From print-outs of some 2004 e-mails I received then from a lady named Eileen Bridges, the following was included in a book referred to by Eileen only as a "modern history of Bond County, Illinois": Obituary of Thomas K. Cline Greenville (IL) Advocate, Greenville, Bond County, Illinois March 26, 1928 "Thomas K. Cline, veteran of the Civil War, an extensive land owner, and grain and livestock dealer, died at his home six miles northeast of Greenville at 3:15 a.m., Friday, following a short illness of acute indigestion. However, he had been failing for several weeks, suffering from arterial schlerosis and complications. Thomas K. Cline, son of Thomas and Sarah Scott Cline, was born in Bond Co., September 28, 1842 and died Mar. 23, 1928, aged 85y 3m 25ds. He was the youngest of a family of eight children, all of whom had preceded him in death, except two sisters, Mrs. Sarah A. Moore of Greenville, aged 88 years and Mrs. Elizabeth J. Washburn of Chicago, aged 93 years. Mr. Cline was married on Feb. 20, 1868 to Sarah Elizabeth Doyle who preceded him in death May 14, 1911. To this union were born eight children, all living to be grown. They were Lucy May, who was killed by lightning in 1888; William of Edwardsville; Jennie, wife of H. H. Linder who died in 1911; Frank of Mulberry Grove; Pete of Greenville; Mrs. Della Haram of Shelbyville and Mrs. Leah King who lived with her father, caring for him in his declining years. He is also survived by 27 grandchildren and 16 great grandchildren. Mr. Cline was born 3/4 mile south of where he died on a farm his father had entered from the government in 1827, this land being transferred only twice, each time from father to son. He spent his entire life there except what time he spent with the 3rd IL Cavalry during the Civil War. ...". Eileen Bridges' note at this point in her 2004 e-mail states: " [Additional information in this lengthy obit stated that he was buried in Zion Cemetery near his home. The rest of the article attested to his fine character.]" ------------------------- WILL OF THOMAS CLINE - BOND COUNTY, ILLINOIS WILL BOOK 1, PAGE 163: In the name of God, amen. I, THOMAS CLINE, of the County of Bond and the State of Illinois of the age of sixty-seven years the 15th day of July 1867, and being of Sound mind and memory do make, publish and declare this my last will and Testament in manner following, that is to say: First - It is my will and desire that my beloved wife Sarah shall have a good and comfortable living and support off the Farm on which we now reside, during her natural life and that She may reside on Said Farm during her natural lifetime if She Should or Shall so desire. 2nd - I give and bequeath to my Son, John H. Cline, the sum of Four Hundred Dollars in money, and to my Daughter, Jane a. Murdock, wife of Henry T. Murdock, the Sum of Two Hundred Dollars in money. 3d - After the Payment of all my just Debts and Funeral Expenses, I give and bequeath to and it is my will and desire, that the balance, remainder and residue of my Personal property and effects, of whatever kind, name or nature be divided in Equal parts between my Sons William M., John H., Thomas K. Cline, Nancy Johnson wife of John W. Johnson, Elizabeth A. Washburn, wife of Joseph A. Washburn, Jane A. Murdock, wife of Henry F. Murdock, and Sarah A. Enloe, widow of Thomas B. Enloe, excepting my household and kitchen Furniture which I give and bequeath to my Said wife. Lastly - I do hereby nominate and appoint my Son, John H. Cline, and Henry F. Murdock [my son-in-law] to be the Executors of this my last will and testament. In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and Seal this 8th day of June AD 1867. (Signed) THOMAS CLINE [Seal]." [Names of witnesses omitted by Eileen Bridges] Eileen also states that the probate index was listed for the year 1869 and that the box in which the papers would be could not be located by the clerks at the Circuit Court office. They were supposed to have been in the basement, according to Eileen. She recommended that anyone interested should consult the local Family History [Mormon] library because most of these probate court papers have been microfilmed. -------------------------------------------- From what Eileen descirbed only as "a modern history of Bond Co., IL", which she located at the Greenville Library, she found the following information on Pete Cline, son of Thomas K. Cline, 1842-1928, summarized as follows: Pete, one of eight children born to Thomas K. and Sarah Doyle Cline, was born 18 October, 1879. His great-grandfather, Henry Klein, came to America from Frankfurt, Germany, in 1754; grandfather Thomas Cline [the name was changed in this span of time from Klein to Cline] was born 15 Jul 1800 and came to Bond County with his wife, Sarah Scott Cline in 1825 ... [More to this article, also, which Eileen did not transcribe. AMD] ----------------------------- OBITUARY - SALLY CLINE The Sun, Greenville, Bond County, Illinois Friday, August 19, 1887 Woburn Items - News was received here last Thursday telling of the death of Mrs. Sarah Cline. She had been an invalid for some time and her death was not a surprise. She went to Shelbyville a few weeks ago to live with her daughter [Dr. Nancy Cline Johnson] and to recuperate her health. Mrs. Cline [or "Aunt Sally" as she was commonly called], was born June 12, 1807 in Lincoln Co., N.C. She came to Bond County in 1826 in company with her husband, Thomas Cline. She was a member of the Free Methodist Church. Her relatives have the sympathy of the entire community. ------------------------- Anyone wishing to view a biography of Mrs. Thomas Cline, and to view a photograph of her tombstone, may locate both on the webpage, findagrave.com by searching for the Glenwood Cemetery in Shelbyville, Shelby County, Illinois. -------------------------- The 1928 death certificate for Thomas K. Cline, and some of his seven siblings, indicates their Mother's maiden name was "Scott". Other death certificates of still other siblings indicate the maiden name of Mrs. Sarah Cline (Mrs. Thomas Cline), 1807-1887, was "Mitchem" and/or "Mitchum". A marriage record for the second marriage of Thomas K. Cline (after the death of the first wife of Thomas Knight Cline, Sarah Doyle Cline), states the maiden name of his Mother to have been "Mitchem"; however. from the "four corners" of research, it is obvious that Sarah Tucker Scott Mitchem Cline was the 1825 Lincoln County, North Carolina bride of Thomas Cline, 1800-1868, of Bond County, Illinois. ------------------------- Another extract from "a modern Bond County (Illinois) history": "...In the fall of 1827 Thomas Cline went to Vandalia, Illinois, to inquire of land -- he was allowed to enter 80 acres of land in accordance with the homesteading laws of that time. Through the years he added more of this rugged wilderness acreage until he had accumulated approximately 309 acres in all. The original sheepskin document, deed to the land, dated March 7, 1831, and signed by the President of the United States, Andrew Jackson, is still held by a family member. This acreage has been transferred two times, from father to son. A large portion of this farm is now covered by the waters of Governor Bond Lake .... " Note by AMD: I am sorry to report that no date is given in 2004 for this "modern history of Bond County"; however, a telephone call to the Greenville (Illinois) Library's reference librarian will probably enable one to learn that, as well as to obtain further information about Thomas Knight Cline, Pete Cline, Frank Cline, etc., who, I understand from Eileen Bridges, are also featured in that book, which may or may not be in circulation or available for purchase. Illinois death certificate information available at: http://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/archives/archives.html ------------------------------------ Kevin John Kaegy and the Bond County Historical Society have published a book, "Images of America - Greenville and Bond County", which I have recently purchased. On page 33, there's a photograph of an old wooden church building with these words printed under the picture: "The Mt. Zion Free Methodist Church was built in 1881. It originally had two doors, one for men and the other for women. It served the Woburn neighborhood for over 80 years, closing around 1960. It has since been taken down, but the adjacent Zion Cemetery continues to be well maintained. The site was first known as Zion Springs Campground, and a Methodist Church stood there from 1828 to 1861." This cemetery, Zion Cemetery, in the Mulberry Grove Township of Bond County, Illinois, is where Thomas Cline, 1800-1868, is buried; however, we do not have a photograph of his gravemarker and no one has placed it online at findagrave.com. It is likely that descendants of Thomas and Sarah Cline still live in Bond County, Illinois, and that, if anyone is interested to that extent, photos of those two people might be obtained; certainly photos of some of their descendants might be obtained by telephoning those listed in the directory. At one time, I had a photograph of some of these descendants, sitting on their front porch, but I do not have such a photograph at the present time. Alta Mitchem Durden ________________________________________________________________________ More new features than ever. Check out the new AOL Mail ! - http://webmail.aol.com