ground. The tombstone states that he was the son of Samuel and Mary Cline. He died about the time that the family moved to the farm on Middle River at Verona.

12 Augusta County Historical Bulletin, Fall, 1986. Obituaries from Staunton Spectator.

7. John W. Cline (1847-1921) married Virginia Ann Smith. Lived in Mt. Clinton and Bridgewater. Three children.

Pictured above, brothers, Cyrus H. Cline, left and John W. Cline, right. Photo courtesy of Dora Fechtmann.

8.Frances Cline (1849-1906) married David Heatwole and lived in Augusta County. They had three children. Photo courtesy of Jody Meyerhoeffer.

9. Martha Ann Cline (1852-1916) married John Henry Huff, Jr. and lived in Augusta County near her father. Eight children born to this marriage, including Icie Omega Huff Diehl. Photo, taken around the time of their wedding in 1870, is courtesy of Jody Meyerhoeffer.

10. Cyrus H. Cline (1855-1937) married Laura O'Farrell. Cyrus was a lawyer and lived in Texas and Virginia. Seven children. Laura O'Farrell's brother was a Confederate general and, later, governor of Virginia. See above for photo of Cyrus Cline.

In 1977, the writer recorded a conversation with Great Aunt Ferne Huff Meyerhoeffer, who was Martha Cline Huff's daughter. She described her parents as having "met" during the Civil War. "He (John Huff, Private in the 52nd VA Inf. CSA) was riding on the back of a vehicle going up the Valley Pike,

Above: Childhood home of Martha Cline Huff in 1937.13

and my mother was ... well, he was exactly twice as old as she was ... and he saw her up there on the lawn and threw her an apple. Well, she was just a little girl." Later describing John Huff, Aunt Ferne said, "He didn't have anything when he got married. He was as poor as he could be, and Grandfather (Samuel Cline) forbade Mother from marrying him. But he gave each one of them a farm; the Keisters, the Heatwoles and the Huffs – each one of them a farm, Grandpa did."

Martha Cline and John Huff were married on Dec. 28, 1870 "near Mount Sidney" according to the Augusta County marriage record. He was thirty-three (born Dec. 25, 1837), and she was eighteen, the age difference probably being a big part of father, Samuel Cline's, opposition to the marriage. They moved to the farm about two miles from her home that Samuel Cline" had purchased for them.

At left is the home that John H. Huff, Jr. built on the 138 acre farm that Samuel Cline gave to his wife, Martha Cline Huff. John Huff worked hard and prospered on this farm. Address is 1146 Lee Highway, Verona, VA.

John Huff and Martha Cline were both raised in the Church of the Brethren. Their childhood homes were about six miles apart. Martha's parents are buried at Pleasant Valley Church of the Brethren in Weyers Cave, and the Huff roots seem to have been in Middle River Church of the Brethren at New Hope.

13 Photo from Wayland's “Historic Homes of Northern Virginia”.

Children of John H. Huff, Jr. and Martha Cline Huff

Effie Green Huff, 1872-1952. Married David Abraham Cline, Sr.Lottie Kerella Huff, 1874-1926. Married Samuel Isaac Cline.Toller Malley Huff, 1876-1948. Married Tessie Maude Bare.Howard Homer Huff, 1879-1951. Married Elsie Louella Kreamer.Bernard Wilbur Huff, 1884-1949. Married Lucretia Alice Wise.Elsie Cline Huff, 1887- ?, Married William L. Click.Arta Ferne Huff, 1892-1983. Married Dr. Joseph S. MeyerhoefferIcie Omega Huff, 1894-1968. Married Earl Cline Diehl, Sr.

John H. Huff, Jr. died March 2, 1902. Five years later, Martha sold the farm to son, Bernard, and moved to Weyers Cave with daughters Elsie, Ferne and Icie. She purchased a home with thirteen acres where she lived the remainder of her life. Address is 1051 Dices Spring Rd., Weyers Cave, VA.

Aunt Ferne in describing her mother said, "My mother loved to play tricks on we children, but we minded my mother, because she was crippled when I was born. She had a hard time because she was crippled and had to hire all our work done – always had hired girls. She grew up just suffering – she was very religious but always liked to play jokes on us.

"My mother didn't have a bright outlook on life. I would say she looked on the negative side of everything, and my father was so much older."

Later, Aunt Ferne talked about the death of Samuel Cline's wife, Sarah (Sallie) Swope Cline at the Huff home. "She (Sarah Swope Cline) lived around with the three girls (her daughers) ... and, of course, she died with us. I can remember Mother saying, 'Everything's got to happen here.' That was her attitude about most everything."

Above, left, John H. Huff, Jr. And Martha Cline Huff. Above, right, Martha Cline Huff in later years.They are buried near her parents, at Pleasant Valley Church of the Brethren in Weyers Cave, VA.

Children of John Henry and Martha Cline Huff, l – r: Toller, Bernard, Effie, Ferne, Howard and Icie. Icie's grandson, Gary Crosby, is standing in front of her.

Below are daughters Elsie, Lottie and Effie with their husbands. Photo courtesy of Dortha Lottie Cline Craun, daughter of Lottie.