What Happened to the Edmund Fitzgerald? The Great Lakes' Biggest Shipwreck
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- Опубліковано 29 вер 2022
- In 1975, the Edmund Fitzgerald sank without a distress call, after a strangely encouraging message from its captain. None of the crew survived to tell anyone what happened - but I found an expert to help me understand what we know, and what might have doomed this Great Lakes ship.
Many special thanks to Mike TenEyck for his endless insight, research, and hospitality as I learned about this story.
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More information on the Edmund Fitzgerald:
National Transportation Safety Board report (PDF): www.michiganseagrant.org/down...
Marine Casualty report (PDF): www.dco.uscg.mil/Portals/9/DC...
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#EdmundFitzgerald #GreatLakes #Michigan
Gordon Lightfoot, the Canadian singer who wrote "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald", died last week. He apparently was close to the families of the 29 who went down with the ship. As in his song, the sailor's church in Detroit rings it's bell 29 times for each man lost. Last week they rang it 30 times - adding Lightfoot as an honourary crew member. That's a tribute worth more than any gold statue. RIP to the crew of the Fitz and to Gordon - brothers all.
Fun fact: The Arthur M. Anderson is still in operation today (2022), and on the anniversary of the sinking of EF, she sounds out a master salute while pulling away from the docks.
I lived up by the lake when I was a kid. I was into ships a lot. I have armchair studied the Fitz and feel you need to look at the wreck itself. It looks like the bow plowed into the seabed. The visors above the bridge windows are bent down. I feel that she did what local mariners call a nosedive. A large wave comes up, it raises the stern of the ship up, the force of the wave plus the power of her own screws, push the bow into the seabed. This breaks her back, then her still turning screws flip the stern over. This would have taken just a few seconds to happen, hence her sudden disappearance and no SOS. I feel no one thing sunk her, the water that came into her hold was another factor, making her less able to "ride" the wave. Just before the Fitz disappeared, the Anderson was hit by a large rouge wave from behind. She survived due to being smaller and lighter than the Fitz. I was told that she rests on the lake floor at a depth that is less than her length. So this is what I believe, but what do I know?
Rest in peace, Gordon Lightfoot! Your legend will live on in Minnesota and beyond!
They didn't lose a hatch cover, all of them were attached on the wreck when she was found. She bottomed out by Caribou that's what caused her to take on water. A huge wave which the Arthur M Anderson experienced caught up with the Fitzgerald and due to the amount of water she had took on and her already low level in the water she took a nosedive. No disrespect but this guy is talking nonsense. I'll take the opinions of Captain's who sailed on similar ships on the Great Lakes for decades.
Great video! I'm fortunate to call Mike, "Dad". I know you are aware, that you could have made a full length documentary from the knowledge that he has on the subject! It has been fun and interesting to me to watch him investigate and evolve his theories through the years. I am still awestruck by the amount of knowledge he has on the subject and have encouraged him to write a book on the Edmund Fitzgerald. But Dad being humble just says, "I do this for fun, beside no one would find this interesting and read it." You did a great job covering the subject and telling the story. I enjoyed the graphics and production of the story that I have heard for so many years!
This might have already been mentioned, but Gordon Lightfoot donated all proceeds of the sales of the song to the families of the crew. That was a very big hit. #1 in Canada and #2 in the US.
I first heard of the 'Edmund Fitzgerald' in 1977, via Gordon Lightfoot's ballad. I was about 13 years old, and started looking in our local libraries for old newspaper articles that may have a story about the ship. I never found anything but my interest in the tragedy stuck with me because of that song. When I finally got to read the story, some ten years after I heard the song, I was deeply saddened. And the song took on an even deeper meaning for me. It still brings a tear to my eye.
My personal (non-professional, of course) opinion based on the known facts and the visible damage to her bow and pilot house where she lays at the bottom of the lake, is that as she was floundering with a list a very large wave washed over her from the stern, pushing her bow downward into the water. Due to her being weighed down by the access water in her holds, she was unable to recover and essentially took a nose-dive straight into the bottom of the lake. Being that she's in 500 ft. of water and she was well over 700 ft. in length, her stern was lifted out of the water as this happened, which is why it tore away from the bow section and sank upside-down in almost in the same spot, with nothing but iron ore debris and her torn up mid-section separating it from the bow. I can't think of anything else that would explain a) the apparent impact she shows to her pilot house and bow section and the way her two sections are oriented at the bottom of the lake, and b) the lack of any sort of distress call. It would have been too sudden for any kind of reaction from the crew.
I was 7 years old when she went down and I lived in Superior, Wis and I cried that day because I didn't know if my father was on the Fitz and that storm was violent that day! I knew a kid that lost his father on the Fitz so Nov 10th i always am reminded of the Fitzgerald going down on that terrible day😢
Hi. I’m a sailor on the lakes myself, and if you don’t mind I’d like to add my two cents here. People in my region who are involved with shipping believe a common theory that the vessel sank due to the three sisters (in a way). Yes, the waves were high already, but these ships are designed to withstand those wave. The Fitz sank in 500+/- feet of water, while she herself was 728ft long. It’s theorized that one of these “three sisters” waves hit her from the stern, and the vessel hit the bottom at her bow, also causing the hatch covers to cave in under the pressure of the water. She then snapped in two in her current resting spot, having never fully resurfaced. Personally, I believe the Fitz did something similar to the Titanic. Her bow snapped off first and came to rest at the bottom, while her stern bobbed about for a short while before capsizing and sinking to the bottom, hence why the stern section is upside down, and her bow is upright.
The Mighty Fitz sank on my 6th birthday. I remember it like yesterday. A friend of mine said I would’ve been too young to remember this; I replied, “if you were conscious of news events, regardless of age, and lived along the Great Lakes as did my family, you know this story.” RIP to the 29: never forgotten.
Nice video. Good to emphasize the fact that - no matter why their ship sank - the men lost their lives and their relatives lost loved ones. So sad.
When I was young we lived in the Detroit area, where the Fitz was launched. My father took me to the launching. She was launched sideways. A huge wave came our way. Luckily my dad knew what would happen and got us in a train coal car. I have pictures of the event. The day she went down I was attending classes at Michigan Technology university, near lake superior. The wind was so strong that day you lost your breath if you walked into the wind. Yesterday Gordon Lightfoot died. His song of the event still bring a tear to my eyes.
Gordon Lightfoot recorded his classic song "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" a mere month after the tragedy. It was released in the Summer of 1976 reaching Number 1 in both the United States and Canada. Everybody in North America was familiar with this song. I have to assume that this publicity put pressure on the shipping industry to "clean up its act," and start conducting itself in a more responsible and safe manner. I just discovered this UA-cam channel in the last hour or two. FANTASTIC!
A terrific and respectful presentation, Alexis. I was a 14 year-old boy who delivered the Detroit Free Press and Detroit News to people's doorsteps when this happened. I will never forget the headlines in the Free Press and the News the day the sinking was discovered. And I will never forget seeing pictures of the crew that was lost at sea. Mike TenEyck's explanation and his last words were terrific. When I look out on the freighters prowling Lake Huron in Northern Michigan, I always remember the story of the Edmund Fitzgerald and the men lost at sea. I've told this story to my children who now understand the power of these great lakes.
I have been following this story since the day it happened. When you said you had an expert, I immediately got ready to rebut some guy who claims to know it all about this tragedy because they are all over the place. I am pleased to say that you got the right guy. Nice video.
A thought struck me about "We're holding our own".
The ship's max load rating was repeatedly raised over the years. So less freeboard and more stress than it was designed for. Add in a loose keel and a monster storm and I think that's what did her in. Also there is a long history of hatch covers not being properly secured on the ships operating on the lakes, often when rough weather is expected.
I remember covering this story in my documentary writing class in college and also for my "Canadian Popular Folk music" class with the Gordon Lightfoot ballad about the wreck