Moses F. Shinn

Moses Franklin Shinn (January 3, 1809 – 1885) was a pioneer Methodist Episcopal Church minister in Omaha, Nebraska. Aside from founding Omaha's first cemetery, called Prospect Hill, he was also renowned for renouncing his Methodist affiliation in Keokuk, Iowa in order to remain a member of the Freemasons. The incident was probably the only of its kind ever to occur in the history of the Masons. Late in his life, Shinn was reportedly "one of the wealthiest citizens of Omaha".

Shinn was born in Hillsboro, Ohio in 1809. In 1842 he was a Methodist circuit rider around Birmingham, Iowa. His circuit included Birmingham, Colony, Philadelphia (Kilbourne), Keosauqua, Bentonsport, Bonaparte, Utica, Washington, Winchester, and several private homes throughout Van Buren and Washington counties. Historical records place Shinn in Council Bluffs, Iowa after 1851, when it was noted he was a "fiery Methodist preacher" who some claimed was "as learned in full deck poker as in theology". Around 1851 Shinn was a minister at a settlement in Iowa called Blue Point in Jefferson County. In 1852 he was sent to Council Bluffs. He was the presiding elder of the Council Bluffs District of the Methodist Church, which included work that developed in the new neighboring Nebraska Territory.

Moses Shinn was the first minister in Omaha, estimated to have moved there in 1854. He laid out "Shinn’s Addition" just northwest of the city early in Omaha's life. In that section Shinn plotted out 10 acres (40,000 m²) for a cemetery, which he called Prospect Hill. This land was eventually sold to Byron Reed, who in turn sold it to the Forest Lawn Cemetery. In 1876 the North Mission Church, a Methodist Episcopal church, was built in that subdivision, as well.

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