Iowa Men's Reformatory Cemetery
About this property
The Anamosa State Penitentiary Cemetery, also known as the Iowa Men's Reformatory Cemetery or Boot Hill Cemetery, is located west of Anamosa, Iowa, United States. The first cemetery associated with the Iowa Men's Reformatory, now a penitentiary, was begun in 1876 at Prison Farm No. 1 or possibly at Farm No. 5. Its exact location is unknown. The graves are of those prisoners whose bodies were left unclaimed or were not taken to one of the state's medical colleges. They were buried in common graves that contained up to eight bodies. Tall limestone markers were placed at each grave and contained the prisoner's name and death date. They were moved here when this cemetery was established in 1914. Subsequent graves hold individual bodies, and are marked with shorter limestone markers with the prisoner's name, age, date of death, and sometimes their prison number. They are in three different styles. Two styles are upright stones, one with a triangular top and the other with a rounded top. They were used from 1914 to the 1940s. The third style of stone is a flat, horizontal marker that was used from the 1940s to the present. The cemetery is a triangular piece of land located on Farm No. 1 with the graves arranged in rows at an angle. It is marked with an iron entrance gate with the words "Anamosa State Penitentiary Cemetery" across the top. It is surrounded by a white fence. The cemetery was listed as a historic site on the National Register of Historic Places in 1992.
Location
Categories
Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).
Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Everything a full report reveals about Iowa Men's Reformatory Cemetery
This page lists Iowa Men's Reformatory Cemetery. A full Aubrey report for an address near it pulls together this listing alongside battlefield records, land patents, and every other historical record within a chosen radius:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Questions about this property
When was Iowa Men's Reformatory Cemetery listed on the National Register?
Iowa Men's Reformatory Cemetery was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on December 18, 1992.
What type of historic resource is Iowa Men's Reformatory Cemetery?
Iowa Men's Reformatory Cemetery is classified as a site in the National Register of Historic Places.
What is the period of significance for Iowa Men's Reformatory Cemetery?
The period of significance for Iowa Men's Reformatory Cemetery is recorded as the listed era.
Can I research the history near Iowa Men's Reformatory Cemetery?
Yes. Aubrey Research reports search National Register listings, battlefield records, land patents, and other primary historical sources within any radius of a US address. A report for an address near Iowa Men's Reformatory Cemetery will include this listing and all other historical records in the area.
More in Jones County
Historic places, battles, and census history across Jones County.
Explore JonesCounty ›Research the history near this site
An Aubrey US report for an address near Iowa Men's Reformatory Cemetery will include this listing alongside battlefield records and other historical sources within your chosen radius.