Sam Yasgur
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Sam Yasgur is the son of Max Yasgur. Sam played a vital but little known part in American music history by convincing his father Max to allow the Woodstock Music & Art Festival to be held on the family's 600 acre (2.4 km²) dairy farm land in Bethel, NY, circa August 1969.
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[edit] Woodstock Festival
Sam's consultations with his father played a crucial role in the events leading to the Woodstock Festival. By the time that Sam began conversing with his father Max concerning the festival taking place on their land, the concert had already been declined at its original location in Woodstock, NY - this was essentially because the proposed Woodstock area offered no appropriate site to host such a large event, a decision fueled by a growing belief that over a million people would attend. In addition to the original Woodstock site, another prospective venue in the nearby town of Wallkill, NY also became a possibility to host the event. However, when local opposition arose in Wallkill for essentially the same logistical reasonings as that of Woodstocks', Sam Yasgur stepped up in a last ditch effort and convinced his father Max to allow the concert to be held on the alfalfa fields of their dairy farm land in Bethel, NY, located in Sullivan County, about 40 miles southwest of Woodstock, NY itself.
After the aforementioned scenarios and decisions, the Woodstock Festival commenced from August 15th-18th, 1969.
[edit] Life After Woodstock
Sam Yasgur has since become an attorney and has served as an Assistant District Attorney for New York City, as well as becoming the Westchester County Attorney, and the Sullivan County Attorney in the State of New York. On September 14th, 2004, Sam along with his wife Eve were on hand to accept the posthumously accoladed 'History Maker Award' for his father Max from the Sullivan County Historical Society in Monticello, NY. Currently, Sam continues to practice as a lawyer in Sullivan County and supports project founder Alan Gerry on the Bethel Woods Center For The Arts - a $70 million, state of the art multi-structured performing arts center built on the same land that the original Woodstock Festival took place.
