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19

In the summer of 1969 the Woodstock Music Festival took place... a. In which town? b. On which farmer's land? c. What was the last song played and who performed it?

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Despite its famous name, the Woodstock festival was not held in Woodstock, New York. Original plans for the concert in Wallkill, N.Y., fell through just a month before the event due to local opposition. Scrambling for a new venue, organizers found a willing host in Max Yasgur, a dairy farmer who agreed to lease a 600-acre portion of his land in the small town of Bethel, New York, about 40 miles southwest of Woodstock. Yasgur became an unlikely hero of the counterculture, famously addressing the massive crowd from the stage.

The legendary three-day festival was beset by rain and numerous technical delays, pushing the schedule well into Monday morning. As the final headliner, Jimi Hendrix was slated to close the show on Sunday night, but he didn't take the stage until around 9:00 a.m. on Monday. By that time, the sprawling crowd of over 400,000 had dwindled to a dedicated 30,000. For those who remained, Hendrix delivered one of music's most iconic performances, concluding his set and the festival itself with an incendiary, feedback-laden rendition of "The Star-Spangled Banner," a powerful instrumental protest against the Vietnam War.