A. M. Bryant

A. M. Bryant
Born	September 10, 1845
Died	April 18, 1919 (aged 73)
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Alteria Melissa Prosser Bryant (September 10, 1845 - April 18, 1919) was born to Calvin A Prosser (1820-1873) and Amantha Prosser (1827-?) in New York. Thornton Chase taught her about the Bahá’í Faith and she enrolled in 1900. She received 10 tablets from ‘Abdu’l-Bahá including one in 1903 asking her to form an Assembly in Denver. She remained a devoted believer until her death.

Life

Alteria Melissa Prosser was born on September 10, 1845, in New York to Calvin A. Prosser (1820-1873) and Amantha Prosser (1827-?). The family was likely affiliated with the Seventh Day Baptist church. Around 1862, Alteria married Deuteronomy Jesse "Duty" Saunders (1839-1922) in Albion, Wisconsin. They had one daughter, Samantha Minerva "Minnie" Saunders (1868-1937), born on April 7, 1868. However, their marriage ended in divorce around 1876. Following the divorce, Samantha was raised by her father.

Alteria married Delmar De Forest Bryant (1858-1939) in about 1877, a cousin of the poet William Cullen Bryant. Together, they had one son, Leo Cullen Bryant (1877-1955). It’s possible that Alteria and Delmar both attended the Albion Academy, a small institution in Albion, Wisconsin, established by the Seventh-day Adventists to train students to become teachers and ministers. Over the next 15 years, Alteria and Delmar both became educators, founding and teaching in schools. Records suggest that Alteria taught girls, while Delmar taught subjects including music, German, literature, and possibly others.

In approximately 1878, Alteria and Delmar moved to Susquehanna Depot, Pennsylvania, where Delmar was the principle of a "fine select Academy of Literature and Art" and Alteria was a teacher. The Greeley News reported that "he teaches the subject in a clear and masterly manner." They moved to La Cygne, Kansas in 1882, where Delmar devoted his time to teaching music. In 1883, they relocated to Greeley, Kansas, to care for Delmar’s parents during a measles outbreak, staying for about six months. While there, Delmar taught a series of classes before they moved on to establish a school in Fort Scott, Kansas in the summer of 1883.

Upon arriving in Fort Scott, Kansas, Delmar and Alteria opened the Fort Scott Academy of Art in their home. The school offered three courses of study in piano, voice and harmony, German, Spanish, Latin, and Greek, and penmanship and stenography. The school grew rapidly, expanding from their home to a studio and eventually to a block of buildings they owned. In 1885 Alteria also established a Day School for Young Girls and Misses. In 1886, Delmar expressed his ambition to “build up the largest musical and literary institution in the West. The same article noted that “Mrs. Bryant was able to govern perfectly and teach at the same time,” adding that her “younger students demonstrated astonishing capabilities in math.”” However,in 1891, Delmar closed his musical works in Fort Scott. In 1893, the school closed, and all furniture, instruments, and the building were sold. That same year, Alteria moved to Denver, while Delmar spent several years traveling the world. In his later years, he became a recluse and philosopher, disinterested in wealth or status.

Delmar was the primary teacher for their son, Leo. In addition to studying under his father, At the age of 12, Leo trained at the Chicago Conservatory, studying violin with Mr. A. Rosenbeck and piano with Mr. Sherwood. Both instructors praised him for the “thorough and perfect training he had already received.” Leo went on to become an accomplished violinist, conductor, and composer, spending several years with the Wolf Stock Company in Wichita, Kansas, before performing on the East Coast and finally settling in Los Angeles, California. In 1900. Leo married Jane Morgan who would go on to become a successful actress in radio and TV. Throughout her life, Leo remained close to Alteria. Alteria often visited him and spent extended stays in the mountains, during which time Leo would join her. One winter, she stayed at their property in Woodland Park, Colorado with her grand daughter, Aline Cullen Bryant while her parents were traveling.

Upon arriving in Denver in 1893, Alteria became an active member of the Civic Club, joining their efforts to secure women’s suffrage in Colorado. On November 7, 1893, the vote passed giving women the right to vote, making Colorado one of the first states to grant this right. Alteria continued her work with the Civic Club, which played a significant role in reforming Denver’s political landscape. In 1898, Alteria served on the board of the Civic Club.

Second Divine Science Church of Denver

In 1896, Alteria served as an assistant to Mrs. Eva Huling at the School of Divine Science, which would soon be called the Church of Divine Science. The Church taught that while faith had the power to heal, it also encouraged the use of skilled medical practitioners. She continued to have an association with the church for a number of years. Thornton Chase and ‘Abdu’l-Bahá would later give talks at the church. An article in the Denver Rocky Mountain News on May 23, 1896 describes Alteria as tall and fine physique, a handsome, intellectual face, possessing a brilliant well trained mind coupled with earnestness, of stately bearing, and a convincing speaker.

In 1900, Alteria embraced the Bahá’í Faith through the teachings of Thornton Chase. Three years later, in 1903, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá sent her a tablet, instructing her to establish an Assembly in Denver. By the early 1900s, the local Bahá’í community had grown to around 20 members. However, by 1908, some had moved away or lost interest, and the community began facing challenges in maintaining regular meetings.

In 1907, Thornton Chase visited Denver and gave a talk at the Church of Divine Science. The following year, in 1908, Alteria spent nine weeks with the Bahá’í community in Chicago, Illinois, and a week in Kenosha, Wisconsin. During her time there, she attended 90 meetings and offered high praise for the community's service. By 1910, the Denver Bahá’í community was holding at least six meetings a week. In 1911, both Corinne True and Thornton Chase visited Denver, and their visits helped reinvigorate the community.

In 1912, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá visited Denver on his way to California. He gave a talk at the home of Mrs. Roberts on September 24, 1912 and at the Second Divine Science Church on September 25. In 1914, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá sent a tablet to the Denver Assembly and in a tablet to the Western States advised the developed assemblies to assist in spreading the Faith to the states yet to be developed.

In 1919, Alteria fell ill, and Leo devoted the final weeks of her life to caring for her. Before she died she signed the petition for 'Abdu'l-Bahá to return to America. She passed away on April 19, 1919. Leo ensured that a Bahá'í service and burial were held in accordance with her wishes. Leo also notified childhood friends in Fort Scott, Kansas, of her passing. The Fort Scott newspaper featured her obituary on the front page, noting that "Mrs. Bryant was a woman of culture and had assisted at the Bryant School of Music, the leading institution in the area about 25 years ago."