Catharine (Wise) Strayline was born in Pennsylvania around 1806. She married Charles Strayline (1802-1880); they had six children, five boys and one girl. In the 1850 census, her husband is listed as a hotel keeper in Philadelphia, PA. At home are five children: Charles (15); Caroline (10); Theodore (6); Augustus (4) and Ferdinand (1). Nearby, her oldest son, George W. Strayline (21) is married to Catherine Strayline (17); he is a gas fitter. Ten years later, in 1860, Catharine is listed with her five boys; George (the gas fitter) is once again "at home". The following year begins tumultuously with the first shots fired of the Civil War at Fort Sumter in April 1861. Within a few months, three of her sons enlisted to fight in the Union army: George W. and Charles O. joined the 71st Pennsylvania Regiment; her 17 year old Theodore W. joined the 72nd Pennsylvania Regiment. Theodore wrote a number of letters to his mother and sister Caroline while in the army. Theodore told his mother "not to worry" about he and his brothers Charley and George. Fate brought all three boys together at Gettysburg July 1-3, 1863. George and Charles survived, but Theodore was killed on the field of battle and died July 3, 1863. In the years ahead, Catharine would receive a pension of $8.00 a month as the mother of a fallen Civil War soldier. In 1870, Catharine was living with sons, George, Augustus and Ferdinand; George was still a gas fitter, Augustus was a stone molder, and Ferdinand was a paper carrier. Her son Charles lived nearby with his wife Elizabeth and their two young children: Catherine (3) and Sally (a baby). Catharine Wise Strayline is the 1880 census; she was living with her sons Augustus who worked in an iron foundry, and son Ferdinand. Catharine was then 75 years of age and still living in Philadelphia.


Thanks to fellow findagraver (C. Crawford)for discovering the following:


I located a burial record with a date of 14 Jul 1890. The original burial was in the Odd Fellows Cemetery, Philadelphia. The cemetery is defunct having been claimed by the City of Philadelphia in 1951. This was done to many cemeteries in the North Philadelphia area. Thousands of graves were moved. Hers was Lawnview Cemetery in Rockledge, PA on 27 Apr 1951. (The purpose was to build the Raymond Rosen Housing Project, which of course, has also been torn down). Cause of death is listed as "old age".