On July 20, Apollo 11, carrying three U.S. astronauts, landed on the moon. The event was a unifying moment for America in a decade rife with social discord, racial violence, and antiwar protests. August 15–18, the Woodstock Music and Art Fair was held in upstate New York setting the soundtrack for a generation. Sesame Street premiered November 10, 1969, on PBS with Jim Henson's Muppets. Discover items in the collections related to these events and others from 1969.
In 2019, the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum helped lead a national celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Apollo missions.