Near Kingsport in Sullivan County, Tennessee — The American South (East South Central)
Pierce Chapel AME Church Cemetery
Photographed By Duane and Tracy Marsteller, October 23, 2022
1. Pierce Chapel AME Church Cemetery Marker
of Historic Places
Tennessee Historical Commission
Pierce Chapel AME Church Cemetery
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Cemeteries & Burial Sites. A significant historical year for this entry is 1882.
Location. 36° 30.124′ N, 82° 34.264′ W. Marker is near Kingsport, Tennessee, in Sullivan County. Marker can be reached from the intersection of Seaver Road and Horse Creek Road, on the left when traveling north. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Kingsport TN 37660, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 3 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Suffering and Survival (approx. 1.8 miles away); Avery Treaty (approx. 1.9 miles away); Donelson Flotilla (approx. 2 miles away); Fort Patrick Henry (approx. 2.3 miles away); Douglass High School (approx. 2˝ miles away); Train Depot (approx. 3 miles away); Doyle Lawson (approx. 3 miles away); Bank Of Kingsport (approx. 3 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Kingsport.
Regarding Pierce Chapel AME Church Cemetery. Excerpt from the National Register nomination:
Established at least by circa 1870, according to oral history traditions and the history of the church congregation, the earliest marker thatcan now be read is 1882. The church grounds and cemetery comprised the physical center of the only known rural African-American community in Sullivan County. The nominated property is the oldest known historic African-American resource in the county today.
Click or scan to see
this page online
The exact date of the founding of the cemetery and church is unknown. According to interviews with Theresa Dykes, Jack Pierce, Anna Coley, Virginia Leeper, and Orvel Bond, the cemetery began in the antebellum “slave days” and contains unmarked burials from those years.
Also see . . .
1. Pierce Chapel AME Church Cemetery (PDF). National Register nomination for the cemetery, which was listed in 2000. (National Archives) (Submitted on November 13, 2022, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.)
2. Pierce Chapel AME Church Cemetery. Find a Grave entry on the historic African American cemetery. (Submitted on November 13, 2022, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.)
Photographed By Duane and Tracy Marsteller, October 23, 2022
2. Pierce Chapel AME Church Cemetery Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on November 13, 2022. It was originally submitted on November 13, 2022, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 151 times since then and 26 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on November 13, 2022, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.
