Alumni Registry

No one knows Woodstock like you do!

flag being raised at woodstock festival
aerial view of traffic at woodstock

Did you attend Woodstock?

Add your voice to a growing collection of stories about the greatest festival of all time. The Alumni Registry keeps the spirit of Woodstock alive through the stories and memories of the people who were actually there.  The information you provide will be added to the permanent Museum archive, where it will serve as a useful research tool for visitors and scholars as they seek to learn more about the festival and its participants. 

You didn't attend, but a family member did?

Keep your relative's story alive by submitting it on their behalf!  Your testimony allows visitors near and far to enrich their understanding of the event and its continued impact.

JOIN THE REGISTRY HERE.

Woodstock Oral History Initiative

The Museum at Bethel Woods has embarked on a five-year Oral History Initiative with the goal of collecting 4,500 Woodstock stories from the people who attended the festival. That is only 1% of those who found their way to Yasgur’s Farm. Yet this archive will be the most significant collective memory of the Woodstock Music and Art Fair and will be a defining legacy of the Museum.

UPCOMING APPOINTMENTS:

+ April 5-8: Columbus, Ohio
+ April 26-May 4: Los Angeles, CA
+ April 30 – May 2: Santa Barbara, CA
+ May 8 – May 10: San Francisco, CA
+ May 11 - May 12: Novato, CA

To book an appointment, please email OralHistory@BethelWoodsCenter.org

Collections 

At the heart of every great museum, lies its collection of great artifacts. Our museum's collections wouldn't be complete without the generosity of our donors. Have an item that you'd like to donate? See our guidelines below:

  • Items We're Looking For

    Looking toward the future, The Museum would like for its permanent collection to be the definitive collection of 1960s and Woodstock-related artifacts and reference materials in the world. To reach that goal, there are some collecting areas that we need to concentrate on. We ask that collectors, Woodstock participants, and others consider The Museum at Bethel Woods as an appropriate home for the following:

    • Clothing, accessories, and costumes worn on-stage at the Woodstock festival.
    • Musical instruments and equipment used on-stage at the Woodstock festival.
    • Artwork displayed at the art fair portion of the Woodstock festival.
    • Original negatives, slides, or prints of photographs taken at the Woodstock festival.
    • Home movies shot at the Woodstock festival.
    • Woodstock staff shirts/jackets in each color (we already have red).
    • Original business papers, contracts, correspondence, etc. related to the festival.
    • Iconic artifacts of 1960s political or popular culture (for example: draft lottery numbers and cage; “I AM A MAN” placard from the Memphis sanitation workers strike).

    Because we already have several authenticated Woodstock tickets, and because there are so many fakes that are hard to detect, we do not accept Woodstock tickets. We also rarely accept autographed items unless the item itself (without the autograph) is needed for the collection.

  • How to Donate

    If you have an item to donate to the Museum’s permanent collection, please contact Robin Green at rgreen@bethelwoodscenter.org with a photo and description of your item. Please DO NOT bring your item to the Museum without first contacting us.

  • Artifact Authentication & Appraisals

    Museum staff may offer educated opinions about the authenticity of items brought in for examination, with prior arrangement. Museum staff may not, however, conduct appraisals or otherwise offer any opinions about the monetary value of any artifact or historical item. Anyone requiring such an appraisal is directed to one of the following professional organizations to locate a qualified appraiser in their area:

    National Association of Professional Appraisers
    234 Lewis Wharf
    Boston, MA 02110
    (617) 720-0332

    International Society of Appraisers
    1131 SW 7th Street, Suite 105
    Renton, WA 98055
    (206) 241-0359

Everyone has a story worth telling.

Yours is unique. Please scroll for a handful of testimonials from our archive.

My friends left on Friday night to go back to the inn. I would not leave because Joan Baez was coming on. She sounded fantastic. I didn't see my friends again because they took a different road to get where we were to meet. I wasn't lonely because everyone was so friendly including the bungalow residents. I hitched to get to Monticello to where my parents were staying. I never hitched before in my life. Everyone were so friendly. I feel I changed after the festival. I gained more confidence.

Story #3028; Female born in 1947 from Long Branch, NJ

From arriving on the hill and within minutes you've sat down 5 people away from friends from your hometown. The full range of music new acquaintance's the love and kindness of everyone present. Wow

Story #3033; Male born in 1952 from Reading, PA

We naively did not bring a tent or food. Planned on meeting other friends there that did have both. However, because of the overwhelming crowd it was not easy finding them. No problem...a group of people we had just met welcomed us into their camp site and provided us with both. Everyone we came in contact with was generous and welcoming even the police that were there for crowd control. Someone I was with had epilepsy and had an attack. None of us knew to address the situation and two policemen rushed over and stayed with him until the episode was over. It truly was a magical experience to be with such a large group and share nothing but good vibes and great music.

Story #3030; Female born in 1953 from Mount Sinai, NY

I drove up with my sister and a friend on Thursday aEernoon [sic]. We slowed to a crawl as we approached the parking areas and were grateful to get the last parking spot in a field even though the car was on a steep hill which slopped to the right. When  my friend opened the door to get out of the car, she fell out of the car and rolled down the hill. We all laughed hysterically."

Story #2989; Male born in 1950 from Queens County, NY

Woodstock was the portal between adolescence and adulthood for my best friend and me, who had graduated from high school in June and were about to start college in September. Everyone there could feel they were a part of something historic early on, and that feeling has only been magnified -- exponentially -- over the years. I wound up in a corporate job and felt constantly, and over many years, that Woodstock and everything it meant to me had instilled me with certain core values that guided me in many ways: an aversion to the extreme capitalism that has enslaved the world since, a reverence for the spiritual, a commitment to fairness and equity, a deep sense of honesty, integrity and principle.

Story #3084; Male born in 1951 from New York, NY

When we left the festival, we felt that anything was possible when people work together. That feeling has never left me.

Story #3013; Female born in 1954 from Oakland Gardens, NY

We were driven as far as possible coming in, but we thought we'd give our hosts a break on Sunday, and we hitchhiked all the way back to Accord. It was a challenge, as we didn't know the way, and we did rely a bit on the kindness of the people who picked us up.

Story #3004; Male born in 1954 from Cincinnati, OH