BYRON, Ga. — On this day 53 years ago, Byron was as the setting for one of the biggest music festivals in North American history.
It was called the Byron Pop Festival, or the Second Atlanta International Pop Festival.
"It is said that this is one of the largest music festivals of its time, with attendance reports ranging from 250-500,000. This festival was as large, if not larger, than the Woodstock festival," the Byron Welcome Center wrote on Monday in a Facebook post.
In a field right next to the historic Middle Georgia Raceway, over 30 performers took the stage from July 3-5.
Later, the Georgia Historical Society placed a historical marker to celebrate the event.
During the festivals 50th anniversary, 13WMAZ spoke with Tim Thornton. At the time he owned the land the concert was held on.
"I don't think you could ever replicate the peaceful serenity that was out there. I hadn't seen a fight or a scuffle or an argument or anything like that," Thornton said.
"With The Allman Brothers opening the festival, everyone was sure to have a great 4th of July! Over the next 3 days, festival goers saw performances by BB King, Jethro Tull, Grand Funk Railroad, Bob Seger System, John Sebastian, and so many more," the Byron Welcome Center post said.
They say playing at midnight, on the 4th of July, was Jimi Hendrix with his rendition of the Star Spangled Banner. This was one of the last six concerts in his "The Cry of Love" tour, in the US.