Eliza R. Snow
- Dec 20, 2021
- 3 min read
Updated: Jan 29, 2022
Married at 38 as a plural wife.
Background
Eliza Snow was born in Becket, Massachusetts in January 1804. Her family moved to Ohio when she was young, which is where she met the prophet Joseph Smith in 1830. She described Joseph as having an "honest" face, and was baptized several years later on April 5, 1835. At age 38, she was sealed to Joseph Smith as one of his plural wives. She spoke very highly of him, and was devastated to lose him just two short years later. Shortly after Joseph Smith's martyrdom and before leaving for the trek to Salt Lake, she was married again to Brigham Young. In Salt Lake, she passed away at age 84, never having had any children.
"I know we like to be appreciated but if we do not get all the appreciation which we think is our due, what matters? We know the Lord has laid high responsibility upon us, and there is not a wish or desire that the Lord has implanted in our hearts in righteousness but will be realized, and the greatest good we can do to ourselves and each other is to refine and cultivate ourselves in everything that is good and ennobling to qualify us for those responsibilities." - Eliza R Snow
Accomplishments
Eliza is best known for her poetry. By the young age of 22, she had written many poems, the best known being "The Fall of Missolonghi". She was so famous, in fact, that she was asked to write the requiems for John Adams and Thomas Jefferson. She was able to meet and get autographs from many other famous men and women of the time, including Queen Victoria, Charles Dickens, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Susan B Anthony, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Abraham Lincoln.
Within the early church community, Eliza became known as "Zion's Poetess", and many of her poems are now included in our hymnal. She wrote more than 500 poems about church history and her religious beliefs. Her most well-known hymn is "O My Father," which is the only hymn that refers to our belief in a Heavenly Mother, emphasizing her belief that we will not be single in heaven.
She was also known for her dedication to church service. She was the second general Relief Society President after Emma Smith. Her service in that calling lasted 21 years. Despite her poor health, Eliza continued serving and was blessed with the strength needed to fulfill all her duties in the Church.
Stories
Due to the sensitivity and personal nature of this story, Eliza herself never publicly spoke of it. She did share this story with one good friend, whose granddaughter recorded it. Sometime during Eliza's time in Missouri, she was gang-raped by eight men. The rape was so brutal that it left her unable to bear children. She was still single at the time, so this destroyed any remaining hope she had of having her own children. Seeing this devastation, Joseph Smith offered to be sealed to her so she could have hope of children in the next life. While Eliza's poetry never mentioned this horrific event, the poems she wrote during her time in Missouri have a much more bitter tone than the others. However, despite this tragedy, she maintained firm in her trust in God. When she was leaving Missouri, she walked ahead of the rest of the group to keep her feet warm. Seeing her alone, a member of a mob approached her and said, "Well, I think this will cure you of your faith!" Firmly, she responded, "No, sir, it will take more than this to cure me of my faith."
"I will go forward... I will smile at the rage of the tempest, and ride fearlessly and triumphantly across the boisterous ocean of circumstance... And the 'testimony of Jesus' will light up a lamp that will guide my vision through the portals of immortality, and communicate to my understanding the glories of the Celestial Kingdom." - Eliza R Snow
Much later, during Eliza's trek west, she traveled with another one of Brigham's wives named Clara Decker Young. The two of them shared a log room their first winter, which was only about 18 square feet and had a roof made of willows and earth. One night, a heavy rainstorm hit, causing the roof (which was covered with mice nests at this point) to begin leaking badly. Despite these less than ideal circumstances, Eliza kept her good nature. She set up an umbrella over her bed, and spent the whole night laughing.
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