The black communities and churches in East Texas promoted and held Sacred Harp singings. Sometimes they were found in unexpected places. The Tri-State Spiritual Sing-Song and Homecoming at the So-So Park in Timpson, Texas (June 19, 1941) included a friendly contest between the Sacred Harp and Little Book singers of Panola County.
Timpson Weekly Times, Friday, April 11, 1941, p. 5
There was a Panola County Convention, as well as a Rusk County Convention, and, according to the following newspaper article, an East Texas Colored Sacred Harp Singing Convention.
Henderson Daily News, Tuesday, July 16, 1940, p. 5
For more on the subject, see “Black Sacred Harp Singing Remembered in East Texas,” Donald R. Ross, Juneteenth Texas: Essays in African-American Folklore, Texas Folklore Society, Denton, TX: University of North Texas Press, 1996, pp. 15-19.
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