The Church Historian’s Press has released a new 376-page volume featuring 52 discourses by Eliza R. Snow, a prominent figure in the early history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Titled 'Rise Up and Speak: Selected Discourses of Eliza R. Snow,' the book was annotated by a team of female historians and launched at an event in Salt Lake City on March 3, 2026. It builds on previous compilations of her writings and speeches.
Eliza R. Snow, born on January 21, 1804, in Becket, Massachusetts, became one of the most influential women in Latter-day Saint history. She first learned about Joseph Smith in 1830 but was not baptized until 1835. Snow served as secretary and a founding member of the Relief Society in Nauvoo, Illinois, and was a writer, poet, and advocate for religious freedom, women, and polygamy. Following Joseph Smith's death, she became a plural wife of Brigham Young and received assignments to organize Relief Society units across the Utah Territory. In 1880, at age 76, she was appointed Relief Society general president.
The new book, edited by Jennifer Reeder and others, provides context for Snow's sermons, including her support for plural marriage, which the editors left unredacted with explanatory footnotes. Reeder, a historian in the Church History Department, noted the importance of women's voices: “It’s so important that we hear and read the words of women. It means everything.” She added that Snow emphasized women's personal responsibility for salvation, despite her advocacy for plural marriage: “They cannot rely on a husband or a father or a son or a brother, they have to [achieve] it for themselves. So it was a sense of cooperation and working together and supporting each other.”
At the release event in Salt Lake City, church historian and recorder Kyle S. McKay described Snow as an “elect lady” who consistently accepted calls to serve: “She is elect, and I’m thrilled to be part of this day when we shine the light on her.” Kristin M. Yee, second counselor in the Relief Society presidency, highlighted the pioneering women's challenges in the rural West: “They set the pattern for women to rise up and speak. That is not just a good idea; that’s the will of the Lord. That’s the doctrine. His daughters have a place in his kingdom, and both men and women work together to accomplish that.”
The book is available from Amazon and Deseret Book. A free exhibit at the Church History Library, featuring Snow's photographs and manuscripts, runs through September 8.
