Deadly 1921 Modesto Jacuzzi J-7 Plane Crash from Yosemite

In 1921 a group of brave men flew to Yosemite Valley in a new monoplane to explore the possibility of passenger service to the national park. On the way back to the Bay Area, the plane crashed onto a Modesto street, tragically killing all four aboard, including pilot Bud Coffee.
This story is being told on KZbin for the very first time on this episode of "History Hunters."
#airplanecrash #jacuzzi #modesto #historyhunters #jbenziggy #yosemite

[@TheGraveyardChannel]

Even though it was incredibly sad, I love learning about historic events like this that I've never heard of. You do an excellent job telling these stories!

[@jbenziggy]

Visiting Gravesites With Steve thank you! I appreciate those words coming from you!

[@scottlebaron2994]

This was a great episode. The Jacuzzi family suffered personal tragedy and a major setback to their family business yet persevered and still achieved great success. Bud Coffee was still very young and most likely would have made an even bigger name for himself as an aviator. I learned a lot so thank you for your work.

[@stevelinscome728]

Thank you Jeff! As a '71 grad of Downey high, I never thought of the association of the street my h.s. was on. I thought Coffee must have been associated with the drink. Wow, 50 years later to learn this!

[@careyconley4690]

I narrated this. :) History Hunters did a FANTASTIC job putting this together.

[@jbenziggy]

Thank you for a job well done!!! You nailed it!

[@careyconley4690]

@@jbenziggy it was a pleasure! Hope we can do this again!

[@craigalexp]

Superb narration!

[@Angel-tw3ko]

You have a lovely voice, you belong in the movies! You did a great job.

[@je5tran]

Excellent job on the narration. I emailed Jeff and asked him if the narrator was a DJ in Modesto that I had known but couldn't remember his name. But, I see your name and it is a different person I was thinking of. Nevertheless, great job!

[@blancolirio]

Great History! I never heard of this.

[@jbenziggy]

Not too many people have heard of it! Thanks for watching!

[@gavinliotta]

Thanks for sharing Jeff! Giocondo is my Great Grandfather and although we have heard the story before, it's wonderful the full story on video to share with our family. Most people haven't heard of this story so thank you for digging deep and all of your research.

[@jbenziggy]

That’s amazing! So happy that a member of the family watched my video! Your family left quite a legacy! I so appreciate your good remarks!

[@Lockbar]

Your presentation is so well done it could have been a regular program on the old History Channel 15 years ago when it was still worth something.

[@jbenziggy]

Oh wow, thanks so much for those fantastic comments! Much appreciated!

[@kcgunkerstein5061]

I can only imagine how labor intensive it is to put these videos together, you are very well researched. Please keep making these videos, you're doing a great job!

[@richardyoung4616]

You obviously did a lot of research, great job.

[@privatepilot4064]

I was familiar with this incident. I worked for Jacuzzi and visited on business to their headquarters in Little Rock, AR back around 2000. They actually had aviation memorabilia from when their family was involved in aviation. It was interesting. I myself am a pilot and was intrigued about it.

[@ethanstewart9970]

This is my great grandfather and great uncles! Thank you for making this video.

[@jbenziggy]

Really? Jacuzzi’s? That’s interesting if you are!

[@JeffytheAdventurer]

I just stumbled upon this video as it was recommended in my feed. As I know Modesto pretty well, I decided to watch and it was very interesting! I am a new subscriber for sure and look forward into watching your awesome videos!

[@fountainbiker]

Amazing to think that out of failure, something else is created to carry on the name of Jacuzzi. I had no idea about this story and have in the past used my jacuzzi to relax and unwind. Thanks again for your research Jeff.

[@409rommel]

Great stuff! Never heard of this.... Merry Christmas friend

[@jbenziggy]

409rommel merry Christmas! Thanks for watching!

[@buddychang6917]

Great Episodes, excellent job, thanks. If you don't care about America's history, probably you not worry about America's future.

[@michelledunn5735]

I appreciate the research you put into each episode. This is one of my favorites - being a life-long Stanislaus County resident, I had no idea about this event. Thank you for sharing!

[@jbenziggy]

Thank you so much! Nice meeting you this morning!

[@Ludofan41]

You guys rock. Thank you for sharing.

[@toysofyourspecialtyt.o.y.s8718]

Another town I've lived in.. Went to DAVIS high... And Modesto high

[@KowboyUSA]

Some fascinating history, more than a little of which I was unaware of prior to watching this video. Very nice work! & Merry Christmas!

[@jbenziggy]

Thank you, my friend! As always, I appreciate your wonderful feedback! Merry Christmas to you, too!

[@robertlee3]

Hello. I used to live in Los Banos. I lived there for 7 and 1/2 years. During that time I had a business where I was providing refinishing services, like on a bathtubs, so I was driving all over the place in the Central valley everyday. Most people go to their jobs go home and occasionally venture to some other place. But I know of these places well. I've been to all of them. I appreciate you very much. I live in Washington state now. Yes it's wet. Keep up the good work my friend. And yes it is a fallen world isn't it.

[@nicholassteel5529]

Great story. Glued until the end. Thanks! Well done. 👍👍👍

[@jbenziggy]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@m.e.c.1007]

Binge watching your videos. Just love them. Thank you for the effort to bring some of CA history to light as well as fun facts.

[@breakstuffinc]

I like how detailed you are with your research, well done!

[@jbenziggy]

MechanicalMadness77 thank you! I appreciate your nice compliment! I invite you to subscribe!

[@breakstuffinc]

@@jbenziggy I am now a subscriber

[@stevendwyer6182]

great video jeff,it's great that you have bought this tragedy to the public eye.hope they will put a marker at the crash site.happy christmas to you and your family.

[@jbenziggy]

steven dwyer thank you! Always appreciate you Steve! Hope you have a great New Year 2020!

[@stefanhuppert6635]

Thank you for yet another fabulous video. Very enlightening.

[@jbenziggy]

Thank you very much! I appreciate your support!

[@tinagilstrap1738]

Thank you and I hope to see more of the history of Modesto

[@jbenziggy]

Thank you very much! This growing channel always appreciate the support!

[@daveforeman6931]

Thanks again, Jeff- for doing these videos.

[@jbenziggy]

My pleasure! I'm happy to know so many people like the effort -- and it does take a lot of effort!

[@christopheroliveria2296]

This is great! I never knew this about my hometown

[@walasiewicz]

Fantastic videos. You are very respectful and you come up with way more information on these people then most all other similar types of videos. Your intellect shows in your videos

[@jbenziggy]

So nice of you to say so in your comments! I try to be both knowledgable and respectful. Thank you for devoting your valuable time to watching!!!

[@kelikloe]

Thanks for this amazing history lesson.

[@cwb0051]

Very Interesting, Never Knew Any of This..Thank You..

[@jbenziggy]

This is one I wanted to do precisely because I was curious and nobody knew about it! Thanks for watching!

[@richardstoc]

so much history that has been forgotten but the names are very familiar immortalized in the street names in the local area Coffee rd in Modesto, Faulkerth rd in Turlock and many more to be discovered.

[@danhawkins6755]

I enjoyed your works very much! Thanks for what you do! I have seen Jacuzzi`s grave but did not know his story! Dan Hawkins

[@jbenziggy]

Glad you enjoyed it!!!

[@paulbyrne5022]

As a member of Estanislao 58 E Clampus Vitus I wasn’t aware we dedicated this site or of its history. Awesome Jeff !

[@douglasscott5623]

Creo Quia Absurdum!

[@wendygerrish4964]

Modesto Golf Course, Display at airport..the Jacuzzi name..Wow didn,t know any of this stuff. Incredible, what a history!

[@jbenziggy]

Thank you very much for watching! I can't believe the incident has pretty much been ignored all these years. There should be a historical marker placed in the neighborhood where the crash happened!

[@punkin01ful]

I loved the sound effect of the airplane as the camera was ascending over the treetops at the old airport.

[@jbenziggy]

punkin01ful I like to add little extras like this to give it some realism. Thanks for noticing it! Appreciated!

[@jeffdavis7376]

This is fantastic Jeff! I love stories like this that tell about early California history btw your narrator was cracking me up on the way he talks! He has great animated voice

[@jbenziggy]

I wanted a narrator who sounded like the guy who narrates First 48 on A&E! He sounds spot on!

[@arnoldprewitt7914]

Great history lesson please continue.

[@2012turok]

This was a great watch...thank you.

[@jbenziggy]

2012turok , NUFF thank you! I appreciate your sweet comment! Jeff

[@MarcoMoreno5757]

Another great story! Congratulations!

[@jbenziggy]

Thank you!

[@sharonmendenhall778]

I like the new format. The gentleman's voice is so appropriate. Good job!

[@jbenziggy]

This is actually an old video but I appreciate your wonderful comment!

[@lindsaymacpherson8782]

Great history lesson even though its sad Thankyou

[@racerx4152]

Many years ago in the modesto bee newspaper,it had an article about a big passenger plane that had to make an emergency landing in a farmers field in modesto..So the plane just got left there because it was too hard to remove. I don't know if it's still there or not. Have you ever heard of this? The article had a picture of the plane in the field.

[@je5tran]

I remember when that happened as I had just been discharged from the Marine Corps and my folks had moved to Hughson before I got out. That happened in May 1978, I think. The plane was owned by a Modesto Travel Club and ran out of gas on approach to the Modesto Airport. It landed in a corn silage field on a dairy. A couple of years after that, the plane was moved to the corner of the property but remained for many years. I read that it was finally removed in the very late 90s or early 2000s, The wings had been removed long before that.

[@bradreinhardt1358]

Excellent history lesson! A good representation of how a family can overcome tremendous adversity and loss to still move forward and be successful.

[@matthewmaning4859]

Interesting never heard of this even though I grew up 30 miles from Modesto.

[@kgobrien1]

Jeff, a new subscriber here. I thoroughly enjoy your well crafted, informative videos. Love the off-beat subjects and Northern California locations. Keep them coming! May I ask what kind of drone you use?

[@grandprixdriver]

Great episode! never even heard of this. Always wondered the hot tubs were called Jacuzzi.

[@jbenziggy]

Now you know! Thanks for watching our channel and please subscribe if you haven't! We are getting closer to 50,000!

[@robroiboi]

Great video as always

[@CarlosHerrera-oh9ec]

Watching 3 years after u posted this video...great video. I grew up two blocks from linden /madeson.. went to franklin k1 and ran around that neighborhood w no worries...RIP to them guys

[@jbenziggy]

Thanks for sharing!

[@missrita1826]

Great video. Never knew about any of this.

[@jbenziggy]

Glad it was helpful!

[@tinamoore9766]

We enjoy all your history videos keep up the excellent work and Merry Christmas

[@jbenziggy]

tina moore thank you! Well try to keep providing quality videos for people like you who appreciate them! Thank you and Merry Christmas!

[@billsail2460]

I really enjoy your videos. I notice that alot of your videos are around the central valley. I was wondering what city you live in? Thanks so much.

[@waynewilburn3569]

enjoy this one very much .you make history fun too learn.

[@jbenziggy]

Thank you, Wayne!

[@haywoodyoudome]

fun -too- *_to_* learn You need to find a video to learn spelling

[@tinagilstrap1738]

Wow I find your videos very interesting, this is history I never heard about ,and I been here since 1973

[@jbenziggy]

Glad you enjoyed! Thanks for watching!

[@CC-te5zf]

Tragic story for sure. Great detailed analysis in this video.

[@jamesminear2336]

Wow now I know so much more!! Been on and by Coffee Rd. Hundreds of times in my deliveries to Modesto and beyond! Never knew anything about the Jacuzzis.. other then what we know about the hot tubs. About the early air mail delivery system. I have read about large concrete arrows on the ground and beacon stations that points the pilots in the right direction! I just Googled it so it’s easy to find. There are still some remnants left but not much. In Vacaville just the beacon house.. If you ever run out of things to investigate.. lol! Thanks again for the in-depth research! No one does it better!!

[@anthonyp3521]

Love your new presentation style..

[@dennisphillips]

Very interesting! You do good work. Merry Christmas!

[@jbenziggy]

Dennis Phillips thank you ! Merry Christmas to you too!

[@user-ov5mi3mz6h]

My father, brother and I sold and installed Jacuzzi water pumps and various other Jacuzzi made water system products for years in the Antelope Valley area in the 60s thru the 80s.

[@johnkelsey2482]

This was excellent.........

[@jbenziggy]

John Kelsey thank you! I appreciate it!

[@lisarobinson9113]

I really enjoyed watching this episode. I had no idea who the Jacuzzi family was and it was a really fascinating story. I remember when my parents installed our first jacuzzi. I specifically remember the emblem on the spa and being able to proudly pronounce it so much that my brothers teased me saying maybe I was Italian (I was adopted, had bright red hair, clearly NOT Italian). Anyway, love your channel. Oh the narrator on this episode has a really great tone.

[@pamelaattrux336]

Very interesting as always

[@jbenziggy]

Thank you, Pamela! Cheers!

[@suemundy1916]

Love your show

[@jbenziggy]

Sue Mundy thank you very much! It’s what we love to hear!!!

[@geographicoddity9444]

“The area was covered by people either who knew him or didn’t know him”. I guess that covers everyone. 😉 Teasing aside, I’m truly enjoying your videos. I’m hooked. Thanks so much!

[@jbenziggy]

Thank you Dusty! 😀

[@je5tran]

Excellent episode, Jeff!

[@jbenziggy]

Thanks very much for watching and commenting! I appreciate it!

[@mov1ngforward]

Excellent video!

[@jbenziggy]

Thanks!

[@joefin5900]

Great video. Flying around in jacuzzis!

[@jbenziggy]

Ha ha ha! Weird, huh?

[@TommyC503]

Tragic story, but you did a wonderful job producing this report.

[@april62003]

I absolutely love your videos

[@jbenziggy]

We love hearing that. Thank you so much. We’ll keep putting them out if you’ll keep watching them.

[@vasquezthegreat]

Jeez! So much old film footage I didn’t even know that existed! I need to dig deeper I guess..

[@thedoxinator3934]

Jeff, who does the narration on this video ? Not in the credits , does a great job 👍

[@jbenziggy]

That narrator was Carey Conley on fiverr!

[@thedoxinator3934]

History Hunters ......he’s got a radio voice just like you 👍. Enjoying your vids just found your channel, will be shouting you out soon

[@jackieoman6695]

Most exelent 😎

[@Corgis175]

Whow, that was very interesting and researchd.

[@jbenziggy]

Arleen Rooney thank you! Yeah this one took about a year or researching! Glad you liked it!!!

[@jbenziggy]

Arleen Rooney thank you! Yeah this one took about a year or researching! Glad you liked it!!!

[@blackbirdpie217]

My mother lived next door to the Jacuzzi family in Berkeley.

[@jbenziggy]

That’s really interesting. Is the Jacuzzi family house still standing?

[@blackbirdpie217]

@@jbenziggy she's passed now but I've seen her childhood home and all the homes there are old so I'd have to say yes.

[@shannahuffman4655]

I have visited that site years ago with my dad

[@scottke2273]

Here's a topic to cover: The Crash of Major Richard I Bong. He crashed while testing an early Lockheed P-80 fighter in North Hollywood. He happened to die the same day the Atom Bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. He was Americas top WW2 ace. He died at the very beginning of the jet and atomic age......

[@donnyk159]

I live in Modesto and I hate It. But thanks for the history!

[@vasquezthegreat]

Never knew about this till tonight

[@shannahuffman4655]

I like your Narrator's voice

[@jbenziggy]

I wanted him to sound like the narrator on First 48 crime series. LOL

[@shannahuffman4655]

@@jbenziggy haha

[@timroot9355]

You failed mention that after coffee field closed, Modesto municipal airport was the first one of its kind in the United States at that time

[@jbenziggy]

Yes

[@vasquezthegreat]

Jeff, you took the words right out of my mouth 😂

[@jbenziggy]

Which words?

[@vasquezthegreat]

@@jbenziggy crud, I think I may not have posted it by accident, I think I was saying how it was sad that the crash happened, but if it never did, we would’ve never had the hot tubs we cherish and love 🫧. Then that’s basically what you said after I thought I posted, lol

[@vasquezthegreat]

*wouldn’t

[@vasquezthegreat]

It’s the vino, LOL

[@americanminer1965]

Well done!

[@jbenziggy]

Thanks very much!

[@vasquezthegreat]

Oh my God, was that the actually burn marks on Coffee’s goggles? Wow..

[@jbenziggy]

Possibly. Not sure.

[@lauraread-mills4193]

Terribly sad and horrible sounding crash. From that height and the make up of the planes back then, they would have died on impact. Or at least I hope so, as burning to death would be a horrible way to die

[@play4u67]

My son was born on July 14th, not the same year of course..lol.

[@haywoodyoudome]

Wow, what are the odds of that?

[@timroot9355]

Did you know there was a passenger plane that crashed in route to Modesto airport.near pioneer road about 45yrs+.dc 3?

[@jbenziggy]

Are you talking about the plane that was forced to land in the field? Not crashed?

[@timroot9355]

@@jbenziggy I stand corrected yes forced .But as a child it crashed. Do you know anything about it

[@jbenziggy]

@@timroot9355 it’s somewhere in a Hughson field I believe. I’ll try to find out.

[@myzacky96]

When I hear Modesto, I think of poor Laci Peterson and her unborn son

[@jbenziggy]

Unfortunately before that was Chandra Levy and the Condit scandal!

[@dianemason4215]

At the one minute mark, I see a sign that says "Betty Compson, Enemy Sex". What? Any ideas?

[@jbenziggy]

Betty Compson was an actress and that’s a theater marquee! Enemy Sex was the name of her film!

[@dianemason4215]

@@jbenziggy Wow!! Betty was a real scamp-ette!!! I imagine that was scandalous in those days and those wanting to see the film had to try to slip inside unseen.

[@terribethreed8464]

If he had kidney problems he was more than likely a Diabetic & didn't know it.

[@Lilaa86]

🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹🇮🇹

[@ADCGunman]

Liked it better before you hired a narrator.

[@jbenziggy]

We haven’t hired a narrator in years.

[@tammierose5043]

The background music is severely unnecessary.

[@jbenziggy]

Tammie Rose always a critic.

[@SearchIndex]

i like the music

[@Breitman123]

Neat video, lose the cheesy narrating, though.

[@jbenziggy]

Thanks. I think. Once a video is done you can’t alter any of it.

[@vasquezthegreat]

Wow man. Think of this, as sad as this crash was, it changed the trajectory of the business to the hot tubs we all cherish and love.. 🫧