NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — The mystery of what happened to the stage at the legendary Woodstock music festival has been uncovered.
Steve Gold, who attended Woodstock at the age of 15, found a large stage that was serving as a rotting paddleboard court in upstate New York.
Decades earlier, Gold was helping fix up a bungalow colony, and when unloading some wood, was told that the wood was used as part of Woodstock's stage.
“The drums from Carlos Santana’s concert,” Gold claimed he heard when he put his ear to the wood many yaers later.
Wade Lawrence, museum director and senior curator at The Museum at Bethel Woods, said he was skeptical, but saw distinctive patterns and markings on the wood which made him believe it could be real.
Gold had the wood authenticated by the original manufacturer and an independent consultant.
The paddleboard court had sat at a resort in Sullivan County for 48 years.
“The magic of Woodstock happened on that stage,” said Gold.
Around 500,000 people showed for the four-day festival in 1969 which saw acts like Janis Joplin, The Who, Santana, Jefferson Airplane, Jimi Hendrix and many others.
The Museum at Bethel Woods will display pieces of the stage in an exhibit celebrating the 50th anniversary of Woodstock.
Additionally, Gold is now selling pieces of the stage at PeaceOfWoodstockStage.com.