William R. and Edeline House bought the land on which Burnam Square and Cemetery were located in 1856 for the price of a slave named John. In 1861, after her husband died, Edeline House had the 25-block town laid out and donated one acre for a graveyard. The Houston and Texas Central Railroad bypassed Burnam Square in 1871 and founded Ennis. Residents and businesses moved here, causing Burnam Square to decline. The 40-grave burial site is all that remains of the once thriving community of Burnam Square.