By Josh Moser
August 15 marks the 50th anniversary of “An Aquarian Experience: 3 Days of Peace and Music,” which would eventually be known just as Woodstock.
It is one of the best-known events of the counterculture movement, which began in the 1960s in reaction to the traditional social norms of the 1950s and the political climate stemming from the civil rights movement and Vietnam conflict.
The quiz below, from the Ashbrook Center at Ashland University in Ashland, Ohio, provides an opportunity for you to test your knowledge of Woodstock and the social unrest and experimentation that took place during this era.
Leave your results in the comments below!
1. In what town did the Woodstock event take place?
The Woodstock Music and Art Festival was a rock music festival at Max Yasgur's 601 acre dairy farm in the town of Bethel, New York from 15–18 August 1969. It might be the most famous rock concert and festival ever held. (Wikipedia)
2. Which of the following bands and artists did not perform at Woodstock?
The Set List of Bands that Played at Woodstock 1969: Richie Havens, Sweetwater, Bert Sommer, Tim Hardin, Ravi Shankar, Melanie, Arlo Guthrie, Joan Baez, Quill, Country Joe McDonald, John B. Sebastian, Keef Hartley Band, Santana, Incredible String Band, Canned Heat, Grateful Dead, Leslie West & Mountain, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Janis Joplin, Sly & The Family Stone, The Who, Jefferson Airplane, Joe Cocker, Country Joe & The Fish, Ten Years After, Johnny Winter, Blood Sweat And Tears, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Paul Butterfield Blues Band, Sha Na Na, and Jimi Hendrix (Woodstock Story)
3. Which song was not sung at Woodstock?
Jimi Hendrix performed "The Star Spangled Banner," Joan Baez performed "We Shall Overcome," and Arlo Guthrie performed "Amazing Grace."
4. What is the Hog Farm, which played a role in Woodstock?
The Hog Farm is an organization considered to be America's longest running hippie commune. With beginnings as a collective, first in North Hollywood, then, after moving, taking its name from its actual hog farm domicile in Tujunga, California.
5. Which prominent figure of the time said: “There is absolutely no greater high than challenging the power structure as a nobody, giving it your all, and winning!”
Abbie Hoffman is the one that said: "There is absolutely no greater high than challenging the power structure as a nobody, giving it your all, and winning."
6. Which of the following slogans was not used during the 1960s to urge nonviolence?
No War But The Class War (NWBTCW) is a motto expressing opposition to capitalism used by anarchist and communist groups. It is also the name for a number of anti-authoritarian, anti-capitalist groups. (Wikipedia)
7. Which of the following did not take place the same year as Woodstock?
The Summer of Love was a social phenomenon that occurred during the summer of 1967, when as many as 100,000 people, mostly young people sporting hippie fashions of dress and behavior, converged in San Francisco's neighborhood of Haight-Ashbury. (Wikipedia)
8. Who was president of the United States when Woodstock took place?
Richard Nixon was elected the 37th President of the United States (1969-1974) after previously serving as a U.S. Representative and a U.S. Senator from California. (White House)
9. What was the most famous neighborhood associated with the counterculture?
A district of San Francisco marked by the intersection of Haight and Ashbury streets; it is commonly called The Haight. Haight-Ashbury is most famous for its role in the hippie counterculture and beat movement to which it became home to the Summer of Love in 1967. (Woodstock Story)
10. The “hippies” of the 1960s were involved in developing the environmental movement. The first Earth Day took place in what year?
We only have one earth, so we need to take care of her. That's what Senator Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin believed. He was disturbed that an issue as important as our environment was not addressed in politics or by the media, so he created the first Earth Day, on April 22, 1970. An estimated 20 million people nationwide attended festivities that day. (America's Library)
ANSWERS: 1-C, 2-B, 3-A, 4-B, 5-A, 6-D, 7-B, 8-C, 9-C, 10-D
About the Author
John Moser is professor of history at Ashland University and co-chair of the Ashbrook Center’s Master of Arts in American History and Government program for teachers. He wrote this for InsideSources.com.
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