Snow, Eliza R. (Eliza Roxey), 1804-1887

Snow was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. She wrote hymns for that church and was a plural wife the both Joseph Smith (1805-1844) and Brigham Young (1801-1877), the first and second presidents of that faith.

Author and second president of the Relief Society for the Mormon Church.

Eliza Roxey Snow was a religious leader, a poet, and a pillar of faith in nineteenth century Latter-day Saint society. Brother to the future prophet Lorenzo Snow, as well as wife to the Prophet Joseph Smith Jr. and later to Brigham Young, Eliza was intimately connected with the leaders of the Church and its organizations.

Born to parents Oliver and Rosetta Pettibone Snow in Becket, Massachusetts, in 1804, Eliza grew up in New England and was taught principles of hard work and education. She began to publish poetry at age twenty-one and received great acclaim for her work. In 1828, her family moved to Mantua, Ohio, and became connected with Minister Sidney Rigdon who introduced them to the Prophet Joseph Smith. Eliza joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1835 and donated personal funds to the building of the Kirtland Temple. She also lived with Joseph and Emma and taught their children. Meanwhile, she continued to publish poetry and became nick-named “Zion's Poetess.”

Eliza followed the Saints from Kirtland to Missouri and then to Nauvoo and was called to serve as the Church's first female Relief Society secretary. She also helped write hymns for the first compilation of an LDS hymnal. Some of her hymns, such as “How Great the Wisdom and the Love,” “Behold, the Great Redeemer Die,” and “Oh, My Father,” are still treasured and sung today. Eliza was also involved with the early practices of polygamy and initially struggled with its concepts. However, she was sealed to Joseph Smith Jr. in Nauvoo for time and all eternity with a strong conviction that she was following God's will. After Joseph's martyrdom, she made preparations to travel west to the Salt Lake Valley with Brigham Young, relying on his protection and aid to complete the difficult journey. On October 3, 1844, she was married to Brigham Young and served as a loyal adviser to him throughout his life. Eliza eventually lived at the Lion House with the rest of Young's wives who she had a close relationship with. Though she had no children of her own, Snow remained busy serving as the second general Relief Society President, directing female work in the Salt Lake Endowment House, strengthening the Young family, and publishing poems. Over the course of her life, she remained a faithful believer of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, a strong defender of the doctrine of plural marriage, and a celebrated world-renown poet. Eliza R. Snow died on December 5, 1887.

Edward Wallace East (1814-1884) was a Mormon pioneer who settled in Utah and Arizona.

Edward Wallace East was born October 11, 1814 in Henry County, Virginia to Thomas East and Sarah Graves. As a young man he served in the Texas Rangers. He married Willmirth Margaret Greer on October 2, 1839 in Washington County, Texas, and together they had twelve children. In July 1853 East joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and in 1855 emigrated west to Utah. He settled in Salt Lake City and spent fourteen years as county clerk. While in Utah he married Emma Lundburg in 1864, and they had one child together. He remained active in the Church, serving missions to the Southern States in 1869 and 1875. In 1877 he moved his family to Arizona, and died in Pima on May 30, 1884.

Willmirth Greer East (1824-1902) was a Mormon pioneer who settled in Utah and Arizona.

Willmirth Margaret Greer was born November 18, 1824 in Bedford, Georgia to Nathaniel Hunt Greer and Nancy Ann Terry Roberts. She married Edward Wallace East on October 2, 1839 in Washington County, Texas, and together they had twelve children. In 1853 he and her husband joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and emigrated to Utah in 1855. They settled in Salt Lake City, where she taught school and wrote poetry. In 1875 she went with her husband on a mission to Texas. Then in 1877 the family moved to Arizona, living in Apache and Graham counties. Willmirth East died on March 31, 1902 in Pima, Arizona.

Eliza R. Snow (1804-1887) was a Mormon poet in Utah.

Eliza Roxcy Snow was born January 21, 1804 in Becket, Massachusetts to Oliver Snow and Rosetta Lenora Pettibone. Her family moved to Ohio while she was a child, where she joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1835. She followed the early migrations of the Saints, working as a teacher in Kirtland, Ohio and Nauvoo, Illinois. In 1842 she married Joseph Smith, and after his death married Brigham Young in 1849.

Snow was deeply involved in the Church, participating in the organization of the Relief Society and later serving as its second general president. She was also a noted author and poet in pioneer Utah. Snow died on December 5, 1887 in Salt Lake City, Utah.

The East family were Mormon pioneers from the American South who settled in Utah and Arizona. The family was established with the marriage of Edward Wallace East (1814-1884) and Wilmirth Matilda Greer (1824-1902) in Texas in 1839. Together they had twelve children. In 1853 the Easts joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and emigrated to Utah in 1855. The family settled in Salt Lake City, Utah, where Edward East worked as a court clerk. In 1864 he married Emma Lundburg (1846-1902), and together they had one daughter. Prior to 1880 Edward and Wilmirth East moved to Pima, Arizona, while Emma remained in Utah.