Tag: Marcia Macdonald Livingston

The Livingstons’ New York Legacy, Part 2

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In a previous post we shared the charming 1898 book of quotes compiled by the ladies of the First Presbyterian Church of Gilbertsville, New York, and how they reached out to current and previous residents for contributions, including Charles and Marcia Livingston.

For his favorite quote, Charles chose a few lines from an 18th-century hymn by Moravian Bishop John Gambold:

"And when I am to die, 'Receive me'—I'll cry, 
For Jesus has loved me, I cannot tell why; 
But this I do find, we two are so joined, 
He'll not be in glory and leave me behind."

To those who knew Charles, these words were more than just a comforting stanza. They knew that Charles probably selected those lines because he was a man—a minister—whose physical body was continuously failing him; yet he found true comfort in the fact that his identity was anchored in Christ, not in his ability to hold a pulpit.

Charles suffered from a chronic, severe throat ailment (possibly chronic laryngitis or a tubercular throat condition) that progressively stole his physical ability to project his voice to a congregation. For a dedicated Presbyterian minister whose entire life and career were built around the spoken word, it was a devastating ailment. His time in the Gilbertsville pulpit was cut short after just two years because the harsh New York winters and the strain of preaching became physically impossible for him.

Because of his health, Charles, Marcia and their young daughter Grace found themselves constantly moving from one city to another. It must have seemed to them that as soon as they had hung curtains in a new manse and developed deep bonds with a congregation (as they did in Gilbertsville), Charles’ voice would begin to fail, and the trunks would have to be brought down from the attic once more.

The Presbyterian Ministerial Directory, 1898, hints at how frequently the family had to move.

From Gilbertsville, the family moved through a succession of churches in multiple states, searching for an environment where Charles could breathe and preach safely. Each move had to have taken a physical and emotional toll on the family, as well as a financial one. In the 19th century church, if a pastor couldn’t speak, he couldn’t maintain a pulpit—and without a pulpit, there was no manse in which to live or steady stipend to support a family. During those stressful times, the Livingstons frequently leaned on a familiar and welcoming safety net: the literary world of Isabella Alden.

An 1886 issue of The Pansy magazine

Marcia’s sister Isabella had built a massive Christian publishing empire, centered around her children’s magazine, The Pansy. Her young subscribers and their parents begged Isabella to change the monthly magazine to a weekly publication. With the help of Charles and Marcia, Isabella was able to do just that.

Marcia became a mainstay of The Pansy magazine. She wrote short stories and penned a regular monthly column called “Baby’s Corner” for the publication’s youngest readers. And Charles found a new way to preach through his pen. Writing under the initials “C.M.L.” or the persona “Uncle Charles,” he contributed Bible studies and brief articles that covered a variety of contemporary topics.

The collaboration between the Aldens and the Livingstons went beyond The Pansy. They frequently teamed up to write full-length novels that helped supplement the family income. They frequently combined households and turned their shared living spaces into a family writing workshop. Together, they not only kept the Livingstons’ bills paid during Charles’ enforced periods of vocal rest, they provided a front-row literary education for young Grace Livingston, who contributed her own very first stories to the family magazine during those years.

Isabella Alden (left) and her sister, Marcia Livingston, in an undated photo.

By 1885 it became clear that traditional medical treatments and forced periods of rest were no longer enough to save Charles’ voice. The only recommended cure they had not yet tried was the southern “climate cure,” which involved relocating to a southern state with year-round warm temperatures. In February of that year Isabella and her husband visited Florida and helped establish a new Chautauqua assembly. By September the Livingstons joined the Aldens in Florida and together they settled in Winter Park, not far from Orlando. There, the Aldens built a large home they dubbed The Pansy Cottage, with plenty of room for the Livingstons and any other relatives who cared to join them.

A side view of The Pansy Cottage in Winter Park, Florida.

The move was a turning point for the Livingstons. The gentler climate successfully soothed Charles’ throat, which allowed him to renew his ministry in new ways. While in Florida he spent years engaged in home missionary work, planting new congregations and even taking on a pastoral role at the Winter Park Presbyterian Church from 1891 to 1892.

Perhaps even more importantly, the new environment and shared living quarters provided rich inspiration for the family’s pens. The area’s unique flora, fauna, and pioneering spirit filled the pages of The Pansy magazine and inspired some of their full-length novels. Most importantly for the Livingstons, their new Florida home offered a place where Charles could use his voice again.

So, when the ladies of the First Presbyterian Church of Gilbertsville reached out to the Livingstons in 1898, they wrote to a couple whose lives had been completely reshaped by faith, creativity, and resilience in the face of difficult physical trials. Though decades had passed and miles separated them, Charles and Marcia gladly sent their favorite verses back to the little church that had once welcomed them as young parents.

Knowing the physical limitations and hardships Charles endured throughout his career, his choice for a quote carries an even deeper meaning:

“But this I do find, we two are so joined, 
He'll not be in glory and leave me behind."

And for Marcia, who stood by his side through every packed trunk, every illness, and every shared writing desk, her choice of Robert Browning’s cheerful poem makes perfect sense:

“God’s in his Heaven—All’s right with the world.”

You can read more about the Aldens and the Livingstons in Florida in these previous posts:

Isabella, a Winter Snowbird
Welcome to Pansy’s House
Too Much of a Good Thing, and a New Free Read!

The Livingstons’ Legacy in Small-town New York

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Isabella and her sister Marcia both married ministers of the Presbyterian church, whose profession called them to different churches across the northeastern United States. In 1868 Marcia’s husband Charles was called to a small church in the idyllic village of Gilbertsville, New York.

An undated postcard from Gilbertsville, New York.

Gilbertsville is nestled inside the town of Butternuts amid farmlands and gently rolling hills carved out by nearby Butternut Creek. When Charles, Marcia, and their three-year-old daughter Grace arrived in Gilbertsville, the congregation had just completed construction on their new church building. Charles was one of the very first pastors to preach in the grand new sanctuary.

Charles Livingston in undated photo.

With a fresh building and a youthful pastor, the energy of the congregation was electric. The women of the church were highly educated and socially active; in fact, it was largely due to the efforts of the church’s “Ladies’ Aid” leadership that the funds were raised to build the new church. In many ways, they mirrored the types of organized, reform-minded and intellectually curious women that Isabella and Marcia so frequently wrote about in their novels.

On the left, the new Presbyterian Church as it appeared in 1909.

Those exact same women were older matrons when they gathered in 1898 to tackle another fund-raising project. This time, they turned to a popular and very successful method in the late-Victorian era: publishing a community fundraising book. It worked like this:

Small towns at the turn of the century had local newspaper or regional printing houses that routinely printed booklets, local histories, and community directories for a flat fee. Before a single page of the book was printed, the ladies of the church went door-to-door throughout the area obtaining donations, cash advances and orders from neighbors, local businesses, and families. Similar to our modern crowd-sourcing, it was a clever way to ensure the project was fully funded upfront.

While many church groups published community cookbooks filled with local recipes, a literary collection of curated moral, poetic and philosophical quotes was considered a more “refined” and “intellectual” endeavor—and that’s what the ladies decided to publish.

They solicited favorite quotes from town leaders and prominent citizens—including the Gilbert family, whose ancestors literally founded and named the village; the Fitch family, owners of the local mills and enthusiastic supporters of local civic projects; and the Rockwoods, major agricultural exporters who drove the local economy.

The women also reached out to former residents, including the Livingstons. By the time the book was published in 1898, the Livingstons had moved on to other pulpits, but they were still well remembered and beloved. They were also firmly connected to the Christian literary world of that time—Marcia was a published author in her own right, and her sister, Isabella, was the most successful and prolific Christian fiction author of the Victorian era.

Marcia Livingston in undated photo.

Obtaining favorite quotes from the Livingstons added prestige and a bit of “star power” to their small-town book.

Titled Thoughts of the Wise, the book was published in 1898 and became a treasured collection of wisdom, as well as a handy social directory. At a price of twenty-five cents a copy, many residents purchased multiple copies to send to far-away friends and relatives, adding more to the community’s fund-raising coffers.

Would you like to see the favorite quotes Marcia and Charles Livingston contributed to Thoughts of the Wise? Click here to view a PDF version of the book. You’ll find Charles’ quote on page 9 and Marcia’s on page 26.

JOIN US FOR PART TWO!

Curious about why the quotes Charles and Marcia chose were especially meaningful in their lives? Join us on November 10 when we’ll explore the special meaning behind their selections, examine the reality of Charles’ failing health, and look at the extraordinary steps the family took to cope with his illness.

New Free Read: “Deacon Bates’ Wife”

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Marcia Livingston, Isabella’s sister, was a widely published author whose work appeared in magazines and newspapers across the country. While she often wrote stories for young children, her stories about the trials and joys of marriage are true to life, charming, and inspiring.

Marcia’s story “Deacon Bates’ Wife” is about appreciating the ones we love, recognizing their burdens, and taking the time to look at them with fresh eyes.

When “Deacon Bates’ Wife” was published in newspapers in 1892 it was very well received. One New York newspaper editor added this thoughtful introduction:

“The following story … conveys an admirable lesson. We commend it to the considerate attention of all “good men” who have “over-worked wives.”

Deacon Daniel Bates takes great pride in his thrifty, hard-working wife, Cynthy, unaware that decades of unceasing labor have taken a toll on her spirit. It takes a keen-eyed summer guest and a dose of plain speaking to open the deacon’s eyes before it’s too late.

YOU CAN READ “DEACON BATES’ WIFE” FOR FREE!

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To the Wives of Ministers

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Isabella Macdonald Alden and her sister Marcia Macdonald Livingston were always very close. They were both married to Presbyterian ministers, and both found success as writers of Christ-centered novels, as well as short stories for Christian magazines.

Isabella Alden (left) and her sister Marcia Livingston (right).

In 1898 the sisters learned through their churches about the plight of a retired minister and his wife who were in danger of losing their home. The couple needed just $150—about $5,900 in today’s money.

Isabella and Marcia knew from experience how difficult it was to live on a minister’s inadequate salary, and how that meager income made it nearly impossible to save anything for retirement. The elderly couple’s plight touched the sisters’ hearts and they decided to take action.

The sisters wrote a joint appeal for donations on behalf of the elderly couple. Their letter was published on May 4, 1898, in a weekly Christian magazine and read as follows:

TO THE WIVES OF PRESBYTERIAN MINISTERS.

Dear Friends: Let us beg your pardon in the beginning for addressing you. Our excuse must be that we feel we are not strangers, but friends; the mystic bond which unites the wives of all those who have given themselves to the ministry of the gospel of Jesus Christ unites us, as well as that dearer, stronger one, Jesus Christ being our Elder Brother. It is because it seems that he has put it into our hearts to send you this word that we do it.

It has come to our knowledge that there is in our beloved Church a minister and his wife who sorely need a little help just now to tide them over a hard place. The facts are, briefly, these:

A Presbyterian minister, formerly in active service as pastor, now broken in health and nearly seventy years of age, invested his little all several years ago, in a small place in California, hoping to make a living by raising fruits and vegetables for the market. He and his wife, who is now partially crippled by rheumatism, have worked heroically on their home, but the unprecedentedly hard times of the past few years, as well as increasing ill health, were against them. The little home, so carefully and prayerfully worked for, is in danger. A mortgage of only $150 rests upon it; but, unless even that small sum be raised promptly, it must go.

A minister and his wife belonging to our grand Church, sick and old and with no home! Isn’t it pitiful that such a thing should be, when they have given their best years to the Church?

Why are we telling you? It has come into our hearts that possibly 148 ministers’ wives will each spare $1, to be placed with our $2, to be sent at once to this dear minister’s wife, who can no longer work with her crippled hands, as she has bravely done, to help support her sick husband. This, as a token that we are sisters and recognize the bond.

While we write the words we remember that probably some cannot do even this, and are moved to ask that any who can will make their offering $2 or $3, or even $5, for the sake of those who would respond but cannot, and for the sake of those who will mean to do it, when they read these words, but who will let the cares of this busy world crowd it from their minds.

The sisters closed their appeal by providing their home addresses where donors could send money, and a promise to provide updates in a future issue of the magazine.

Photo of Isabella Alden about 1880 (age 39)

It’s hard to know what their expectations were. Perhaps they thought they’d eventually receive a few donations that they could add to their own and forward to the retired minister and his wife.

But that’s not what happened! You can imagine Isabella and Marcia’s excitement when they wrote the following update, which appeared two weeks later on May 18 in the same magazine:

AN ACKNOWLEDGMENT.
 

Dear Friends: It gives us pleasure to report at this date the receipt of $41 towards the $150 that we are trying to raise to save the little home, of which we wrote you last week. As the magazine containing the appeal has been issued only four days, including Sunday, the replies thus far have been instantaneous.

The sum of $41 in today’s economy is about $1,600. That’s an astonishing amount to receive in so short a time! The sisters continued:

Our gratitude for these kindly and prompt responses is very great. We are looking to receive many more before the week closes. One friend writes that she hopes we will excuse her for not being a minister’s wife, and yet for sending her offering! We are delighted with her.

We remember that there are ministers’ wives by the score who gladly would, but cannot; it is fitting that some more blessed with this world’s goods should reply for them. Two dear ladies have already done so; one sent $5, the other $10.

One friend hopes that we will receive much more than the sum called for and be able to make an additional gift. We echo the hope.

Later it will be our pleasure to give a somewhat more detailed account of this pleasant work, and of some of the precious letters that have come to us. There have already been received gifts that represent sacrifice and letters that would touch your hearts. Yours sincerely,

What a promising start for the sisters’ fund-raising campaign!

Marcia Livingston around 1905.

Their next update was published three weeks later on June 8 with the following headline:

THE MORTGAGE LIFTED

The sisters’ wrote:
 

Dear Friends:

It is with pleasure and gratitude that we come to you with the final result of our appeal for those dear servants of God in California, asking you to lend a helping hand in saving their home.

You will remember the amount of the mortgage was $150, and we have the joy of telling you that we have received in all the sum of $210.

That $210 would be equal to about $8,300 in today’s money! The sisters continued:

Undoubtedly it will be a blessing to our dear friends to receive these tokens of fellowship, but the Lord’s own statement, that it is “more blessed to give than to receive,” seems again to have been verified.

Nearly every letter writer has taken time to add a word of tender sympathy and to express the wish that the sum desired might be much more than realized.

As we read the heart-lines accompanying them, we wished that you could all enjoy them with us. It has been interesting to note how many ministers’ daughters responded, “begging the privilege” of being counted in.

One friend wrote that she was not in any way connected with ministers, but she was a member of the Presbyterian Church, and she felt it a precious privilege to lend a helping hand to these servants of the Lord in their hour of need.

Another, who said she “had just begun to be a minister’s wife,” was only too glad to inaugurate her service in this way. Still another begged admission to the circle on the plea that she expected “very soon” to become a minister’s wife.

Many ministers’ widows, out of their small incomes, sent glad offerings. One who was nearing her eightieth year, but who had a good home, the rent from which supported her, joyfully offered her gift. Another token was from an old minister and his wife, who said that they had no home to save, but the Lord had taken care of them for seventy-eight years, and given them a little with which to help others.

One wrote, “Your appeal coming so soon after our Sunday-school lesson on ‘Giving,’ afforded some of us an opportunity to show our faith by our works. How thoughtful of our Lord!”

There were gifts from those who “had to count even the dimes carefully to make the ends meet, but were glad to share with others.”

Times without number we were thanked for affording the opportunity, and the wish was constantly expressed that much more than the sum called for might be received. 

Now, in regard to the recipients of these gifts, nothing would afford us greater pleasure than to copy at length the beautiful and touching letter received from the dear wife, in response to the check sent her. The length of the letter and the personal character of some of it deter us. A few sentences, however, we feel that we must quote. The letter commences:

“Dear, dear friends: What can I say? Words will not express my feelings! God only knows the heart, and he knows how thankful, oh, how thankful, we are to you for all your great and noble kindness. God bless you all, and ever keep you in the hollow of his hand, safe from all want. I want to tell you how it was, so far as words will. My husband was out in the yard when your letter came. I called to him and said: ‘Come in; I want to show you something.’ When he came in I said: ‘Put on your glasses;’ then I handed him the check. He is a man who thinks before speaking. As he sat looking at it I said: ‘Cannot we trust the Lord?” Then I could not keep the tears back any longer, and still he had not spoken. He sat with bowed head, and I knew he was thanking God for his loving kindness. When he looked up his eyes were full of tears, and when he heard how it was, he said: ‘The Lord guided you.'”

Was there ever a more beautiful word picture made than that? The entire letter, which is long, is the out-pouring of hearts almost over-burdened with gratitude. As we read we could hardly help feeling that the offerings were small and poor as compared with the wealth of the return; but, after all, that is what was promised: “Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over.” May the blessing of him who “maketh rich and addeth no sorrow” be upon every giver.

Yours sincerely,
Marcia Macdonald Livingston
Isabella Macdonald Alden (Pansy)

What is most striking about this story is how Isabella and Marcia immediately moved from sympathy to action. They didn’t just feel bad about the elderly couple’s situation—they did something about it. Using their talents as writers and their influence in the Christian community, they rallied others to join them in making a difference.

Isabella around 1885.

The sisters are an example of practical Christianity at its finest. They believed wholeheartedly that even the smallest gesture done in Christ’s name mattered, and the overwhelming response they received proved they were right! Within weeks, they hadn’t just raised $150—they’d collected $210 and created a community of givers who experienced the blessing of helping others.

Isabella and Marcia were women of action who used every gift God gave them to serve others. It’s a reminder that we all have something to offer, and that acting on our faith—even in small ways—can create ripples far beyond what we imagine.

New Free Read: Aunt Maria’s Afterwards

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This month’s free read is a short story by Isabella’s sister, Marcia Livingston.

Grandma’s bedroom is a welcoming place where all the cousins gather to talk; so when two of the cousins plan a shopping trip to the city for new bonnets, of course all the girls—including Grandma—must be consulted! But amid their happy chatter, it only takes a few thoughtless words to wound a spirit and change one life forever.

You can read “Aunt Maria’s Afterwards” for free!

Choose the reading option you like best:

You can read the story on your computer, phone, tablet, Kindle, or other electronic device. Just click here to download your preferred format from BookFunnel.com.

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Isabella’s Most Difficult Year, Part 2

Published on by Isabella Alden4 Comments

This is the second of two posts about Isabella’s most difficult year. If you missed the first post, you can read it here.

In the spring and summer months of 1924, Isabella and her family carried on without her beloved husband, Ross, who died in March of that year.

The influenza epidemic that precipitated Rev. Alden’s death had waned, but there were still reported cases as late as the summer of 1924. That’s when Isabella’s sister Marcia fell ill.

Black and white photo of a woman of about 60 years of age. Her wavy hair is parted in the middle and softly drawn up into a bun at the back of her head. She wears a dress with a high neckline and a soft shawl-style collar. The sleeves are long and have white cuffs trimmed with lace at her wrists. She holds an open book in her hands.
Marcia Livingston

Again a doctor was called to the house in Swarthmore to treat her, but the virus had weakened her heart. On August 7, Marcia succumbed to myocarditis, a rare but serious condition that causes inflammation of the heart muscle.

It had to have been a devastating blow to Isabella. For their entire lives, she and Marcia had been close. Marcia was the sister who tended Isabella when she was young, who watched over her when she was ill, and prayed that Isabella would choose Christ as her Saviour (you can read more about that here). Marcia helped introduced Isabella to her husband Ross; and after Isabella married, the Livingstons and the Aldens shared a home in Florida, and lived as neighbors at Chautauqua. They were as close as sisters could be.

Black and white photograph of two elderly women sitting together. They are both wear their hair parted in the middle and pulled back to a braided but at the back of their heads. Isabella is dressed in a long-sleeved, high-neck blouse and skirt and she is knitting. Marcia wears a dark colored, high neck, long-sleeve dress and holds an open book in her hands.
Isabella Alden (left) and her sister Marcia Livingston (courtesy Daena Creel).

Isabella wrote:

I held the dear hand of my one remaining sister Marcia all that day, and prayed for one more clasp of it, one look of recognition, all in vain. She went, as did my dear husband, without a word or look.

Marcia was laid to rest in Johnstown, New York; that was where Marcia and Isabella grew up, and where Marcia met her husband Charles (you can read more about that here). Her grave is beside Charles’ grave and the grave of their infant son Percy.

Photo of a large stone grave marker that reads: Marcia Macdonald wife of Charles M. Livingston 1832 - 1924.
Marcia Macdonald Livingston’s grave marker in the Johnstown Cemetery.

Although there’s no known record of it, Isabella, Grace, and other family members may have traveled to New York for the interment. If they did make the journey, it’s probable that Isabella’s son Raymond did not accompany them.

By the time Marcia died, Raymond was receiving medical care in Philadelphia for a chronic condition. All his life Raymond endured a painful form of eczema that caused open sores and blisters, leaving him prone to infection. In May of 1924, Raymond’s condition became worse, and he began to regularly see a doctor in Philadelphia.

Black and white full-body photo of a gentleman standing out of doors in front of a large stone building. He wears a three-piece suit, a bowler hat and spectacles. One hand is in his trouser pocket; in the other hand he holds a pair of gloves.
Raymond Alden, from the Stanford University 1923 Yearbook.

By July Raymond’s wife Barbara wrote to her cousin about Raymond’s health, saying that although he was still very sick, he had shown “marked improvement.”

Newspaper clipping. Headline: Prof. R. M. Alden Reported Better. Marked improvement in the condition of Prof. Raymond M. Alden, who has been seriously ill for several months in Swarthmore, PA., is reported in a recent letter to Mrs. Alden's cousin, Miss Effa Spencer, who is now in Carmel. Although Dr. Alden is still very sick, his condition is now hopeful and his convalesence encouraging.
From The Peninsula Times Tribune, July 15, 1924.

But his improvement was short-lived. By September Raymond was suffering from an infection and, possibly, from an allergic reaction to medications he was given.

On September 27, less than two months after the death of his aunt, Raymond Alden died. Isabella was with him at the end.

“Mamma, fan me!” was the quick eager word my dear boy said, and the next minute he was gone.

Grace later wrote:

My saintly uncle went first, then my precious mother, and then my brilliant cousin, Dr. Raymond M. Alden. One blow after another that nearly crushed us all.

The family held a private funeral service for Raymond in Philadelphia; then it was time for the Aldens to leave Swarthmore and return to their Palo Alto home. Grace described it this way:

Then my dear aunt, courageous and wonderful through it all, went back to her California home with her brave daughter-in-law, and her five grandchildren.

Newspaper clipping. Headline: Return to Palo Alto. Mrs. G. R. Alden, Mrs. Raymodn Macdonald Alden and the latter's two younger children, Elizabeth and Raymond, Jr., have returned to Palo Alto after a year's absence in Pennsylvania. Mrs. Alden's oldest son, Donald, returned earlier int he month to enter Stanford. The other two children, John and Ronald, are in Pasadena with their aunt.
From The Peninsula Times Tribune, October 18, 1924.

There must have been times when Isabella felt the acute loneliness of losing the three most important people in her life. She once wrote to Grace:

There is no one in all the world who needs me any more. I’m too old to help anybody in any way, and too weak to be anything but a burden to those who have already more than they can bear. Why can’t I go now to my eternal rest? Does it seem to you wrong to pray for this?

There were other times when she spoke of the many family members who had died over the years, and asked impishly, “What do they think of us all by this time? Do they meet together and talk us all over?” She thought often of the loved ones who had “gone ahead” and wrote to Grace:

Sometimes I have to put my hands over my eyes in the darkness and say: “Casting all—All—ALL your care upon Him.” Oh, why doesn’t He take me home?”

But God did not call her home. Isabella lived with Barbara and her grandchildren in the house she and Ross built on Embarcadero Road in Palo Alto for another six years.

A young woman with dark hair stands facing the camera. She wears a coat and a hat with a wide brim and tall feathers sticking up from the crown. Her hair is styled in a bouffant with a bun on top of her head hidden by the hat.
Barbara Hitt Alden, about 1910

By all accounts, Barbara was loving and kind and “more than a daughter” to Isabella. And despite Isabella’s belief that she was “too weak to be anything but a burden” to Barbara, she would soon find that her work on Earth was not done, and that she had one last novel to write before she would be called Home to her Saviour.

Next Month: Isabella’s Final Novel

You can read more about the house Isabella and Ross built in Palo Alto by clicking here.

Click here to read the story of how Marcia and Charles Livingston introduced Isabella to her husband, Ross.

Isabella’s Most Difficult Year

Published on by Isabella Alden5 Comments

On the surface, it may seem that Isabella led a charmed life. Her husband was beloved a minister and a leader in the Presbyterian Church.

Black and white photo of an elderly man wearing a cleric's collar and suit. His head is bald on top, and he has a full beard and mustache. He wears a pair of wire-rimmed glasses.
Gustavus “Ross” Alden in later years (about 1912)

Her son Raymond was a talented writer, a beloved teacher, and an esteemed academic.

Black and white photo of an elderly woman. She is seated and holding a book in her hands she appears to be reading.
Isabella Alden, about 1895.

Isabella, herself, had been a successful author for decades, as well as an influential editor of various Christian magazines for young people and adults.

With so many proud accomplishments in her life, it’s hard to remember that Isabella had her share of heartache and loss.

Some of those losses were made all the more difficult because they occurred almost in a back-to-back fashion during one six-month period in her life. And it happened one-hundred years ago.

The year 1924 began on a positive note for the entire Alden family. Isabella’s son Raymond—who was head of the English Department at Stanford University in California—was on sabbatical so he could teach courses at Columbia University in New York. It was an exciting career opportunity for Raymond.

A black and white photo of a young man dressed in a suit and wearing a pair of eyeglasses.
Undated photo of Raymond Macdonald Alden.

His topics during that Spring Session at Columbia were:

  • English Literature from 1780 to 1830.
  • Shakespeare
  • Versification
Clipping from catalog. Heading: ENGLISH AND COMPARATIVE LITERATURE below which is a listing of professors. Highlighted portion reads "Visiting Professor: R. M. Alden."
Raymond Alden listed as a Visiting Professor in the English and Comparative Literature department, Columbia Course Catalog for 1923-1924.

Raymond, his wife Barbara, and their five children (ages 2 to 14) made the move east together and rented a home within an easy commute to Columbia’s campus.

Portrait of a young woman wearing clothing with a high collar neckline and large puffed sleeves that were in style about 1890.
Barbara Hitt Alden, in her early twenties.

Isabella and her husband Ross went, too. Ross was 92 years old and had been officially retired from the ministry for some time, but he still enjoyed excellent health and a quick wit and intellect. Isabella was still writing novels, but she too had “retired” and had adopted a much slower pace when it came to her work.

Isabella and Ross moved into the Swarthmore, Pennsylvania home of Isabella’s sister Marcia Livingston and niece Grace Livingston Hill. Grace often described Marcia and Isabella as “inseparable” sisters, and for the majority of their lives, the Aldens and the Livingstons spent much of their time together.

It was while the Aldens were staying with Marcia and Grace in Swarthmore in the spring of 1924 that tragedy struck.  

Photograph of a large two-story home with brick accents set back from the street with lush green lawns and mature trees.
Grace Livingston Hill’s Home, Swarthmore, PA.

At that time Philadelphia was dealing with an influenza epidemic. The particular strain that prevailed during the spring of 1924 often caused pneumonia.

Newspaper clipping. Headline: HEALTH DIRECTOR WARNS OF DANGER. Tells Public to Watch February and March Cold Symptoms. These Two Months Shown as Highest in Pneumonia Mortality.
From The Philadelphia Inquirer, February 18, 1924.

Unfortunately, antibiotics like penicillin and sulfonamides were not as widely available as they are today; so doctors could offer little in the way of treatment for pneumonia, beyond recommending bed rest, and drinking fluids. Almost every day newspapers reported new outbreaks of the influenza virus, as well as the number of deaths, and it often seemed as if no one was safe.

Newspaper clipping. Headline: BABE RUTH STRICKEN BY FLU, PNEUMONIA IS RESULT NOW FEARED. Article: Babe Ruth, the Sultan of Swat, baseball's biggest attraction and the game's longest hitter, is seriously ill at a local hotel. Just now Ruth is suffering from an attack of flu, but there is danger he will develop pneumonia within the next twenty-four hours. According to Dr. W. T. Wootton, there is a great deal of congestion over Ruth's left lung.
From The Philadelphia Inquirer, March 1, 1924.

Health officials warned that a common cold or a mild case of the flu could quickly turn into a deadly case of pneumonia. Unfortunately, that is exactly what happened to Rev. Alden. At ninety-two years of age he was particularly susceptible to pneumonia, and although the family brought in a physician in to treat him, he died on March 29, 1924.

Newspaper clipping. Dr. Alden's death at the home of his niece, Mrs. Grace Livingston Hill, followed an illness of only 48 hours. Up to that time he had been strong and vigorous, although in his 93rd year. Funeral services, followed by cremation, were held in Swarthmore.
From The Peninsula Times Tribune, April 14, 1924.

His death was reported in newspapers across the country and the tributes and remembrances came pouring in. People wrote about their memories of when he was their church minister. They related the anecdotes he used to illustrate his sermons and teachings; and they mentioned the close friendships they formed with him in the Sabbath School classes he taught.

Perhaps Isabella had a chance to read some of those tributes. And she no doubt relied upon her sister Marcia’s support, as well as the tender care that Raymond, Barbara and Grace would have provided.

Isabella made the decision to remain in Swarthmore until summer, so Raymond could fulfill his teaching responsibilities at Columbia. Then, the Alden family planned to travel together back to their home in Palo Alto, California, where Rev. Alden’s remains would be laid to rest.

In her remembrances of her uncle, Grace recalled a poem he wrote and had printed as a New Year greeting card. He sent the cards to the members of his Bible class the last winter he was with them before going to Swarthmore. It reads:

TODAY

We are living today—not tomorrow,
For no morrow was ever yet seen;
And for joy, or for pain, or for sorrow,
Only yesterdays ever have been.

God gives us duties—just for today;
And His strength He bestows by the hour,
“Grace is sufficient” we still hear Him say,
So we trust Him for wisdom and power.

And since today is all that He gives,
Let us treasure the day as it stands.
It matters, then, much how everyone lives
For tomorrow God holds in His hands.

G. R. Alden

Next: Isabella’s Most Difficult Year, Part 2

New Free Read: Miss Whitaker’s Blankets

Published on by Isabella Alden4 Comments

Isabella’s sister, Marcia Livingston penned this month’s delightful Free Read.

In the “Season of Giving” Miss Rachel Whitaker is no stranger to charitable causes. She’s a good Christian woman who faithfully donates to her church and mission boards, like her parents did before her. But when she is confronted by someone in need on her own doorstep, will she answer the call?

You can read “Miss Whitaker’s Blankets” on your phone, ipad, Kindle, or other electronic device.

Or you can read it as a PDF document on your computer screen. You can also print the story to share with friends.

To begin reading, just click on the book cover to choose your preferred format from BookFunnel.com.

Welcome to Pansy’s House

Published on by Isabella Alden30 Comments

Isabella Macdonald Alden was born the youngest child in a loving, and very tight-knit family.

She and her sisters were especially close, even though there was a vast difference in their ages.

For example, Isabella celebrated her first birthday the same year her eldest sister, Elizabeth, married and moved into a home of her own. But since Elizabeth’s new house was only a few steps from the Macdonald’s front door, Isabella and Elizabeth shared a close relationship.

The same was true of Mary, who was 14 years older than Isabella. When Mary wed and set up housekeeping, her home was built on property that abutted the Macdonald’s back garden. As a result, Isabella spent a lot of time with Mary and they, too, had a special bond.

Isabella’s sister, Mary Macdonald Williamson (age 87) with two of Isabella’s grandchildren in Palo Alto, California (1914).

It’s no wonder, then, that when Isabella married and began keeping a house of her own, she made certain the door was always open to family members. She wanted her sisters to feel the same welcoming spirit in her house as she had always felt in theirs.

When her son Raymond was young, Isabella and her husband Ross began taking him to Florida, hoping the southern climate would benefit Raymond’s health. To their relief, Raymond’s health did improve, so the Aldens decided to make Florida their winter home.

The Aldens and the Livingstons in Florida. Front row left to right: Julia Macdonald (in white blouse), unidentified man, Margaret Hill, Ruth Hill, Grace Livingston Hill and her husband, Frank Hill. Second row (in light-colored dress) Marcia Macdonald Livingston and her husband Charles Livingston. Back row, third from left: Isabella Macdonald Alden, Raymond Alden, Ross Alden.

They bought a plot of land in the new town of Winter Park, and began building a house that would be big enough to accommodate plenty of family members.

Interlachen Avenue in the 1890s. Bicycles appear to be a favorite mode of transportation.

They built on an oversized lot on the corner of Lyman and Interlachen avenues, right across the street from All Saints Episcopal Church.

An 1888 photo of All Saints Episcopal Church. You can see the front half of Isabella’s new house peeking from the left side of the church.

The house was completed in 1888. Ross dubbed it “Pansy Cottage,” a name that stuck and was soon known all over town. This photo shows the size of the “cottage”:

The inviting home was three stories tall, with large yards in front and back, and a wrap-around porch that invited family, friends and neighbors to sit down and enjoy a cozy chat. It was the perfect place for the family to gather, far away from the cold New York winters.

In this photo you can see family members on the front steps and porch, in the yard, and even peeking out of the top-most windows. They look like they’re having fun!

Isabella and her family members spent many happy winters at the Pansy Cottage; and the Florida climate did improve Raymond’s health.

A side view of Pansy Cottage, with children riding their bicycles.

In 1906 Ross and Isabella began their preparations for retirement. They sold Pansy Cottage and moved to their new house in Palo Alto, California where, once again, everyone was welcome in Isabella’s new home.

In fact, she and Ross shared the California house with their son Raymond, and his wife and children, as well as Isabella’s sisters Julia and Mary.

Julia Macdonald (about 1875).

After Ross and Isabella sold Pansy Cottage, it was passed along to different owners. Eventually, it was turned into a rooming house; and in 1955 Pansy Cottage was demolished. But thanks to photos like these, we can still peek into Isabella’s world and imagine a bit of her life with those she loved in turn-of-the-century Florida.

Click here to read more about Isabella’s house in Palo Alto, California.

This post is part of our Blogiversary Celebration! Leave a comment below or on Isabella’s Facebook page to be entered in a drawing for a $25 Amazon gift card! We’ll announce the winner on Friday, September 28.

Won by a Sister’s Prayers

Published on by Isabella Alden6 Comments

In Isabella Alden’s books she often includes a character who is a “sort of” Christian. In Mrs. Solomon Smith Looking On, Laura Leonard was just such a Christian.

Laura had been brought up in a good home by good, Christian parents. She went to church every Sunday and attended Sunday-school. Laura was kind and knew right from wrong, but she had never accepted Jesus Christ as her Saviour. To the contrary, Laura rebelled against the mere thought of taking such a step . . . until Mrs. Solomon Smith helped show Laura that being a Christian and loving the Lord was the only way Laura would find real and lasting happiness in her life.

When Isabella wrote about Laura Leonard, she wrote from experience. Like fictional Laura, Isabella had been raised by loving Christian parents. She, too, attended church every Sunday, and joined the family in home worship every evening.

Beginning at a young age Isabella was carefully taught what the Bible says about who will be able to enter the Kingdom of Heaven, and that the only way to have eternal life is through Jesus Christ; yet Isabella never took the ultimate step of choosing to accept Christ as her Saviour.

Then the unthinkable happened. When Isabella was twelve years old, she fell seriously ill. For several days neither her parents nor the doctor believed she would live. But, miraculously, the crisis passed, and Isabella began to recover.

Her sister Marcia, who was nine years older than Isabella, had stayed by Isabella’s side throughout her illness. She had watched over Isabella, and slept in a chair by her bed, never leaving Isabella’s side for more than a few minutes.

When Isabella began to feel better, Marcia asked her one day:

“Would you have gone to live in heaven if God had called you when you were so ill?”

Isabella was genuinely surprised by the question, but Marcia said, “The thought of parting from you forever was one of unceasing agony to me; and my constant prayer during all those days and nights of illness was that you might be spared until you could choose Christ.”

These words made a lasting impression upon Isabella. They came to her with all the power and force of a sudden revelation: for though she had been carefully trained, and knew in a theoretical way the plan of salvation, she had never given the matter five minutes serious thought, until her sister appealed to her as she did.

Isabella tried to put the subject aside again, feeling that it darkened the day and made her uncomfortable; but the Holy Spirit had carried it home to her soul, and over and over again Marcia’s words rang in her ears.

Isabella could no longer deny the truth. She wrote, “It is not enough for me to believe in Christ as a Saviour, I must ‘choose’ Christ as my Saviour.”

Soon she began to feel that in a strange and wonderful way her sister’s earnest and loving prayer that she might be spared to “choose” had been answered. And with it came the conviction that she was compelled to make a definite choice.

Not long afterward, she did choose the Lord Jesus Christ as her personal Saviour.

What a blessed decision that was for the millions of readers of her books!

Isabella Alden at her writing desk.

In 1902 Isabella wrote:

“In a few more years it will be half a century since I chose Christ. I have had abundant reason to thank God for sparing my life at that time, and for giving me a faithful sister.”

Isabella and Marcia remained close, loving sisters for the rest of their lives.

And Isabella used her experience of being a “sort of” Christian as a device to show her fictional characters—and her readers—that believing in Christ wasn’t the same as choosing to make Christ the center of one’s life.

Isabella originally shared her story of how she became a Christian in a 1901 edition Christian Herald newspaper.