Clearwater Festival Set To Honor Founders Pete And Toshi Seeger

CROTON-ON-HUDSON, N.Y. (CBSNewYork/AP) -- The life of Pete Seeger will be celebrated this summer at the annual Clearwater Festival in Westchester County.

Seeger died Jan. 27 at the age of 94, after surviving his wife, Toshi, by about seven months.

This year's two-day festival, at Croton Point Park in Croton-on-Hudson, will celebrate the couple's legacy.

PHOTO GALLERY: Remembering Pete Seeger

Toshi and Peter Seeger were the founders of the musical and environmental festival – officially known as Clearwater's Great Hudson River Revival – in 1966. The festival celebrates the Hudson River, and all proceeds benefit the Hudson River Sloop Clearwater nonprofit – which seeks to protect the river and its adjacent waterways and wetlands.

Performers this year include Lucinda Williams, Rufus Wainwright, Norah Jones with her new project Puss N Boots, Martin Sexton, and Buckwheat Zydeco.

Seeger's efforts to clean up the Hudson River prompted a series of riverside concerts during the 1960s, which raised funds to "build a boat to save the river," according to the festival website.

"At the time, the Hudson was rank with raw sewage, toxic chemicals and oil pollution; fish had disappeared over many miles of its length," the festival website said. "Seeger believed a majestic replica of the sloops that sailed the Hudson in the 18th and 19th centuries would bring people to the river, where they could experience its beauty and be moved to preserve it."

The 106-foot sloop Clearwater was launched in 1969, and became one of the first vessels in the country to conduct science-based environmental education onboard, the site said.

Rides on the sloop Clearwater and other vessels are available at the festival, along with environmental education and family activities.

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