Plymouth Magazine-Fall26-DIGITAL - Flipbook - Page 11
Church on 8th and Pleasant streets.
his first pulpit. Frisbie began his career
as a pastor at Danbury Congregational
Church in Connecticut in 1865. At that
time Martha Crosby was a 25 year old
member of that congregation.
Alvah and Jerusah moved to Des Moines
in October 1871 and Frisbie became
Pastor of Plymouth Congregational
Church. Together they had four children
before their move to Des Moines. Two
daughters died in infancy including Ruth
who was born in Des Moines in 1871.
Jerusah died four days after Ruth was
born. Ruth was taken in by a local family
and lived five months and Alvah’s 21
year old niece, Addie Newell, moved in
with the family to care for the three other
children: Lillian age 13, Grace age 10,
and William age 6.
Frisbie quickly began to search for a
wife and mother for his children. In his
memoir he said, “The need of the pastor’s
home was a mother. Early in January
he [Frisbie] received an answer from
Miss Martha Crosby to a proposition he
had made to her, ‘supply the need.’ He
was glad. In March (1873) he went to
Saratoga Springs where Miss Crosby was
teaching and greatly enjoyed a visit with
her. Came home to work and family,
glad in hope.” The wedding took place in
Danbury, Connecticut, on July 29, 1873.
The Frisbies honeymooned with their
niece and three children, traveling by
steamer from Dubuque to Minnesota.
The Rev. Frisbie with the Junior Christian Endeavor Society.
Martha was clearly a risk taker. She
left her position at a prominent
Congregational boarding school to move
to Des Moines, a frontier town that
Frisbie described as “not attractive, new
and full of cheap buildings with muddy
streets — no paving” to become a second
wife and step-mother to three young
motherless children and an active pastor’s
wife at the age of 33. She quickly added
two more children to the family at a time
when she was at very advanced age for
a first pregnancy. Mabel was born when
Martha was 35, and Alfred Lowrie (who
weighed 11 ¼ pounds at birth) was born
when Martha was 37.
Becoming a housewife was all new for
Martha. In a local newspaper interview
it was stated, “Mrs. Frisbie … had just
completed her fourth year of teaching
at Temple Grove Seminary at Saratoga
Springs. This was not in line of direct
preparation for housekeeping cares, but
those who teach can learn, so Dr. Frisbie
was commissioned to purchase ‘Marion
Harland’s Cook Book’ on his first trip
downtown, and the maid accepted
her mistress as an educated cook! The
Register and Leader ‘Iowa Women
Whom all Iowa Delights to Honor’.”
( January 2, 1910)
After moving to Des Moines, Martha
began to teach at Callanan College of
Women beginning in 1873. The school
was formerly located where Methodist
Hospital now stands. In 1888, Drake
purchased Callanan College of Women.
It would become the nucleus of the
College of Education. In 1893, the
Callanan entity became known as the
Normal college, preparing students to be
teachers until 1906. Martha continued
to keep her family first and in a Mother’s
Day tribute to her it was said, “Following
her coming to Des Moines with Dr.
Frisbie… she taught classes for seven years
in Callanan college but “looked to the
ways of her household” by leaving home
after the children were in school and
always being present to respond to the
call, “Where’s mother” upon their return.”
(Des Moines Register, May 16, 1920)
While Frisbie was building church
membership, preaching, supervising
new buildings, publishing two books of
poetry, and starting satellite churches,
Martha Frisbie’s primary church role was
starting and supporting Sunday School
classes for adults and children. Under her
watch Plymouth began the tradition of
long lasting permanent Sunday School
classes and progressive social activism
in the community. This was a time of
rapid growth of the “Christian Endeavor
Movement.” Started in 1881 in Portland
Maine by Dr. Francis E. Clark, it was
an interdenominational movement
to promote discipleship and service.
The Sunshine Rescue Mission in Des
Moines was started by Mrs. A.J. Rawlins
Plymouth Sunday School class.
Plymouth Magazine 11
