Linville, Virginia facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Linville
|
|
|---|---|
Location of the Linville CDP within the Rockingham County
|
|
 Linville
Location in Virginia
Linville
Location in the United States
|
|
| Country |  United States |
| State | Virginia |
| County | Rockingham County |
| Population
(1870)
|
|
| • Total | 3,547 |
| FIPS code | 51-45960 |
Linville is a community located in Rockingham County, in the U.S. state of Virginia. It is about 6 miles north of Harrisonburg, Virginia. Linville was first listed as a "Census-designated place" (CDP) for the United States Census 2020. A CDP is an area identified by the U.S. Census Bureau for statistical purposes. The Linville United Church of Christ is located here.
Contents
History of Linville
Linville Creek was a very important place in Colonial Virginia during the 1700s. The area gets its name from William Linvell. He was given 15,000 acres of land here before 1739.
Linville was located along the Great Wagon Road in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. This made it an early settled area on the frontier, which was the edge of settled land. The first people to live here were English Quakers. Later, some Scotch-Irish and Swiss German families also moved in. Many of them came south from Pennsylvania.
Daniel Boone's Family in Linville
Around 1750, Daniel Boone's father, Squire Boone, moved his family to the Shenandoah Valley. They farmed in the Linville Creek area for several years in the 1750s. Later, they moved on to North Carolina.
On August 14, 1756, Daniel Boone married Rebecca Ann Bryan. She was the daughter of Morgan Bryan of Linville Creek. Daniel and Rebecca met while he was living in the Linville area. Rebecca and Daniel's children stayed in Linville while Daniel explored the wild lands west of the Allegheny Mountains.
Abraham Lincoln's Family Roots
President Abraham Lincoln's great-grandparents, "Virginia John" and Rebecca Flowers Lincoln, also moved to Virginia in 1768. They settled on a 600-acre piece of land along Linville Creek.
President Lincoln's father, Thomas Lincoln, was born on this property in 1778. His family later moved west to what is now Kentucky. At that time, Kentucky was part of Virginia, but it was across the mountains from the settled areas.
The two-story brick house on the property is known as the Lincoln Homestead and Cemetery. It was built around 1800 by Jacob Lincoln, who was President Lincoln's great-uncle. This property is a registered Virginia Historic Landmark. It includes a family cemetery where five generations of Lincolns are buried.
Linville and the Underground Railroad
During the time before the American Civil War (called the antebellum period), Linville was an important stop on the Underground Railroad. The Underground Railroad was a secret network of safe houses and routes. It helped people who were enslaved escape to freedom in the North.
Many Anabaptist people lived in the Linville area. They were against slavery and helped runaway slaves. They helped them find safe ways out of Rockingham County. From there, they could go through Brock's Gap to Pendleton and then to Franklin. Finally, they could reach Petersburg in what is now West Virginia. From Petersburg, they could find train travel to the North.
Later History
Linville was affected by big local floods in 1870. At that time, the town had a population of 3,547 people. There were also 17 "productive industries" in the town.
Two historic places in Linville, Mannheim and the George Chrisman House, are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. This means they are recognized as important historical sites.
