James D. Vaughan

James D. Vaughan. . , Southern gospel pioneer James D. Vaughan was a hymnodist and music publisher who, in the course of promoting his work, created what is now known as the Southern gospel quartet. Vaughan also embraced then-new technologies, radio and records, and composed several still-current hymns, including "I Need the Prayers of Those I Love.", Born near Minor Hill, south of Pulaski, on Dec. 14, 1864, James David Vaughan taught school soon after his own graduation and began writing hymns in the 1890s. He attended several singing schools, receiving encouragement to compose and teach. After he married in 1890, Vaughan moved to Cisco, Texas, but in 1893 a tornado razed most of the town, including his house. Vaughan and his family survived but returned to southern mid-Tennessee. In 1900, he published his first book of hymns, "Gospel Chimes,” in Fall River, Tennessee. Merging "shape-note” hymns with popular congregational singing, he created the template for Southern gospel music. His promotional methods broke entirely new ground. , In 1902, Vaughan moved to Lawrenceburg and set up an office, mailing hymnals nationwide. In 1909, he shipped 30,000 copies; the following year, business doubled. Part of the reason for the increase was that Vaughan had formed his first quartet to travel and promote his catalog. By the mid-1920s, nearly 20 Vaughan quartets were playing at conventions, revivals, concerts and tent meetings across North America. In doing this, Vaughan is credited as the inventor of Southern gospel's essential format: the quartet of four male voices. He established branch offices in other Southern states for selling hymnals and booking his quartets. , The Vaughan School of Music was established in 1911 and became an annual training event for singing instructors. The following year, Vaughan began publishing The Family Visitor, a monthly magazine that combined poetry, music and literature. Self-proclaimed as "safe, pure, and clean, and should be in every home,” it continued into the mid-1960s., Always looking for ways to expand his outreach, in 1921 Vaughan started the Vaughan Phonograph Company. The first record company in Tennessee, its inaugural releases appeared before the commercial country record business got underway and featured the first-ever Southern gospel quartet recordings., In 1922, Vaughan met Fred Green, who had been a communications officer during World War I. Green convinced Vaughan of radio's potential to reach millions. In November 1922, Vaughan and Green received one of the first radio licenses in Tennessee for WOAN (for "Watch Our Annual Normal,” a "normal” being the training school). When Nashville's WSM was established in 1925, it had to accommodate WOAN's prior claim on its frequency by going off-air at pre-agreed times. In 1926, newly established WREC in Memphis came to a similar agreement and eventually bought WOAN in 1929. At some point in the mid-1930s, the record company was discontinued, although the hymnal publishing business remained strong through the Great Depression and beyond. , When Vaughan died on Feb. 9, 1941, 7,000 people gathered in Lawrenceburg to celebrate his life. In 1964, Vaughan's son, Kieffer, sold the company to the Blackwood Brothers, who had been profoundly influenced by Vaughan's work. , Photo caption: Three members of the Vaughan Quartet in 1916. , From the collections of the Center for Popular Music Middle Tennessee State University