Entry No. 32 — the Des Moines file — filed under: ghost light
Granny Sprague Cemetery
“a pale blue light hovers above her stone in the final moments of each New Year's Eve”
Officially renamed the Niles-Sprague Pioneer Cemetery, this is reputedly "Iowa's Smallest Cemetery" — a single white-fenced grave in a railroad right-of-way holding six-year-old Mary Wright, who died in 1854. When the Rock Island Railroad forced a cemetery relocation, every grave was moved except hers; legend holds that a pale blue light hovers above her stone in the final moments of each New Year's Eve.
The story
On a narrow strip of right-of-way squeezed between Highway 6/151 and an active set of train tracks outside Homestead, you'll find what is reputedly Iowa's smallest cemetery. Officially named the Niles-Sprague Pioneer Cemetery, it consists of a single white-fenced plot containing the remains of six-year-old Mary Wright, who died in 1854.
When the Rock Island Railroad forced the relocation of the original pioneer burial ground to lay down track, every other grave was disinterred and moved. Mary was left behind. Why her plot remained while the rest of the cemetery was cleared is buried in 19th-century administrative quiet, leaving her alone in the weeds as freight trains roll past just feet away. Local folklore insists she isn't entirely quiet, claiming a pale blue light hovers directly above her headstone in the final moments of New Year's Eve.
What it's like
If you cruise down Highway 6/151 at full speed, you will miss it. Keep your eyes peeled for a small white vinyl fence and a modest name sign along the gravel shoulder, or plug in the exact coordinates (41.76586, -91.89292) before you leave. You'll pull off right onto the roadside. You are standing in a narrow patch of grass sandwiched between high-speed highway traffic and live rail line, so keep your visit brief, stay off the tracks, and be mindful of passing trains. Mary's tombstone was replaced with a clean new marker in 2016. Go at dusk when the light gets long, skip it if snow drifts over the shoulder, and wrap up by heading into Homestead village for an Amana meal and a cold Millstream beer.
The move: Drive out to the lonely white-fenced grave at dusk, read Mary's weathered tombstone (replaced in 2016), and explore the adjacent highway pull-off; then walk the short distance into Homestead village for dinner at one of the Amana Colonies restaurants and swap ghost-light stories over a local Millstream beer.
📍 Before you go It's a roadside stop, not a destination you park at — the lone grave sits in a narrow strip between Highway 6/151 and the active rail line just outside Homestead, the oldest of the Amana Colonies. Watch for the white vinyl fence and the small name sign; it's easy to blow past at highway speed, so the GPS pin (41.76586, -91.89292) helps. Use the highway pull-off, keep visits brief and respectful since trains run the right-of-way, and skip it after a snow. Dusk gives the best mood; pair it with dinner and a Millstream beer in the Amana villages a few minutes away.
- 📍 Amana Colonies
- 💸 $$
- ⚡ Up for anything
- 🌗 Indoors
Where: Highway 6/151, Homestead, IA 52236 (GPS: 41.76586, -91.89292 — railroad right-of-way just off the highway)
Hours: Mined 2026-06-07 — confirm current hours before you go.
Pair it with
- Communal Kitchen Museum — After visiting Mary Wright's solitary 1850s grave, drive under three miles into the Amanas to see how communal life was organized during the exact era she lived.
- Henry Moore's Mini-Americana Barn Museum — Follow up a roadside pioneer grave with an eccentric indoor collection of over 200 hand-crafted miniature buildings housed in a 19th-century South Amana barn.
- The Haunted Bookshop — Head twenty minutes east to Iowa City to browse tens of thousands of vintage volumes inside an 1847 Victorian mansion with its own ghostly reputation.
Good to know
Who is buried at Granny Sprague Cemetery?
Six-year-old Mary Wright, who died in 1854. Though officially called the Niles-Sprague Pioneer Cemetery, her single grave is the only plot left standing.
Why is there only one grave here?
When the Rock Island Railroad pushed through the corridor, the rest of the pioneer cemetery was disinterred and relocated, but Mary's grave was left undisturbed in the railroad right-of-way.
How do I find the cemetery along the highway?
It sits directly beside Highway 6/151 near Homestead (GPS: 41.76586, -91.89292). Look for the white vinyl fence and small sign in the grassy strip between the highway and the train tracks, and park in the adjacent highway pull-off.
What is the ghost legend tied to the grave?
Local storytellers claim that a pale blue light appears and hovers over Mary's tombstone during the closing moments of New Year's Eve.
Plan a visit & invite your people →
Further reading: midwesterndeathtrip.com · findagrave.com · thegazette.com
last checked: 2026-06-07