| Official Name: | Bethel, New York |
| Settlement Type: | Town |
| Motto: | Home of the 1969 Original Woodstock Festival |
| Mapsize: | 250x200px |
| Image Map1: | Sullivan County New York incorporated and unincorporated areas Bethel highlighted.svg |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: | United States |
| Subdivision Type1: | State |
| Subdivision Name1: | New York |
| Subdivision Type2: | County |
| Subdivision Name2: | Sullivan |
| Unit Pref: | Imperial |
| Area Footnotes: | [1] |
| Area Total Km2: | 232.99 |
| Area Land Km2: | 220.84 |
| Area Water Km2: | 12.15 |
| Area Total Sq Mi: | 89.96 |
| Area Land Sq Mi: | 85.27 |
| Area Water Sq Mi: | 4.69 |
| Population As Of: | 2020 |
| Population Total: | 3959 |
| Timezone: | Eastern (EST) |
| Utc Offset: | -5 |
| Timezone Dst: | EDT |
| Utc Offset Dst: | -4 |
| Elevation M: | 403 |
| Elevation Ft: | 1322 |
| Coordinates: | 41.6908°N -74.8417°W |
| Postal Code Type: | ZIP Code |
| Postal Code: | 12720 |
| Area Code: | 845 |
| Blank Name: | FIPS code |
| Blank Info: | 36-06310 |
| Blank1 Name: | GNIS feature ID |
| Blank1 Info: | 0978730 |
Bethel is a town in Sullivan County, New York, United States. The population was estimated at 3,959 in 2020.[2] The town received worldwide attention after it served as the location of Woodstock in 1969, which was originally planned for Wallkill, New York, but was relocated to Bethel after Wallkill withdrew.
The first European settlers arrived circa 1795 near the present communities of Bethel and White Lake. The town of Bethel was established in 1809 from the town of Lumberland. It was named after Bethel.
By the middle of the 19th century, a tourist industry began to grow. Bethel was home to numerous hotels that were part of the "Borscht Belt" and numerous sleepaway camps for most of the 20th century, including Camp Ma-Ho-Ge, Camp Chipinaw, and Camp Ranger - all on Silver Lake. In 1961, Son of Sam mass murderer David Berkowitz was a camper at a now defunct summer camp in Bethel. Berkowitz left the camp after a suspicious fire occurred in his cabin.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 90sqmi, of which 85.4sqmi is land and 4.6sqmi (5.13%) is water. One of the most attractive features of Bethel is its access to numerous lakes, all within a five-minute drive of each other. They include White Lake, its northern portion known as Kauneonga Lake, Silver Lake, and Lake Superior, which is part of the state park with the same name.
The Town of Bethel, which is primarily rural in character, was part of the old Borscht Belt Catskills resort area. Although some bungalow colonies continue to exist, catering to a largely Orthodox Jewish clientele during the summer, most of the old resorts which had their heyday from the 1930s to the early 1970s have long since closed.
At the time of the census[3] of 2000, there were 4,362 people, 1,649 households, and 1,101 families residing in the town. The population density was 51.1sp=usNaNsp=us. There were 3,641 housing units at an average density of 42.6sp=usNaNsp=us. The racial makeup of the town in 2000 was 90.35% White, 11.28% Latin American or Latino of any race, 4.61% African American, 2.80% other races, 1.40% two or more races, 0.50% Asian, 0.18% Native American, and 0.16% Pacific Islander.
There were 1,649 households, out of which 54.2% were married couples living together. 27.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 33.2% were non-families, 27.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. 7.9% had a female householder with no husband present. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 2.95.
The ages of the town's residents included 28.7% from 45 to 64, 26.7% from 25 to 44, 21.8% under the age of 18, 16.0% who were 65 years of age or older, and 6.8% from 18 to 24. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 108.4 males. For every 100 females at age 18 and over, there were 107.9 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $36,017, and the median income for a family was $37,321. Males had a median income of $35,025 versus $24,438 for females. The per capita income for the town was $25,335. About 9.4% of families and 14.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 22.6% of those under age 18 and 10.4% of those age 65 or over.
The Town of Bethel was brought to the world's attention in 1969, when nearly 500,000 people gathered at Max Yasgur's Farm for "Three Days of Peace and Music".[5] The documentary made about Woodstock released in 1970 showed interviews with numerous Bethel residents, including Art Vassmer, co-owner of Vassmers General Store in Kauneonga Lake. A movie called Taking Woodstock was released in August 2009 based on the book of the same title by Elliot Tiber, whose parents owned the nearby El Monaco Motel in White Lake and played a pivotal role in bringing the Woodstock nation to Bethel.
In 1998, a concert was hosted at the original site and this helped ignite the vision of philanthropist Alan Gerry and daughter Robyn to acquire the land and build what was to become Bethel Woods Center for the Arts.
On July 1, 2006, Bethel Woods Center for the Arts opened on the site of the original Woodstock Festival and hosted the New York Philharmonic. Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young closed out the inaugural season in August 2006, bringing the foursome back to Bethel for the first time since August 1969. The summer 2007 concert lineup at Bethel Woods began in June 2007 with the bands Chicago and America. Other performers during the summer of 2007 included the New York Philharmonic, Bob Dylan, Brad Paisley, Lynyrd Skynyrd with The Marshall Tucker Band, Earth, Wind & Fire, Arlo Guthrie, Richie Havens, Phish and others. The 2008 season featured the New York Philharmonic, the Boston Pops, Steely Dan, The Allman Brothers Band, and sold-out performances by the Jonas Brothers and the last concert of the season, featuring Heart, Journey and Cheap Trick. The 2009 season was headlined by Brad Paisley and his band "The Drama Kings".
In early 2008, The Museum at Bethel Woods opened near the original site of Max Yasgur's farm to complement the concert space. The multi-media interactive museum commemorates Woodstock and the Baby Boomer and hippie generation.
The state and the town council of Bethel subsequently passed laws prohibiting mass-event types of festivals. In 2019, a 50th anniversary celebration of Woodstock was organized in Sullivan County.[6] The Woodstock 50 festival, scheduled for August, was canceled months earlier so it did not take place.[7] The Bethel Woods Center for the Arts did organize a weekend of "low-key" concerts.[8]