Celebrating a History of Gospel Music from Grandfather Mountain Since 1924

Joseph Hartley began Singing on the Mountain in 1924 as a church picnic, and for nearly a century, the all-day, free festival of gospel singing and fellowship was held on the fourth Sunday of June on Grandfather Mountain. In the spirit of faith and community, all have been welcomed to enjoy picnics and gospel music performances highlighted with a message of love and hope. Established as a collaboration between The Hartley, MacRae, and Morton families, “Singing” blossomed and flourished in MacRae Meadows for decades. 

With the Presence of Inspirational Speakers such as Dr. Billy Graham, the attendance at Singing on the Mountain Blossomed. 

Following Joe’s passing in 1966, Robert and Joe Lee Hartley rallied the Hartley family and with the guidance of Hugh Morton, enlisted the Linville and surrounding area community to help keep the dream alive. Their success was truly remarkable, and with renewed enthusiasm younger family members stepped up to insure the “Singing” would continue. With harmony for preserving the experience, in 2017, the Hartleys’ established Singing on the Mountain Foundation, Inc. with a mission to “praise and glorify God in the beauty of God’s creation, worshipping God in music, witness and word, and proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.”As Singing on the Mountain Foundation assumed major roles to insure the success and continuation of the festival, the Hartley family lacked the organizational strength and backing required to insure the event would continue to flourish. Additionally, the unleashing of the COVID-19 global pandemic, which caused a two-year lapse in social gatherings, further stretched resources. The Hartley family members, however, were determined to restart “Singing” as COVID protocols were lifted, and in June 2022 the praise and worship music, spearheaded once more by The Cockman Family, echoed from Grandfather Mountain. Behind the scenes, the Hartleys discussed the future of Singing among themselves and with others. With the completed success of the event in 2022, the Hartley Family decided that it was time to step down from their role as event organizers, and therefore declared that 2022 would be the conclusion of “Singing on the Mountain.” To the local community, it seemed unthinkable that this would be the final year of “Singing.” It’s true that the commitment of time, money, resources, talent, gifts and volunteers is an enormous task to successfully organize and produce a non-ticketed event. Family members, loyal volunteers, and cherished stakeholders stretched to provide the cultural experience everyone expects, anticipates and appreciates. The organizational preparations are extensive. The logistics of sound equipment, water & power, stage preparation, providing public conveniences, parking, picnic preparations, event security, traffic control, trash collection and disposal, rescue squad and medical services, arranging speakers & performers all require advanced organization. During the event other issues arise, such as: media coverage, master of ceremonies introductions, speakers, performers and arranging for the “Love Offering” which is the sole compensation for the performers’ efforts. Concessionaires representing the performers as well as food and beverage vendors are also organized. This requires heath inspectors, fire inspectors and others. Transferring a major portion of event responsibility from The Grandfather Mountain Stewardship Foundation to the Hartley family’s foundation in 2017- 2018 proved to be a massive undertaking, and in the end, showcased the need to develop a new and self-sustaining model for the event. 

A Harmony of Interests

The community agrees that a clear framework is needed to insure we learn from lessons of past events and strengthen those things that have proven popular and successful. The stipulations include items that everyone embraces, and the resulting event must be enhanced, improved and crafted to the new vision of the 21st Century. At this point, these are items upon which all agree:

The event should be a one-day, admission free, family-oriented Gospel Music & Worship Festival with no alcohol & overnight camping. The event should be a Christ centered, non-denominational, non-political, family-oriented, Father’s Day Church Picnic featuring Gospel Music and an outstanding keynote speaker.

Although Singing on Grandfather is first and foremost a praise and worship, gospel music festival, a keynote speaker’s notoriety can help set the tone, energy levels, and help attract an audience. With that in mind, we are blessed to announce that Dr. Gary Chapman, famed author of The Five Love Languages will speak on Father’s Day at Singing on Grandfather 2024. Gary is an experienced and well-respected family counselor, and well-known author, having written more than 50 books, He hosts a nationally syndicated radio program (Focus on the Family) which airs on more than 400 radio stations. The Five Love Languages, his most popular title, has been published in more than 50 languages, sold more than 20 million copies and is currently on the New York Times best-seller list.

Our primary goal is evangelism. Evangelism means sharing the good news of Jesus Christ with others who do not know him or follow him. Christians often ask how can I start sharing the Gospel more often? An obvious answer would be to encourage someone to attend a gospel music event featuring a speaker who is a family relationship building specialist. Because Singing on Grandfather originated as a church picnic, we are making a n extra-special effort this year to reach ALL LOCAL CHURCHES. We are encouraging everyone to invite their friends and neighbors to bring a folding chair, blanket and picnic up on Grandfather Mountain on Father’s Day, June 16, 2024 from 10:00AM until 3:00PM to experience the rebirth of SINGING ON GRANDFATHER.