On February 3, 1959, rock-and-roll stars Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and JP "The Big Bopper" Richardson chartered a plane to travel between stops on the Winter Dance Party Tour. They were bound for Moorhead, Minnesota when their Beechcraft Bonanza plunged into the ground just minutes after taking off from Mason City, Iowa.

The three musicians, along with the pilot, were all killed in the crash. This tragic moment was immortalized forever in 1972, when singer Don McLean released American Pie – the lyrics call it "the day the music died."

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Incredible historic images of America from the 1950s