Kinmundy is a city in Marion County, Illinois, United States. The population was 733 at the 2020 census. The town is believed to have been named after a place in Scotland, the birthplace of William Ferguson, a London agent for the Illinois Central Railroad during Kinmundy's construction. He visited the area in 1856. Geography Kinmundy is located in northeastern Marion County at (38.7729, -88.8495). Illinois Route 37 passes through the village center as 1st Street, leading southwest to Salem, the county seat, and northeast to Farina. Interstate 57 passes northwest of the city, with access from Exit 127. I-57 leads northeast to Effingham and southwest to Mount Vernon. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Kinmundy has a total area of , of which are land and , or 17.44%, are water. The water area consists of Kinmundy Lake, a reservoir west of the city proper. The city drains to the northwest, toward the East Fork of the Kaskaskia River. History The origins of the town of Kinmundy are rooted in the expansion of the railroads in southern Illinois, with the first significant economic influence being construction work on the Chicago branch of the Illinois Central Railroad. In April 1857, the town was initially laid out east of the railroad, in 15 blocks of varying sizes, and later, incorporated as a city in 1867. In January 1912, Illinois Central Railroad train No. 3, traveling at , collided with passenger train No. 25, which was standing at the station in Kinmundy taking water. The devastating train wreck demolished the private car at the rear of train No. 25, killing five passengers, among them James T. Harahan, the recently-retired president of the Illinois Central Railroad. Arts and culture Landmarks The stately Italianate Calendar Rohrbough House, located on so-called "Quality Hill", is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Illinois Central Railroad Water Tower and Pump House was added to the National Register of Historic places in 1998. The Kinmundy Log Cabin Village is a collection of twelve original pioneer homes rescued in the 1960s from the surrounding local region and reassembled in a wooded area on the edge of the town. All of the cabins pre-date the American Civil War, with the oldest originally constructed in 1818. The log cabin village plays host to an annual fall craft fair, during which the village is populated by local volunteers and crafts people