Erastus Fairbanks Snow

Erastus Snow (November 9, 1818 – May 27, 1888) was a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1849 until his death. Snow was a leading figure in the Mormon colonization of Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico.

Early life

Snow was born on November 9, 1818, in St. Johnsbury, Vermont, to Levi Snow (1782-1841) and Lucina Streeter Snow (1785-1858).

Snow was baptized a member of the LDS Church (at that time known as the Church of Christ) when he was 14 years old, on February 3, 1833, in Charleston, Vermont. Orson Pratt was one of the missionaries who taught him. Snow's older brothers, William Snow (1806-1879), and Zerubbabel Snow had previously joined the church on May 19, 1832.

Snow moved to Kirtland, Ohio, where the church was headquartered. In Kirtland, Snow was ordained a member of the Seventy in 1836 and witnessed the dedication of the Kirtland Temple in 1837.

Career

Snow spent much of his time on missions, primarily in Pennsylvania. He later served a mission to Salem, Massachusetts, where he baptized several converts, including Nathaniel Ashby, a man with whom he shared a duplex when they both resided in Nauvoo, Illinois.

In April 1839, at age 20, Snow successfully petitioned the jailers at Liberty Jail to move Joseph Smith (founder of the Latter Day Saint movement) and the prisoners accompanying him to a different location. He was subsequently appointed a member of the high council of the church. In 1845, Snow received his endowment in the Nauvoo Temple. Over the course of his life, Snow served a total of sixteen missions to New England, St. Louis, Arizona, southern Utah, Denmark, Scandinavia, and Mexico. Writer George M. McCune has said of Snow: "He prevailed in debates over the Book of Mormon and healed and converted many during his life".