Milton William Cline (May 16, 1827 in Whitehall, New York – October 7, 1911 in Montrose County, Colorado) was a 19th-century American sailor, soldier, scout and pioneer.

Cline managed to attach himself to a Confederate cavalry captain and rode the entire length of Lee's lines a few days before the Battle of Chancellorsville.

According to one account, he accomplished "the deepest and longest infiltration of the Confederate Army recorded during the war"[6] and was instrumental in obtaining key intelligence about orders being sent by Jefferson Davis.

[7] However, he was later blamed for the failure of an infiltration mission, the Kilpatrick-Dahlgren Raid during the Battle of Walkerton, leading to the infamous Dahlgren affair.

[6] Colonel Ulric Dahlgren was killed in retreat, and the later desecration of his corpse by the Confederates caused great offence across the north.

[8][more detail needed] Cline and the rest of the 3rd Indiana Cavalry were mustered out of the Union Civil War ranks in August 1864.

Historical records list Cline as one of the first prospectors and founding settlers of the county and town seat of Ouray, Colorado.

Positioned at the north end of the San Juan mountains, sheer cliff faces prevented easy access.

[17] "Captain" Milton W. Cline is listed as Ouray's first postmaster,[18][19] treasurer,[20] Justice of the Peace,[21] mayor and Sheriff of Cimarron.

[24] Alongside Frederick Walker Pitkin, Cline founded the Michael "Mickey" Breen mine on Engineer Pass.

[26] Cline's ranch in Cimarron was a regular stopping off point for travelers and he was additionally engaged as a road overseer.

[35][36] Cline personally drove the wagon that carried Chief Ouray and his wife Chipeta to negotiate the release of women settlers that had been taken hostage.

On September 29, 1880 several Ute tribe members went into a freight wagon's camp on nearby Blue Mountain Mesa asking for food.

[42] Sensing the situation could quickly get out of control if the military became involved, Cline, in an effort to reduce tension, sought to appeal to the Utes by suggesting to take perpetrator A.D. Jackson to Gunnison to stand trial for Johnson's murder.

[47] While Cline was in prison, rumors circulated in the county that a band of Ute warriors was making plans to spring him from jail.

In 1881, a man died on his ranch in pursuit of medical treatment, and Cline was publicly accused of stealing from the body.

Some of the land that once made up Cline's Cimarron ranch is today is part of the Curecanti National Recreation Area.