St. Mary's Lutheran Church was organized in the 1820's and Kinsers were active in this church from its' inception. There is a church register in the McClung Collection at the Lawson McGhee Public Library in Knoxville, Tennessee bearing the dates 20 May 1853-21 Aug 1910. Three generations were active in the church during that period and many of the early Kinsers from Greene and Monroe County are buried there including John and Susannah Kinser.

Monroe County Deed Book U, page 410 includes the following: John Kinser,Jr. "for the desire I entertain for the prosperity of St. Maries Evangelical Church" transferred one acre of his land in District 6, section 12, Range 1, East of township 4 to the "present Elders of St Mary's.  Jacob Kinser  and John Kinser" Witnessed by
F. J. Kinser and J.M. Kinser. The deed was registered March 7, 1881.

The original building was built of logs felled in the area. This original church had a German speaking minister until near the turn of the century. As the founding generation died and the younger members moved away the church fell into decay. Other neighbors in the area built a new building adjacent to a community cemetery located on another Kinser farm on the old Athens Road and constituted it as St. Mary's Methodist Church. Thus what was originally a community Cemetery has become known as the St. Mary's Methodist Church Cemetery.

The present building built near this second building is of white concrete block and is located approximately one mile from where the original church stood. I remember going, as a child, to Decoration Day at this church when members of families buried in the cemetery gathered to clear the weeds, mow the grass in the cemetery, share a picnic lunch spread on a long row of tables, and catch up on the family happenings from the past year.

Mrs.  Reed Kinser   lived in a house near the church and her son, Bruce Kinser was caretaker of the church grounds and superintendent of the Sunday School there. Bruce was killed when his tractor overturned while mowing the church grounds. I had an opportunity to visit Mrs. Kinser several years ago while making a nostalgic visit to the old   John Solomon Kinser  family farm nearby. Mrs. Kinser had kept a church record listing the communicants names, the minister who preached with his scripture reference and subject and any births of christenings. Among these names was my father's.

Kinsers Buried at St. Mary's Cemetery
Madisonville, Tennessee