Drake Municipal Observatory in Des Moines, Iowa, a pale limestone building with a green copper dome and a curved balcony on a grassy knoll

Drake Municipal Observatory – Des Moines, IA: Daniel Morehouse’s Ashes and the Observatory Ghost Stories

Midwestern US Haunted Schools

The Drake Municipal Observatory sits on a knoll beside Waveland Golf Course in Des Moines, Iowa, and its best-known story starts with an urn rather than a ghost. The ashes of Daniel Morehouse, the Drake University president and astronomer who pushed for the building, and those of his wife, Myrtle, are interred inside it. This guide keeps the documented history and the folklore apart.

What the record says

Drake’s history page says the observatory was built in 1920 and 1921 through cooperation between the City of Des Moines and Drake University. The city supplied the land and the funds, while the university provided the instruments and staff. The T-shaped limestone building has a copper dome over the main telescope and stands on what Drake calls the highest ground in the city. It is dedicated to Morehouse, and his ashes and Myrtle’s are inside.

Morehouse discovered a comet in 1908 while a graduate student, returned to Drake in 1914 as an astronomy professor and later became its president. KCCI reported that a centennial event was set for November 5, 2021, with Morehouse’s relatives invited. The Drake Newsroom confirms that the couple’s cremated remains are within a wall of the building.

The legends

An older man. In the KCCI story, adjunct professor Herbert Schwartz said a student who calls herself sensitive reported seeing an older man walking around inside. Schwartz described working alone in the basement one February night, feeling a draft as if a door had opened, finding no one and seeing no tracks in the snow but his own. He said he did not know whether he had been visited or had imagined it.

Pranks and cold spots. Little Village wrote in 2022 that students have reported lights flickering, locks behaving oddly and unexplained cold spots, and that if the building is haunted the common view blames Daniel and Myrtle. The writer called the reports more like pranks than a poltergeist.

The basement bedroom. A 2011 entry on the university’s Drakeapedia wiki, citing a 1984 Des Moines Register story, says Morehouse kept a bedroom in the basement and that an iron bed frame, old photographic plates and a darkroom remained. It adds that his spirit is “quite possible.” That is the entry’s speculation, not evidence.

What the record does not support

  • A confirmed haunting. Every account above is a personal report, and the tellers hedge. No record shows an event with an established cause.
  • One agreed set of facts. Sources disagree on basics. Drake’s visit page gives 4849 Observatory Road, while its own events calendar and Little Village list 4898. Little Village says the city paid about $53,000, and a 1942 Palimpsest article says about $55,000. Drake’s history page says Morehouse became president in 1922, while Little Village and KCCI say 1923.
  • A single date for the floor mosaic. The Newsroom says Schwartz concluded the entrance’s solar system mosaic shows the planets as of the third week of October 1920, while Little Village says October 1, 1921.

Visiting

Admission to the public nights is free. Drake’s public events page says lectures begin at 8:00 p.m. regardless of weather, with sky viewing at dark if it is clear, and children 15 and younger must have an adult. As of October 24, 2026, Drake’s calendar lists fall lectures on Fridays through November 20, so check the events page for current dates before going. The visit page says no reservations are needed and the gate opens 15 minutes before an event. The entrance is behind the McCollum Waveland Tennis Complex off Polk Boulevard. There are no daytime tours.

FAQ

Is the Drake Municipal Observatory haunted?

Stories of an older man, flickering lights and cold spots have circulated for years. None has been confirmed.

Whose ashes are in the observatory?

Daniel Morehouse, the Drake astronomer and later university president, and his wife, Myrtle, according to Drake.

Can the public go inside?

Yes, during the free Friday public nights while the season runs. Check Drake’s page for dates.

More haunted schools in Iowa

Read about Simpson College in Indianola, Luther College in Decorah, Coe College in Cedar Rapids and Iowa State University in Ames.

Sources

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Top image: Drake Municipal Observatory in Des Moines, Iowa, December 2011. Photo: PopePompus, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped, via Wikimedia Commons