The village of Bolshie Kemary in the Perevozsky District of Nizhny Novgorod Oblast was founded in the 16th century. The name "Kemary" translates from Mari as "stone people." One and a half kilometers from the village, on one of the hills, stands a white stone pillar with a cross and relief circles. Until the early 20th century, fairs were held here, overlooking the left bank of the P'yana River and the dome of the church in the village of Yagodnoye. On the slope of the hill lies the Kemar cemetery, and below, among the old trees, stands a sky-blue chapel over the well. The spring, known as Gremyachiy Klyuch, is surrounded by a legend about a wooden church dedicated to the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God. Later, a chapel was built here, followed by a wooden church, around which monks and nuns settled, establishing cells and conducting services. However, after the revolution or the civil war, the cells, church, and chapel were destroyed or burned.

According to the "Address Calendar of the Nizhny Novgorod Diocese" for 1904, a wooden cemetery church was built at the cemetery in Bolshie Kemary, at Gremyachiy Klyuch, in 1810. The main altar was dedicated to the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God Odigitria, and the side altars to the prophet Elijah and Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker. The "Address Calendar" for 1888 mentions another shrine of Bolshie Kemary, the Smolensk Icon of the Mother of God Odigitria, located in the church at Gremyachiy Klyuch, painted around 1706 and known for its healings of more than 10 people.