Georgia CommonsHR 221: The Sacred Harp Publishing Company, The Sacred Harp tunebook, and Sacred Harp singers; commend
Last action February 10, 2025 · House Read and Adopted
A Georgia House resolution commends the Sacred Harp Publishing Company, The Sacred Harp tunebook, and Sacred Harp singers for preserving a shape-note singing tradition rooted in Georgia for over 175 years.
The summaries below were written by an AI model (claude-sonnet-5) from the text of the resolution and are not part of it. Quote the text, not the summary. The stored text is the Introduced version, the latest LegiScan holds.
In plain language
This resolution from the Georgia House of Representatives honors the Sacred Harp Publishing Company, a nonprofit based in Carrollton, Georgia, along with the tunebook it publishes and the community of singers who keep the tradition alive. The Sacred Harp is a shape-note a capella singing tradition first published in 1844 by Georgia editors B. F. White and E. J. King, and it has continued in the state ever since through annual singing conventions. The resolution notes that a new edition, The Sacred Harp: 2025 Edition, will be published in September 2025, the first major revision since 1991, adding new songs alongside older favorites. It formally commends the publishing company, the revision committee, and Sacred Harp singers worldwide for continuing this cultural tradition, and directs the Clerk of the House to distribute copies of the resolution to the public and press.
What the bill does
- Formally commends the Sacred Harp Publishing Company, a Carrollton-based nonprofit, for preserving the Sacred Harp singing tradition.
- Recognizes The Sacred Harp tunebook and its upcoming 2025 revised edition, the first since 1991.
- Commends the global community of Sacred Harp singers and the committee that revised the tunebook.
- Directs the Clerk of the House of Representatives to distribute copies of the resolution to the public and press.
Who it affects
The resolution directly names the Sacred Harp Publishing Company, the committee that revised the 2025 edition of the tunebook, and the broader community of Sacred Harp singers in Georgia and beyond, along with the Clerk of the House who must distribute copies.
Why it matters
The resolution carries no legal force or funding but serves as an official statement from the Georgia House recognizing a musical tradition rooted in the state since the 1840s, giving public and press recognition to the Sacred Harp Publishing Company and its new 2025 tunebook edition.
Key provisions
- Recites the history of Sacred Harp singing in Georgia, tracing it to the 1844 tunebook edited by B. F. White and E. J. King.
- Notes the Sacred Harp Publishing Company was established in 1933 and is headquartered in Carrollton, Georgia.
- States that The Sacred Harp: 2025 Edition will be published in September 2025 as the first revision since 1991.
- Resolves that the House commends the publishing company, the revision committee, and Sacred Harp singers worldwide.
- Directs the Clerk of the House to make copies available for distribution to the public and press.
From the bill
“Sacred Harp singing, a moving tradition of capella shape-note harmony singing, has been practiced in Georgia for more than 175 years”
“the members of this body commend the Sacred Harp Publishing Company, the committee tasked with revising The Sacred Harp, and the global community of Sacred Harp singers”
Status timeline
- House Read and Adopted (House)
- House First Readers (House)
- House Hopper (House)
Sponsors
- David Huddleston (R, HD-072)
Topics
- Sacred Harp singing
- Georgia cultural heritage
- shape-note music
- Carrollton Georgia
- House resolutions