"Oh, persecution! shall thy purple hand Spread utter destruction through the land? Shall freedom's banner be no more unfurl'd? Has peace indeed been taken from the world? Thou God of Jacob, in this trying hour Help us to trust in thy Almighty pow'r;" — Eliza R. Snow1
Eliza Roxcy Snow, born on January 21, 1804, in Becket, Massachusetts, became one of the most influential women in the early history of the Church. She was the daughter of Oliver Snow and Rosetta Leonora Pettibone, and before joining the Church, Eliza was a Baptist.2
Eliza was baptized on April 5, 1835, in Mantua. She was a gifted poet and teacher,2 and one of her poems (Great is the Lord) was published in the Church's first hymnbook.3 Eliza also donated her inheritance to the construction of the Kirtland Temple. In 1837, she moved to Kirtland, Ohio, and a year later to Adam-ondi-Ahman in Daviess County, Missouri.2
