Elfriede Fischer was born February 18, 1896 in Lawrence, Kansas to Agnes and Otto Fischer. She married Ivan D. Rowe in 1926 in Lawrence and they had one daughter, Sally Agnes Rowe Jones.

A 1917 graduate of the University of Kansas, Rowe remained active in her sorority, Chi Omega, and the KU Alumni Association. She served as president of the local chapter of the American Association of University Women and was an honorary life member of the Helen Foresman Spencer Museum of Art.

Mrs. Rowe supported the country's efforts in World War II by working at the Hercules Powder Company, which operated the former Sunflower Ordnance Works near Desoto, Kansas. For her wartime contributions, she received a number of citations. She also worked for Westvaco Chemical and on the University of Kansas campus.

As an authority on the history of Lawrence, Kansas, Rowe contributed numerous articles to the Lawrence Journal World, and many of those articles were included in her two books called Lawrence, Wonderful Old Lawrence and More about Wonderful Old Lawrence. She also assisted with the organization of the 1954 Lawrence centennial celebrations and with plans for the observance of the country's 1976 bicentennial. She served on the board of the Lawrence Historical Society and frequently gave talks on the history of the area. As a member of Plymouth Congregational Church, she served as church historian.

Rowe's civic and community ties also included participation in the League of Women Voters, the Kansas Authors Association, the Altrusa Club, the American Association of Retired Persons, and the Lawrence Art Guild.

Elfriede Fischer Rowe died in 1992.