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Dossier 0996Historic SiteMedium 62

Edwin James Burial Site at Rock Springs Cemetery

Centerville, IowaRock Springs Cemetery1 min readFile amended Directions

Edwin James Burial Site at Rock Springs Cemetery is a historic site in Centerville, Iowa, a National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom listing. NPS-listed historic site associated with the Underground Railroad. The archive files it under dark history, Underground Railroad history and the Underground Railroad. The dossier holds 3 documented facts — the record is history-forward, no paranormal claims on file. Access is restricted — check current rules before planning anything.

Archive note: 5 conflicting records
Status
Operating
Designation
National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom listing
Coordinates
40.730, -92.872 · Approximate (city centroid)

NPS public listing access field: No. This is a listing snapshot; current arrangements still require confirmation.

Is Edwin James Burial Site at Rock Springs Cemetery haunted?

No claims are filed here — the record keeps this place for its documented history, not for a haunting on file.

The record — long form

James is the polymath — the 'botanist' that's the first Iowa, the 'Indian agent' that's the fought whiskey traders. The 'secret room' is the fireplace — the 'behind' that's the built-in, the 'Missouri' that's the across the river. The 'wagon' is the '61 — the 'firewood' that's the slipped under wheels, the 'months before Sumter' that's the didn't see it.

The 'Clarissa' is the first — the 'knoll' that's the first burial '54, the 'cemetery grew' that's the around her. The 'never took pay' is the doctor — the 'ox cart' that's the city folk, the 'philanthropist' that's the neighbors' word. James is the marker — the 'vandalized' that's the replaced '10, the 'pieces underneath' that's the kept anyway.

The file keeps James: the fireplace room, the botanist-agent, the wagon death, and the vandalized-replaced stone.

Edwin James is the archive's Iowa file — the botanist's hideout.

Why this file matters

Edwin James' burial is the archive's Iowa file — the scholar conductor.

A grave keeps its wall — the file's suggestion being that James' hold is the learned: the 'botanist' that's the classified plants, the 'fireplace room' that's the hid people, and the 'crushed' that's the died before the war he helped start.

Two accounts on file

Place Type
On file

HISTORIC_SITE

Also reported

CEMETERY

Preserve both source-backed variants; no automatic overwrite.

Short Description
On file

NPS-listed historic site associated with the Underground Railroad.

Also reported

The conductor’s grave—where James rests.

Preserve both source-backed variants; no automatic overwrite.

Public Access
On file

RESTRICTED

Also reported

PUBLIC

Preserve both source-backed variants; no automatic overwrite.

Historic Designation
On file

National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom listing

Also reported

NPS Network to Freedom

Preserve both source-backed variants; no automatic overwrite.

Research Notes
On file

Government-registry discovery record, unique ID 30IA01, source row 536. Inclusion concerns slavery, freedom-seeking and resistance history; no haunting is inferred. City, coordinates and detailed history are not inferred from the name. The source Year Established field is not treated as year built/opened.

Also reported

UGRR enrichment wave 3; VERIFY task auto-queued.

Preserve both source-backed variants; no automatic overwrite.

Documented history

  • NPS includes this site in the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom. A documented site gives the file real substance; this entry is part of that record. The fact is historically verified — the part of the file that doesn't need hedging. 'Public NPS Network to Freedom listings, row 2, ID 01GA01' documents the entry. It anchors the timeline the rest of the file hangs from.

    Verified historyNational Park Service
  • Edwin James Burial Site at Rock Springs Cemetery is documented on the National Park Service Network to Freedom for its role in the Underground Railroad. Edwin James Burial Site at Rock Springs Cemetery's past is on record — the entry belongs to the verified layer the museum itself interprets. It's verified history: the dossier's load-bearing detail. Sources including 'NPS Network to Freedom listing' carry the record. The record keeps it — history, not lore.

    Verified historyNational Park Service
  • James’s work is documented. The site's documented history is the record the rest of the file stands on. This belongs to the verified spine of the entry, the layer everything else is measured against. Sources including 'NPS Network to Freedom listing' carry the record. Documented ground is what separates this file from pure legend — this is part of it.

    Verified historyNational Park Service

Sources on file

Field notes & open questions

Government-registry discovery record, unique ID 30IA01, source row 536. Inclusion concerns slavery, freedom-seeking and resistance history; no haunting is inferred. City, coordinates and detailed history are not inferred from the name. The source Year Established field is not treated as year built/opened.

"Edwin James Burial Site at Rock Springs Cemetery." HauntHunt dossier 0996, https://haunthunt.com/place/edwin-james-burial-site-at-rock-springs-cemetery-iowa/ (file amended October 2, 2026).

Within ~50 miles

End of file · continue the hunt
J.H.B. Armstrong House
3 mi away
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