Obituary
Elfrieda Fischer Rowe
Elfriede Fischer Rowe was born Feb. 18, 1896, in Lawrence, Kan. She was married to Ivan Doherty Rowe on Dec. 2, 1926, at 743 Indiana Street, the Fischer residence, in Lawrence. Ivan Doherty Rowe was born Sept. 28, 1887, in Mississippi County, Mo. He died in October 1969, in Lawrence. They had one daughter, Sally Agnes (b. March 9, 1928, Kansas City, Mo.).
Elfriede attended Lawrence schools and Lawrence Business College and graduated from Kansas University in 1917. She was a housewife and then was secretary to the manager of Sunflower Ordnance Works during the World War II years. She also worked at the Watkins Bank in the early years.
Her interests were antiques and history, especially of Lawrence. She was also an author, having written two books. She was a member of American Association of University Women, League of Women Voters, KU Alumni and Plymouth Congregational Church.
Elfriede's father was Otto A. Fischer, a shoe merchant at 813 Massachusetts Street in Lawrence. Her mother was Agnes Jaedicke, a musician and the daughter of F.W. Jaedicke, Lawrence hardware merchant.
Obituary
Elfrieda Fischer Rowe
Elfriede Fischer Rowe, a widely recognized authority on Lawrence history, died Monday at Lawrence Memorial Hospital after suffering a stroke and heart attack. She was 96.
She had lived at Brandon Woods Retirement Community until her illness.
No services are planned. Warren-McElwain Mortuary is handling arrangements. Inurnment will be in Oak Hill Cemetery.
Mrs. Rowe was well-known for two books, "Wonderful Old Lawrence" and "More About Wonderful Old Lawrence." In past years, she was a frequent contributor to the Journal-World for historical articles about Lawrence, and those pieces were included in her books. She had served on the board of the Lawrence Historical Society, helped plan the 1954 Lawrence Centennial Observance and was on the local advisory board for observances of the nation's bicentennial in 1976.
Elfriede Rowe was born Feb. 18, 1896, in Lawrence, the daughter of Agnes and Otto Fischer. Her father was a shoe merchant and was an active leader in the community for many years.
Mrs. Rowe was a 1917 graduate of Kansas University, a member of Chi Omega sorority and became the first person in the KU Class of 1917 to become a life member of the KU Alumni Association, in which she was active for many years.
She married Ivan D. Rowe in 1926 in Lawrence. After World War II they operated the Rock Chalk Cafe, a popular restaurant at the north edge of the KU campus. Mr. Rowe died in 1969.
During World War II, Mrs. Rowe was the first salaried person hired by Hercules Powder Co. when it became operating contractor of the former Sunflower Ordnance Works near DeSoto. Eventually, Mrs. Rowe became the confidential administrative secretary for the full executive force at Hercules. Sunflower became the free world's largest producer of powder-propellant during the war, and Mrs. Rowe received a number of citations for her work in the war effort. She later was administrative secretary to the Westvaco (now FMC) Chemical administration in North Lawrence and worked as a secretary in the housing office at KU.
Mrs. Rowe had been president of the Kansas City area Chi Omega alumnae group, served as president of the local chapter of the American Association of University Women, was a member of the Kansas Authors Assn. and was a charter member of Altrusa Club. She was also a charter member of the local group of American Association of Retired Persons, serving as its vice president.
She also had been vice president of the local League of Women Voters and in recent years was awarded the Kiwanis Club Substantial Citizen Award, recognizing her contributions to the community. She was an antique collector and a bridge player. She also taught bridge and frequently conducted area bridge tournaments.
Mrs. Rowe was a longtime member of Plymouth Congregational Church and had served as church historian. She was an honorary life member of the Helen Foresman Spencer Museum of Art at KU. Mrs. Rowe also served as president of the Lawrence Art Guild.
"One of her greatest points of pride and she had reason to be proud about so many things was that she was able to speak often to so many young people about local history. And she never accepted a fee for her efforts. It was a true labor of love with her," said her daughter, Sally Jones, who lives in Bellevue, Neb.
Other survivors include two grandsons and five great-grandchildren.
Thanks for permission from Find A Grave contributor Mr. Peepers to use this information.