Iconic Rock Star’s Final Microphone Coming Back to Iowa

February 3rd, 1959 was the day the music died. It was a moment in history where the world was upended when three of the most talented and celebrated musicians in rock died in a plane crash just outside of Clear Lake, Iowa. But now, a piece of that history is back home in Iowa.

Buddy Holly was just 22 years old when he died on that fateful day. Many have wondered what could have been, as Holly was just beginning to scratch the surface of his immense talent. J.P. Richardson (The Big Bopper), another victim in the crash had begun his career as a disc jockey, before inventing the stage name "The Big Bopper" and scoring a huge hit with the novelty song, "Chantilly Lace". Ritchie Valens, the other performer who lost his life in the crash, was just 17 years old. His big hit, "La Bamba" would later become the title to a major motion picture based on his life.

The trio were headlining the "Winter Dance Party" in Clear Lake, Iowa. As the story goes, all three were on that plane due to the rough conditions on the tour bus, which had a long drive ahead of it, from Clear Lake, all the way to Fargo, North Dakota, for a show the following evening. Moments before the plane was set to take off (in inclement weather), Ritchie Valens won a coin toss to Buddy Holly's guitarist, Tommy Allsup, putting him on the flight, and cementing his place in history.

The legendary Surf Ballroom would be the last venue the three would play at, and in the nearly 70 years since, the iconic building has been paying tribute each and every February with its recreation of the "Winter Dance Party". Now, the Surf will be the forever home of the last microphone Buddy Holly ever sung into.

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Tommy Allsup's son, Austin has donated the microphone back to the Surf Ballroom. It was once part of his father's personal collection and when he passed away, Austin inherited it. Now, it's back to its final resting place.

As you can imagine, those who run the Surf Ballroom are ecstatic over the news. Surf Ballroom President, Jeff Nicholas said:

I got goosebumps just sitting here talking about this. This is just absolutely incredible. We've known about this for a few weeks, but merely by having it here, it's just absolutely amazing, because this right here is where that microphone stood.

-Jeff Nicholas, Surf Ballroom President, via Clear Lake Reporter

To read the full story of how the microphone ended up back in Clear Lake, check out the article from the Clear Lake Reporter here.

Story Sources: Clear Lake Reporter Website, History Website