Did You Know: Today in History

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Today's Did You Know I wanted to mention two things. The first is just a marvel that I have seen up close and personal and find it amazing. Today, 15 Aug in 1914 the Panama Canal opened for traffic. The canal, which connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific was first started in 1881 by the French and then continued in 1904 by the United States. The engineering of it is amazing and it is listed as one of the seven wonders of the modern world. Today 15 Aug in 1969 a little music festival happened in Bethal, New York. The Aquarian Exposition: 3 Days of Peace & Music took place on Max Yasgur's farm. You might have heard of it called Woodstock. There were 32 different acts that performed during the festival and there are countless stories about Woodstock. If you don't know much about it I suggest you take a look at the documentary film that was made about it. Of all the stories one that has always stood out in my mind was about the opening act. The band Sweetwater was suppose to start the show at 5 pm on Friday 15 Aug. but they were stopped by the police and many other artists were stuck on the highway. Richie Stevens was moved to the opening act about 7 minutes late. Due to the other artists not getting there, they kept telling Richie to keep going. He ended up playing from 5:07 to 7 pm. It's said that the last song he played, Freedom, was made up on the spot due to him having played every one of his songs. I was only 5 months old when Woodstock took place but I have always been interested in it. I love the music from that time and wish I would have been old enough to have went. In 2004, Rolling Stone listed it as number 19 of the 50 Moments That Changed the History of Rock and Roll. There were so many good artists there. In 2017, the festival site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Hope you enjoyed this information and hope you enjoy the day/night.