Then & Now: From Woodstock to Mysteryland
by: Will McCarthy
Jun 7, 2016
A history of Mysteryland through photos: 23 years and counting
Long before the Indio Polo Fields, and even before the Playa, New York’s Bethel Woods became the first sacred festival grounds when half a million people gathered for “3 Days of Peace, Music, and Love” for Woodstock. This year, Mysteryland USA returns for its third installment on the most hallowed of all festival venues. Though the music of Mysteryland differs greatly from Woodstock’s fare, a look back through photos of the two festivals show that not a lot has changed over the last 47 years in how concertgoers enjoy a weekend of great live music in the heart of summer.
Woodstock photographs by Baron Wolman and James Shelly, courtesy of the Bethel Woods Collection.