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.