The festival took place the first full weekend of June each year from 1974 until 2019.
The fans also used a tarp as shelter from the terrible thunderstorms the first day of the festival.
This first festival was held on Walnut Hall Farm, part of which is now the Kentucky Horse Park on the north side of Lexington.
In 2007 the festival received the International Bluegrass Music Association's Event of the Year award.
The Spirit in the Bluegrass Festival, organized by Kentucky natives Sam Karr and Rick Greene, was held at the Kentucky Horse Park in June, 2023 with the support of the Cornett family.