The South Union was organized at Round Top School House, Caldwell County, Texas, April 28, 1900. Some years later the name was changed and called “Southwest Texas Sacred Harp Singing Convention.”
These Conventions were so named because they used the four note Sacred Harp songs books only, in the conventions, this is done because this book contains more of the old time sacred tunes and hymns than any other book that has ever been published in the Southern States, and the people who make up this Convention love and want to keep them in use for the song service of and in the churches just as our Fore-Fathers left them for us.
The Sacred Harp was first published in 1844, by B. F. White, who continued it until his death in 1879, then its publication was continued by other parties until the present.
A conservative estimate is that there have been over One Hundred Thousand copies of this book printed and sold, and it is still being used extensively throughout the South.
This Convention, “Southwest Texas Sacred Harp Singing Convention” was organized at Tenney’s Creek Primitive Baptist Church in Caldwell County, Texas, so it has passed its half century mark, this year 1950. It has missed holding but very few Fifth Sunday Sessions at some place in Southwest Texas, during the past fifty years.
At present it has some thirty odd trained leaders, ranging in age from fifteen to eighty years, and something like two hundred singers.
There were no Minutes or Records of each session kept until many years after it was organized. During those years it had many good leaders who by reason of age have passed on to their reward beyond this veil of tears.
At the session held at Mt. Zion Church in Gonzales County, in July 1949, it ordered the Clerk to purchase a suitable book in which to record the history and minutes of the convention from its beginning until the present time, of which the above is a brief history, and the Minutes of each session shall be recorded on the following pages from time to time during the existence of this Convention.
At a meeting of the Convention at Bethel Church in Caldwell County, the fifth Sunday in April, 1950, it was agreed to have the History and Minutes printed in the Record book then turn the book over to the Secretary of the Convention, all of which was done.