United Sacred Harp Musical Association, September 12-14, 2025
John Plunkett
Hello Atlanta Area Singers,
I’m hopeful you are already aware, but we have a BIG SINGING coming up in September. Atlanta is hosting the United Sacred Harp Musical Association, which will be the debut of the 2025 Revision of the Sacred Harp — a once in a generation event.
The convention will be held at Puritan Mills on the Westside of Atlanta. Here’s the basic schedule:
Friday, September 12th - a conference at Emory University about the process of revising a book like the Sacred Harp.
Saturday and Sunday, September 13th/14th - the USHMA convention at Puritan Mills. I haven’t heard definitively, but I expect we’ll aim to start at 9:00am or 9:30am.
Two requests related to the convention:
We are expecting a lot of visiting singers and many are interested in the prospect of staying with local singers. If you are willing and able to host visiting singers for 2-4 nights (Thursday - Sunday), please complete this Google Form:
Donations needed for a photo restoration (from the 1913 United Convention):
Hello friends,
I am writing to ask for your support in raising funds for the conservation and repair of a one-of-a-kind photograph depicting the class at the 1913 United Sacred Harp Musical Association, held in Atlanta at the Tabernacle. This photograph, which includes Sacred Harp luminaries such as H. S. Rees and J. S. James, is a unique document of the history of one of Sacred Harp's most significant conventions, but is in need of highly specialized and labor-intensive treatment because of multiple condition issues.
Tax-deductible donations supporting the repair of the photograph can be made to the Sacred Harp Publishing Company using the link below. When donating, please use the "Write a note" feature to indicate that your donation is in support of the "1913 United Photograph Repair" project. You can also donate by check; please write to me for details. Any donations received beyond the amount needed to repair the photograph will be directed toward the new Sacred Harp revision and debut singing. The total cost of repair and conservation is estimated at $1,500 to $2,000.
Link to donate: https://www.paypal.com/ncp/payment/KSCDG38XCHQKS
Emory University is digitizing the photograph both before and after its restoration. We will share these high quality digital images with all who donate. If you would like to receive a photographic print of the restored image as well, please add $50 to your donation amount and indicate this in your note.
The story of this photograph and its survival and rediscovery is incredible. The 10 x 20 inch item is what is called a "circuit photograph." This means it was made with a type of camera that turns on a tripod while capturing the image. This technology was pioneered by the then-emerging movie industry and in 1913 had just recently become more widely available. The technique is what made it possible to capture such a wide format.
This copy of the photograph was purchased by Newman Edgar Denney (1885–1976), longtime secretary of the Chattahoochee Convention, who attended the 1913 United and is depicted in the photograph. He passed it along to his daughter, Eris Denney Muse. After Eris died in 2022, Sherry Lovvorn, Eris's niece and N. E. Denney's granddaughter, found the photograph partially hidden beneath a tool box during Eris's estate sale. The photograph had been exposed to rain and other elements, and was stored in a shed for many years.
At Sherry and her sister Karen Rollins's invitation, I brought the photograph to conservation experts at Emory, who referred me to Stephanie Watkins, a photograph and paper restoration expert with decades of experience. This expert examined the photograph in person and identified nearly a dozen condition issues that require remediation, including dirt, dormant mold, tears and creases, insect damage and poop, water damage, curling, ink stains, and highlight loss. Although some of this damage is irreparable, conservation and repair will make a huge difference in the photograph's legibility and will stabilize it for the future.
Sherry and Karen have decided to donate the photograph to Pitts Theology Library at Emory University, where it will be preserved in perpetuity and made accessible to singers and scholars. Pitts, the Rogers family, and the Sacred Harp Publishing Company have agreed to temporarily entrust the photograph to the Sacred Harp Publishing Company to employ the conservator to repair the photograph, which makes it possible to receive tax-deductible contributions toward the project's costs.
Thanks for your consideration of helping to restore this unique treasure from the deep history of the singing tradition we love. Please don't hesitate to write with any questions.
With appreciation,
Jesse Karlsberg
We’ll be sending out more detailed information as we get closer to the convention, but please mark your calendars and make plans to come and sing!
John