Eliza R. Snow, an early Latter-day Saint woman frequently referred to as “Zion’s poetess,” did not know the meaning of rest, said researcher and archivist Sharalyn Howcroft at a press event held Tuesday for a newly released book highlighting 52 of Snow’s hundreds of sermons.
The early pioneer woman spent decades of her life traveling the territories of Utah and Idaho to minister to and instruct the early women of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
She served as a founding member, secretary and later the second general president of the church’s Relief Society. And during her service, Snow helped reorganize local Relief Society presidencies, as well as establish the church’s Young Women and Primary organizations.
Snow was “all over” the Utah territory, said Latter-day Saint historian Jennifer Reeder at the press event. She traveled by wagon and train, sometimes speaking to multiple audiences in one day, Reeder said.
Local Relief Society secretaries and others recorded Snow’s words in hundreds of minute books. And now, a selection of those words appears featured in the newly released book titled “Rise Up and Speak: Selected Discourses of Eliza R. Snow.”
Snow’s “devotion to the cause of Christ” and her duty to build up organizations “remained firmly fixed in her mind” from the time Brigham Young called her to reorganize Relief Society presidencies in 1868 until her death in 1887, Howcroft said at the event.
Both Howcroft and Reeder were part of a larger team of editors that helped research and piece together the new volume of Snow’s sermons from old newspapers, hand-written minute books and personal journals.
The two provided details about the yearslong process at the press event held inside the Church History Library in Salt Lake City on Tuesday, March 3 — the day of the book’s release.
“As volume editors, we chose discourses that most effectively captured Snow’s words and were the most complete,” Howcroft said at the event.
The recently published book features 52 of the nearly 1,300 sermons that Howcroft and the others found in their research. And each included sermon is presented in standardized text with introductions and annotations for further context.
Howcroft, Reeder and their fellow volume editors Elizabeth Kuehn and Jessica Nelson really desired to give readers a “peek into” Snow’s service, her travels and the themes that seemed to be most often on her mind, Howcroft told the Deseret News following the event.
As they researched, Howcroft said she and the others noted recurring themes and topics, including ones regarding faith, trust, unity, civic responsibility and the “divine role and potential” of women in God’s kingdom.
“Some of these things that she discussed were very relevant during her time,” Howcroft said during the press event. “Other themes that are presented in Snow’s sermons transcend her time and remain relevant even today.”
Sister Kristin M. Yee, second counselor in the church’s Relief Society general presidency, was also present and spoke at the Tuesday press event. She highlighted some of Snow’s teachings and likewise underscored their transcending relevance.
Snow “spoke as a devoted disciple of the Savior,” Sister Yee said. “She spoke by the spirit and she encouraged all women to do the same — and we do the same today.
“The works that Eliza talked about are the works that we do today as sisters in Relief Society, which tells me this work is eternally relevant.”
Sister Yee further told the Deseret News following the event that Latter-day Saint women today should study the words and works of Snow and other early pioneer women so that they may strengthen their faith and understanding of their place in the church and the world.
“Throughout my tenure (in the Relief Society), I’ve been grateful to study the words of the sisters … and it’s helped me to understand the framework in which I am doing my work,” Sister Yee said.
“If I understand the path behind me, I can better understand the trajectory ahead of me and my place in the Lord’s kingdom.”
“Rise Up and Speak: Selected Discourses of Eliza R. Snow” is now available for purchase at Deseret Book, Amazon and other retail outlets, and will be available in the church’s Gospel Library app in 2027.
The book is the latest in a series of publications produced by the Church Historian’s Press and can be seen as a companion to earlier publications, such as “The First Fifty Years of Relief Society: Key Documents in Latter-day Saint Women’s History,” “At the Pulpit: 185 Years of Discourses by Latter-day Saint Women” and “Carry On: The Latter-day Saint Young Women Organization, 1970–2024.”
This book is “just another one of those, and hopefully, one of many to come,” Reeder said at the event.
She noted a free exhibit featuring photos of Snow, souvenirs from her travels and original manuscripts of her writings will be hosted at the Church History Library from now until Sept. 8 to accompany the publication.
She encouraged those interested to visit the exhibit, as well as visit the Church Historian’s Press website to see all of Snow’s nearly 1,300 sermons, unedited.