The only Reiner son of Johann Dietrich Reiner, the immigrant, to have children was Johann Christian who is sometimes called Christian or even Christopher. Johann Christian married Elizabeth Fleshman, daughter of Peter Fleshman. He wrote his will on 3 Sep 1777, though it was not probated until 1783. In the will he mentions his wife Elizabeth, his sons, John, Daniel, and Christian (noted as the youngest), and his daughters Mary, Elizabeth, and Sarah. Executors were his wife, Elizabeth, John Fleshman (Elizabeth's brother), Jacob Mosley, and his (Johann Christian's) son John Riner.
The son, John Reiner, was born about 1755 to 1760 and he died in Madison County, VA about 1820. His wife was named Lydia. She and the children moved to Monroe Co., VA (now WV) after John Reiner's death. Apparently John left no will, and the distribution of his estate was made by the court. Lydia Riner ("Riner" is a popular spelling variation) was to receive one-third of the property and the remainder was to be divided, in equal parts, among Simeon; Elizabeth; Hannah; Polly; Zachariah Broyle, from the rights of his wife Susanna Riner; Absalom Broyles, from the rights of his wife Lucy; John McDaniel, from the rights of his wife Sally; Fanny; and Pheba. Five of the daughters were not married when their father, John Reiner, died.
The son, Daniel, of Christian Reiner, and brother of the John in the preceding paragraph, married Elizabeth Fleshman, his first cousin. (She was the daughter of John Fleshman and Elizabeth Blankenbaker.) Daniel was born about 1761, as he was confirmed at church in 1785 at the age of 23. In the census of 1850, Elizabeth (Fleshman) Reiner was still living in Madison Co., and she gave her age as 94. This would put her birth at about 1756, making her about five years older than her husband. While this is possible, it should also be taken as a warning that some of the dates may not be correct. The will of Daniel was dated 1839, and probated in March 1839. In the will, the wife Elizabeth is mentioned, plus the son Jacob, and the daughter Margaret Riner. Other children are John, Aaron, and Ephraim. Though the daughter Sarah is not mentioned in the will, her birth is recorded at the Hebron church on 29 Nov 1791.
In the family of Daniel, above, Margaret Reiner is in the 1850 census, in her mother's household and unmarried. She was born in 1788, according to the church records, so it appears she left no descendants. Ephraim was also in his mother's household, in the 1850 census. There is no known record of a marriage of Ephriam. (There was a Nancy Reiner, age 25, in the household of Elizabeth Reiner in the 1850 census, who was possibly a granddaughter of Elizabeth, but her line of descent is unknown.)
The note today repeats some of the information that Dan Cook submitted recently.
We gratefully acknowledge the work of John Blankenbaker who published over 2,500 Germanna History Notes via the Germanna-L@rootsweb.com email list from 1997 to 2008. We are equally thankful to George Durman (Sgt. George) for hosting the list and republishing the notes via rootsweb.com.