The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald

Today, November 10, 2021, marks the 46th anniversary of the wreck of the S.S. Edmund Fitzgerald and the loss of her 29 crew in a ferocious storm on Lake Superior. 

Video: Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald by Gordon Lightfoot (with clips from a breaking news broadcast and radio transmission between the S.S. Arthur M. Anderson and the Coast Guard:

 https://youtu.be/C0Nk7Ou6YUg

Original studio recording: 

https://youtu.be/FuzTkGyxkYI

S.S. Edmund Fitzgerald - By the Numbers 

• Length: 729 feet

• Height: 39 feet

• Breadth: 75 feet

• Weight empty: 13,632 tons

• Hull: 301

• Registry number: US 277437

• Ship Builder: Great Lakes Engineering Works

• Engine Manufacturer: Westinghouse Electric Corporation

• Christened: June 8, 1958

• First voyage: Sept. 24, 1958

• Final resting place: Lake Superior, about 530 ft underwater

• Sinking: November 10, 1975 with no survivors [29 men died]

• For more information: check out the National Transportation Safety Board Marine Accident Report

Facts about the Fitz, Crew, and the Lakes:

• The Fitzgerald was named after Edmund Fitzgerald, president of Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company.

• The Edmund Fitzgerald foundered only 17 miles from the "safe haven" of Whitefish Point.

• The Fitzgerald was headed from Superior, Wisconsin to Zug Island on the Detroit River when it sank on November 10, 1975.

• The Fitzgerald broke her own records for most cargo carried in one year several times in the short 17 year lifespan of the ship.

• Robert Rafferty wasn't even originally scheduled to be on the ship! He was filling in for someone with bleeding ulcers.

• The final voyage of the Edmund Fitzgerald was planned as Captain McSorley's final voyage before retirement.

• Gitche Gumee is Ojibwa for "Big Lake."

Source: https://ssedmundfitzgerald.org/the-ship

 https://youtu.be/C0Nk7Ou6YUg

Radio transmission between the U.S. Coast Guard at the Sault Ste. Marie station and Capt. Jesse Cooper from the S.S. Arthur M. Anderson which had been trailing the Fitzgerald until it was lost. 

Transcript:

CONVERSATION AT 3:30 P.M. ON NOV. 10, 1975

3:30 p.m. The Fitzgerald's captain, Ernest McSorley, calls the nearby freighter Aurthur M. Anderson's captain, Jesse Cooper, to report damage and say his ship would slow to let Anderson catch up. Minutes later, the U.S. Coast Guard issues directions for all ships to find safe anchorage because the Soo Locks have been closed.

McSorley: “Anderson, this is the Fitzgerald. I have sustained some topside damage. I have a fence rail laid down, two vents lost or damaged, and a list. I’m checking down. Will you stay by me til I get to Whitefish?”

Cooper: “Charlie on that Fitzgerald. Do you have your pumps going?”

McSorley: "Yes, both of them."

CONVERSATION AT 5:30 P.M. ON NOV. 10, 1975

5:30 p.m. Fitzgerald is advised by Swedish ship Avafors the Whitefish Point beacon and light are disabled by power failure.

Avafors: “Fitzgerald, this is the Avafors. I have the Whitefish light now but still am receiving no beacon. Over.”

Fitzgerald: “I’m very glad to hear it.”

Avafors: “The wind is really howling down here. What are the conditions where you are?”

Fitzgerald: (Undiscernable shouts overheard) “DON’T LET NOBODY ON DECK!”

Avafors: “What’s that, Fitzgerald? Unclear. Over.”

Fitzgerald: “I have a bad list, lost both radars. And am taking heavy seas over the deck. One of the worst seas I’ve ever been in.”

Avafors: “If I’m correct, you have two radars.”

Fitzgerald: "They're both gone

FINAL CONVERSATION ON NOV. 10, 1975

7:10 p.m. Anderson calls Fitzgerald with navigation instructions. The ship is about 10 miles behind the doomed freighter.

Anderson: “Fitzgerald, this is the Anderson. Have you checked down?”

Fitzgerald: “Yes we have.”

Anderson: “Fitzgerald, we are about 10 miles behind you, and gaining about 1 1/2 miles per hour. Fitzgerald, there is a target 19 miles ahead of us. So the target would be 9 miles on ahead of you.”

Fitzgerald: “Well, am I going to clear?”

Anderson: “Yes. He is going to pass to the west of you.”

Fitzgerald: “Well, fine.”

Anderson: “By the way, Fitzgerald, how are you making out with your problem?”

Fitzgerald: “We are holding our own.”

Anderson: "Okay, fine. I'll be talking to you later."

7:15 p.m. Fitzgerald disappears from Anderson radar. More than an hour later, the Coast Guard begins an active search. The 29 crew members aboard all perish.

Source: https://www.mlive.com/news/2020/11/wreck-of-the-edmund-fitzgerald-photos-of-the-great-lakes-most-famous-ship.html

Through the Eyes of Captain Cooper: The Night the Edmund Fitzgerald Went Down  https://youtu.be/3VXY6tuZ5eU

Years After the Sinking, Edmund Fitzgerald Sinking Still Haunts Diver (video includes rare footage of the wreck)

The Crew

1. Michael E. Armagost

Born: October 14, 1938

Hometown: Iron River, Wisconsin

Job aboard: Third Mate

2. Frederick J. Beetcher

Born: February 24, 1919

Hometown: Superior, Wisconsin

Job aboard: Porter

3. Thomas D. Bentsen

Born: January 10, 1952

Hometown: St. Joseph, Michigan

Job aboard: Oiler

4. Edward F. Bindon

Born: January 7, 1928

Hometown: Fairport Harbor, Ohio

Job aboard: First Assistant Engineer

5. Thomas D. Borgeson

Born: November 26, 1934

Hometown: Duluth, Minnesota

Job aboard: Maintenance Man

6. Oliver J. "Buck" Champeau

Born: September 4, 1934

Hometown: Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin

Job aboard: Third Assistant Engineer

7. Nolan F. Church

Born: July 13, 1920

Hometown: Silver Bay, Minnesota

Job aboard: Porter

8. Ransom E. CundyBorn: May 16, 1922

Hometown: Superior, Wisconsin

Job aboard: WatchmanBio: https://ssedmundfitzgerald.org/ransom-e-cundy



9. Thomas E. Edwards

Born: February 28, 1925

Hometown: Oregon, Ohio

Job aboard: Second Assistant Engineer
10. Russell G. Haskell

Born: May 19, 1935

Hometown: Millbury, Ohio

Job aboard: Second Assistant Engineer

11. George J. Holl

Born: March 11, 1915

Hometown: Cabot, Pennsylvania

Job aboard: Chief Engineer

12. Bruce L. Hudson

Born: September 10, 1953

Hometown: North Olmsted, Ohio

Job aboard: Deck Hand

13. Allen G. Kalmon

Born: February 7, 1932

Hometown: Washburn, Wisconsin

Job aboard: Second cook

14. Gordon F. MacLellan

Born: August 2, 1945

Hometown: Clearwater, Florida

Job aboard: Wiper

15. Joseph W. Mazes

Born: February 13, 1916

Hometown: Ashland, Wisconsin
16. John H. McCarthy

Born: July 14, 1913

Hometown: Bay Village, Ohio

Job aboard: First Mate

17. Captain Ernest M. McSorley

Born: September 29, 1912

Hometown: Toledo, Ohio

Job aboard: Captain


18. Eugene W. O'Brien

Born: July 17, 1925

Hometown: Toledo, Ohio

Job aboard: Wheelsman
19. Karl A. Peckol

Born: September 6, 1955

Hometown: Ashtabula, Ohio

Job aboard: Watchman

20. John J. Poviach

Born: June 6, 1916

Hometown: Bradenton, Florida

Job aboard: Wheelsman 

21. James A. Pratt

Born: January 29, 1931

Hometown: Lakewood, Ohio

Job aboard: Second Mate

22. Robert C. Rafferty

Born: June 16, 1913

Hometown: Toledo, Ohio

Job aboard: Steward/Cook

23. Paul M. Riippa

Born: August 15, 1953

Hometown: Ashtabula, Ohio

Job aboard: Deck Hand


24. John D. Simmons

Born: August 25, 1913

Hometown: Ashland, Wisconsin

Job aboard: Wheelsman


25. William J. Spengler

Born: September 11, 1916

Hometown: Toledo, Ohio

Job aboard: Watchman

26. Mark A. Thomas

Born: August 14, 1954

Hometown: Richmond Heights, Ohio

Job aboard: Deck Hand

27. Ralph G. Walton

Born: July 22, 1917

Hometown: Fremont, Ohio

Job aboard: Oiler

28. David E. Weiss

Born: November 13, 1953

Hometown: Agoura, California

Job aboard: Cadet

29. Blaine H. Wilhelm

Born: August 12, 1923

Hometown: Moquah, Wisconsin

Job aboard: Oiler