Feelin' the Love All Over Again

© Gabrielle Sierra / RumBum.com

A poster at The Museum at Bethel Woods.

Contrary to popular belief, the 1969 Woodstock Music and Art Fair was actually held in Bethel, NY – a small town located about 90 minutes from New York City. It is here, on Max Yasgur's dairy farm, that history was made and the voice of a generation rang out clear and united in three (and a half) days of muddy beautiful, peaceful music and, of course, love.

As we learned during the extensive coverage of the 40th anniversary of Woodstock, the festival was probably not as great as we like to imagine. (There was an extreme shortage of toiliets and food, and some bad acid was passed around, making the experience a lot less peaceful for some.) But if you want to relive the Woodstock experience sans brown acid you can head on over to The Museum at Bethel Woods, which provides patrons with a history and a glimpse into the storied festvial and the broader culture it cemented.

Through multi-media exhibits, artifacts, and time-lines, you can learn all they could ever want to know about the Woodstock Festival (and probably more than people who were actually there). The museum serves a dual purpose – on one hand it is an educational resource highlighting the social, political and cultural events of the 60s, while on the other hand it serves as a time machine for all those who either attended the festival or wish that they had.

The Museum at Bethel Woods documents the entire creation and run of the Woodstock Music and Arts Fair, from the broader spectrum of social and cultural circumstances, to the smaller details such as the technical and monetary issues that surrounded the festival. Interviews, photos, and letters document everything from the amounts of money each act was paid (Hendrix tops the list at 30K) to the 'peace keeping' instructions that were given to each police officer. There is a piece of the fence that was torn down once the concert was declared to be free, and there are photos of a velvet jumpsuit clad Janis Joplin drinking champagne from a dixie cup. Patrons can examine the original set list and watch videos of people swimming naked in the nearby lake.

Consisting of a main exhibit gallery, a shop, a café, a terrace stage, classrooms and more, the museum stretches long and wide over the rolling hills of Bethel. The main exhibit gallery is laid out in an organized manner, replaying short videos in small enclaves (or painted buses, or rooms draped with purple tapestries) and complete with informational plaques to guide the public through the exhibits in chronological order. Patrons can also record their own stories of the festival, keeping the ideas and memories of Woodstock alive for younger generations.

Outside the buildings the sloping green hills retain their peaceful and soothing feel; the lawn is well maintained and the space is wide open. A plaque sits at the bottom of the site, marking the spot in the name of Woodstock, and honoring peace, music, and love. The terrace stage allows for outdoor concerts in the summer, and there are always events happening just down the road such as crafts fairs, live music, and bake sales.

Although The Museum at Bethel Woods can in no way do justice to the moment in time that was the Woodstock Festival, it does preserve its memory. A picture and a piece of paper behind a glass can in no way let us understand how it must have felt to bear witness to such a gathering of talent, surrounded by such harmonious ideals. But by allowing younger generations to hear stories and view pieces from this event, the museum still pushes the all important messages of love, peace and understanding...only with clean bathrooms and a gift shop.