(CBS DETROIT) – The sinking of the S.S. Edmund Fitzgerald in Lake Superior occurred on November 10, 1975.
Details About the Edmund Fitzgerald
The Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum notes that the Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company of Milwaukee enlisted the Great Lakes Engineering Works of Ecorse to build the largest Great Lakes bulk carrier.
The ship, named after the President and Chairman of the Board of Northwestern Mutual, was launched on June 8, 1958. It transported taconite from Silver Bay, Minnesota, to the Detroit and Toledo area.
With a length of 729 feet and weighing 13,632 gross tons, the ship was the largest on the Great Lakes until 1971.
The Day the Edmund Fitzgerald Sank in Lake Superior
Loaded with 26,116 long tons of taconite pellets, the Fitzgerald departed Superior, Wisconsin, around 2:30 p.m. on Thursday, November 9.
During the journey, the Fitzgerald was in communication with another ship, the Arthur M. Anderson, which had left Two Harbors, Minnesota.
The decision to navigate between Isle Royale and Keweenaw Peninsula due to an approaching storm was made because the Fitzgerald was faster than the Anderson.
Despite terrible weather conditions, the captains had experience sailing through similar situations. At around 3:30 p.m., Captain McSorley communicated damage to the ship and requested the Anderson to stay close until they reached Whitefish Point.
Later, at 6:55 p.m., a wave hit the rear of the ship, causing it to sink. The Fitzgerald lost contact with the Anderson at 7:10 p.m. before disappearing from radar five minutes later. Searching for survivors, the Anderson found only lifeboats and debris, with no survivors found among the 29 men on board.
Gordon Lightfoot and the “Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” Song
Canadian folk icon Gordon Lightfoot immortalized the tragic story of the Edmund Fitzgerald’s sinking in his 1975 song, “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.”
Lightfoot passed away earlier this year, on Monday, May 1, at the age of 84.
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