What was the name of the 1969 festival that became known as Woodstock?

The 1969 festival that became known as Woodstock was officially called the Woodstock Music & Art Fair.

Its full promotional title was the Woodstock Music & Art Fair, An Aquarian Exposition. The event was held from August 15 to 18, 1969, near Bethel, New York, after organizers moved it from the originally planned site in Wallkill.

The shorter name “Woodstock” became universally dominant, even though the festival did not take place in the town of Woodstock. The name referred to the nearby artistic community and to the organizers’ connections with the area. The concert site was at Max Yasgur’s farm in Bethel.

The title is often shortened in books, recordings, and documentaries, which can make the official wording easy to overlook. “Aquarian Exposition” was part of the formal branding rather than a separate festival.