Take Time to Remember the Edmund Fitzgerald

[MN Cummins Lvr]

I grew up in Duluth, MN and I remember the sinking of the Fitz like it was yesterday. I was only 10 years old, but I still remember Dennis Anderson from WDIO TV reporting from the Aerial Lift Bridge in Duluth and I was glued to the TV. I don't ever remember seeing the Fitz in person but I have seen the Arthur Anderson several times in Duluth (vessel following the Fitz when she went down)



Paul

 

[Extreme1]

I too recall the song from when I was a kid. The Mrs. and I went to the Split Rock Lighthouse (among others) a couple years ago (great place to visit, there was no road when it was built, they arrived in ships and winched all the materials up the cliff to build the lighthouse). I picked up Haunted Lakes by Fredrick Stonehouse. It was very interesting and I've since bought most of his collection off eBay. The book about the wreck of the Fitz gets into a lot of detail, that wasn't a very safe occupation until the last 60 years or so. The 'Nor Westers on Superior are bad because the wind is unobstructed for well over 100 miles and the waves get pretty big, especially where the water isn't too deep. The men in the old Life Saving Service were tough and fearless.



Back in the olden days a ship would just fail to show up with a cargo. The ships comming in after the missing ship was overdue would be asked about wreckage fields and floating cargo. Crew records weren't kept and a lot of men (and some women) are still on the bottom of the lake, no real accurate numbers. It's deep enough that the bodies stay cold enough to keep from developing the bacteria that makes bodies float. The water pressure is high enough that if you get pulled deep enough, the cork in the old life vests would be compresed and loose all boyancy.



Good reading and the Haunted Lakes books are entertaining.

 

[WDixon27]

yea they all can't get cool songs to keep them in memory

Josh,



I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but hundreds of vessels have gone to the bottom of the Great Lakes. Those Canadian winds can turn them into very deadly waters.



One of the hazards of taking in your lines. As has been said before, "A Ship in Port is Safe. But That's Not What Ships are For. "

 

[DJW]

When I was going to Sea, sometimes in the crew we had seamen who had sailed on the Great Lakes, when they told of storms, some of the crew could not understand how a Lake could become so rough and doubted them, as most people's idea of a lake is a placid body of shallow water measured in acres, whereas the Great Lakes can be characterised as Inland Seas, with their own peculiarities in bad weather, and cannot be worked or handled like a Deep Sea Vessel. In general a Lake or Deep Sea vessel loaded with Iron Ore, if in a storm and has no water or enough water under her midship chances are that ship will fold up like a Pocket Knife so it's claimed, even during loading, great care must be taken to prevent permanent damage to the ship.

 

[jkalchik]

Bell tolls for Edmund Fitzgerald



http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/11/13/fitzgerald.anniversary.ap/index.html

 

[bulabula]

Thanks for the url and reminder. I grew up on the Detroit and St. Clair rivers in Michigan, and have spent a decent amount of time at sea and have ridden through a few pretty good storms, but whenever I hear Gordon Lightfoots song, my eyes well up for those sailors and families.



A very very good friend of mine's uncle was the first Captain of the Edmund Fitzgerald; she said he cried when he received the news that the Fitzgerald went down.

 

[Andy Perreault]

November 11th is the anniversary of the "Armistice Day Storm of 1940. " That storm sent a few ships to the bottom. My mother grew up in Ludington, Michigan, and her Grandfather was a captain on Lake Michigan on a railroad car ferry. She remembers that storm as a schoolgirl. She wrote up her memories of the storm here if you're interested in reading about it.

Andy

 

[bulabula]

Andy, good article thanks. I grew up with Pere Marquette Railcar Ferries between Port Huron, MI and Sarnia, ON. There are LOTS of ships littering the bottom of the Great Lakes.

 

[Andy Perreault]

Andy, good article thanks. I grew up with Pere Marquette Railcar Ferries between Port Huron, MI and Sarnia, ON. There are LOTS of ships littering the bottom of the Great Lakes.

Glad you enjoyed the article. My Great Grandfather was a captain on the Pere Marquette ferries. The last one he worked on was the P. M. 22. Even though I grew up in L. A. and I now live in Washington, I've always had a fascination with the nautical history of the Great Lakes. I remember as a kid visiting my Grandparents' house. It was like a nautical museum, full of pictures on the walls, nautical antiques, and artifacts. My Grandfather would stand there for hours, pointing out the ships and items and telling me the stories behind them.

Andy