Mitchell Farm Music Festival Brings Three Days of ’70s-Rooted Music to a Horse Sanctuary
Mitchell Farm Music Festival Brings Three Days of ’70s-Rooted Music to a Horse Retirement Sanctuary Sept. 18–20, pairing Jon Pousette-Dart, Laurel Canyon, Broken Arrow and Mystic Dead with a setting unlike the typical weekend concert venue: a working sanctuary where aged and infirm horses have come to spend the rest of their lives.
Now in its 19th year, the annual fundraiser takes place at Mitchell Farm Equine Retirement in Salem, about 20 miles from Mystic. The weekend stretches from a Friday evening concert through two afternoon performances Saturday and Sunday, with proceeds helping support the horses, ponies and donkeys living at the nonprofit farm.
It is part music festival, part picnic and part introduction to a place built around a simple idea: retirement should mean retirement for horses, too.
Three Days of Music
The festival opens Friday at 7 p.m. with the Jon Pousette-Dart Acoustic Duo.
Pousette-Dart emerged nationally in the 1970s as leader of the Pousette-Dart Band, blending folk, country and soft rock during a period when artists such as James Taylor, the Eagles and Little Feat were expanding the boundaries of American singer-songwriter music. The band released a series of albums for Capitol Records and became a fixture of the era’s college and concert circuit.
Saturday’s music begins at 2:30 p.m. with Laurel Canyon and Broken Arrow, a pairing firmly rooted in the music of the late 1960s and 1970s.
Laurel Canyon celebrates the music associated with the famed Los Angeles neighborhood that became a creative center for singer-songwriters and folk-rock musicians during that period.
Broken Arrow turns the focus toward the music of Neil Young, drawing from the electric and acoustic sides of a catalog that stretches from intimate folk songs to the raw guitar sound associated with Crazy Horse.
Sunday belongs to Mystic Dead, beginning at 2:30 p.m. The southeastern Connecticut band has built its shows around the music of the Grateful Dead, making the final afternoon a natural fit for a festival that openly embraces the sounds of the 1970s.
Where Retired Horses Get to Be Horses Again
The setting gives the weekend considerably more meaning than a typical outdoor concert.
Mitchell Farm Equine Retirement was founded by Dee Doolittle in August 2004 and received federal nonprofit status the following year. It became fully accredited by the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries in 2012 and says it has provided permanent sanctuary to more than 127 horses during its 22 years of operation.
Its mission is to provide a safe and comfortable retirement for aged and infirm horses while educating the public about equine welfare. The farm describes retirement there as an opportunity for horses to have the time and space to simply be horses again.
That distinction matters.
These aren’t horses being maintained so they can continue working, performing or carrying riders. Mitchell Farm exists as their final home, providing the food, shelter and specialized care that older animals may need after their working lives have ended.
And demand for that kind of retirement is substantial. Mitchell Farm’s admissions information currently estimates a waiting period of two to four years for horses needing placement.
Where the Festival Money Goes
The Music Festival is one of the events that helps make that retirement possible.
Mitchell Farm says proceeds from its fundraising events go directly toward feed, veterinary care and farrier expenses for horses in its care.
That means the connection between buying a festival ticket and supporting the animals is unusually direct: a weekend spent listening to music on the farm helps pay for the everyday necessities of caring for an aging herd.
Festivalgoers will be able to see the place their money supports while they’re there.
Bring a Chair, a Picnic and Settle In
The atmosphere is deliberately informal.
Guests are encouraged to bring a blanket or lawn chair, and they’re welcome to pack a picnic and BYOB. Food will also be available on site. According to the farm’s current festival information, the concerts take place under a tent and are scheduled rain or shine. Dogs are not permitted.
The farm’s social media announcement lists The Grill by Kay as Friday’s food vendor, with Rustic StrEats on site Saturday and Sunday.
Friday parking opens at 5 p.m., with gates opening at 6 p.m. before the 7 p.m. concert. Saturday and Sunday parking opens at noon, followed by gates at 1:30 p.m. and music at 2:30 p.m.
Tickets are available at the gate.
For a Beacon reader in the Mystic area, this one requires a little more driving than most of our weekend picks. But roughly half an hour up Route 85 leads to something that’s difficult to duplicate closer to the coast: three days of music from the ’70s and the artists it inspired, performed at a farm devoted to giving old horses a comfortable place to spend their final years.
More information is available at the Event Website link below.
To purchase tickets, click the Event Ticketing link below.
Details
Event: 19th Annual Mitchell Farm Music Festival
Dates: Friday, Sept. 18–Sunday, Sept. 20, 2026
Location: Mitchell Farm Equine Retirement
Address: 300 East Haddam Road (Route 82), Salem, CT 06420
Weather: Rain or shine; tented event
Seating: Bring a blanket or lawn chair
Food: Picnics welcome; food vendors available
Beverages: BYOB permitted
Dogs: Not permitted
Beneficiary: Mitchell Farm Equine Retirement; fundraising proceeds help pay for feed, veterinary care and farrier costs for horses in its care.
Friday, Sept. 18: Jon Pousette-Dart Acoustic Duo at 7 p.m.; parking opens 5 p.m.; gate opens 6 p.m.; gate admission $42 or $40 cash.
Saturday, Sept. 19: Laurel Canyon and Broken Arrow at 2:30 p.m.; parking opens noon; gate opens 1:30 p.m.; gate admission $72 or $70 cash.
Sunday, Sept. 20: Mystic Dead at 2:30 p.m.; parking opens noon; gate opens 1:30 p.m.; gate admission $32 or $30 cash.
Featured image is an artistic representation inspired by the event and may not depict the actual people, location, or activities shown.