Buddy Holly And The Coshocton Winter Dance Party

Recently, I wrote about the Winter Dance Party, the ill fated tour which saw the deaths of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and JP Richardson on Feb. 3, 1959.

With promises of bonus money from the tour promoter, the remainder of the tour continued on and eventually landed in Coshocton.

I spoke with Elaine Jensen via e-mail about the show. If you've seen the Coshocton Tribune photo, you'll see Elaine in the front row.

I asked her how they fit 1,500 people (two shows) into the armory. She wrote, "I don't remember the building being real crowded; a lot of kids were there though".

Next, I asked about the Crickets and Waylon Jennings. Elaine writes, "I also don't remember too much about the Crickets performance so Waylon must not have been too impressive. I was there primarily to see Frankie Avalon, Jimmy Clanton and Dion and the Belmonts."

I wondered the performer's state of mind. She wrote, "The performers were maybe a little subdued, but they didn't take anything away from the show.

Also, Elaine wasn't certain if the tour stayed all night in Coshocton and while she was front and center for the show, she didn't get a chance to meet any performers.

She wrapped up our e-conversation by writing "It was a long time ago, but still a thrill of a lifetime. All those great performers in "little ole" Coshocton. Today they don't get any closer than Columbus."

Thank you Elaine for sharing your memories of the Winter Dance Party.

One last thing: the tour poster was provided by John Knoff of Coshocton (hope I spelled it right). Thank you, John!