Found After 80 Years at the Bottom of Lake Superior: SS Arlington
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- Опубліковано 15 чер 2024
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Recommended Reading:
The Only Way to Cross by John Maxtone-Graham: amzn.to/3IlHI8c
The Liner by Philip Dawson: amzn.to/3UZLafW
On a Sea of Glass: The Life & Loss of the RMS Titanic by Tad Fitch, Kent Layton and, Bill Wormstedt: amzn.to/4c1fahR
A Night to Remember by Walter Lord: amzn.to/3SXHU2b
Sources:
True Tales of the Great Lakes by Dwight Boyer
www.nytimes.com/2024/02/12/us...
shipwreckmuseum.com/discovery...
Music sourced from Epidemic Sound (www.epidemicsound.com/referra...)
Exit Fade by DEX 1200: www.epidemicsound.com/track/I...
The Golden Spiral by Yi Nanturo: www.epidemicsound.com/track/0...
Last Word - Stripped Version by Or Chausha: artlist.io/royalty-free-music...
Tracker by Christoffer Moe Ditlevsen: www.epidemicsound.com/track/g...
Lost the Moment by Or Chausha: artlist.io/royalty-free-music...
Grass on the Grave by Sage Oursler: www.epidemicsound.com/track/r...
Sumerian Paradise by Dew of Light: www.epidemicsound.com/track/y...
Oceanside by Night by Particle House: www.epidemicsound.com/track/p...
Video sources:
The Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society: vimeo.com/909458070
catalog.archives.gov/
www.loc.gov/
archive.org/details/prelinger
www.pond5.com/
Chapters:
00:00 SS Arlington
1:39 Chapter 1: A Family Business
5:06 Chapter 2: Tatey Bug
9:07 Chapter 3: We're Sinking
12:01 Chapter 4: Down Below
15:14 Chapter 5: What Was He Thinking?
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Weather it was a medical emergency that made his decisions irrational or intentional self- retirement, I am very greatful the rest of the crew survived.
Amen to that!
I agree. It sounds like he wasn’t there mentally
He was over 50? If he was not drunk, then it may have been an onset of Alzheimer or other form of dementia or maybe an anomaly in blood circulation in his brains. We will probably never find out.
Whether, not weather.
Most likely Captain Burke was suffering from a stroke.
I wonder if he suffered a stroke? The shuffling, mumbling, etc., seems to point to something like that.
I was thinking that as well. 👍👍👍👍
What I was thinking...my dad had a stroke and he lost some logical thinking during it but seemed okay at first
Stroke recognition was not very good back then, so that's as good as guess as any. Some sort of mental breakdown would also be a candidate. The crew was lucky to survive that.
I bet you’re right because I sure know what it feels like and how it effects you at least in general terms.
While watching the video, that was my thought as well. Looked outwardly fine but his mannerisms and actions grossly changed.
As somebody who works in the medical field, It sounds like he might have had a Stroke. This would impair his thinking and explain why he did not respond to his crew.
The description sure sounds like the lead into a stroke.
It might be only a remote possibility but could a TBI of some kind do the same thing? Like say a self inflicted small caliber gunshot wound to the head that wasn’t obvious in the dark and hectic conditions? I saw a video of a msn who was shot just below the eye and had a small caliber bullet in his brain who was being interviewed by police and he honestly looked and sounded like a confused drunk or high person with a black eye….the detectives didn’t even notice his gunshot wound and call medics until almost an hour into interrogating him.
Why have you got such a hard on for the captain topping himself ? This is your 2nd comment trying to push that narrative.
Lake Superior is not so much a lake as it is a freshwater ocean. The first thing I learned being at the lake is that you do not turn your back on it. The second thing I learned was to not underestimate it. Even in summer the waters are cold. The waves can go from placid to breaking in the course of a few minutes. The lake almost seems alive, and even seems to have a pulse. I gained a whole new respect for sailers and others who brave the waters, and I never left the beach! They have to be somewhere betweeen enlightened and stark raving mad!
Sounds like he was suffering from a stroke would definitely explain the behaviour
In aviation there's a phenomenon called "Getthereitus" or "Gethomeitus" where a pilot will be so concerned with the need to "get there" or "get home" that they seemingly ignore all other factors telling them that they cannot get there or get home. The weather won't allow it, or the plane is incapable of flying the route, or the pilot lacks the skill and experience to do it. But the pilot bulls on ahead regardless because they have become completely tunnel visioned on the need to get to their initial destination, and a lot of the time where they end up is crashed into the ground and dead.
This sounds to me like one of those cases.
Glad someone else thought of this!
Ditto long haul truckers.
Also remember to add to the personal ambitions and reputations of captains the fact that many company's (air, ship, truck, and train) dispatchers have yearly bonuses at stake and that creates a recipe for disaster.
As a pilot for his whole post WW2 life my father had the ability to ground whatever flight he captained. I saw him actually threaten to ground a full airliner due to his own walk around preflight inspection, which was not required, but Dad always did his own walk around. They checked and inflated a soft tire. Then he flew the flight.
As a truck driver I had the right to refuse to haul any load and did refuse several routes my dispatcher told me to drive. Upon arrival at one of our company's yards the other drivers asked me if I'd taken the "short cut" my dispatcher had told me to take. I was a new driver, but not green to the world of push push push. I told them I hadn't because I can read a topo map.
They told me my dispatcher had killed a driver the previous year by insisting he drive that route.
That poor guy lost his life because he was reluctant to go against the dispatcher.
If you don't think your bosses will kill you for profit, think again.
Thank heaven the crew survived.
There are seriously ill people hauling 80,000 lbs on roads right now, flying non scheduled airplanes and whatever else is moving freight/passengers. Watch yourselves.
@@shelleymarquis2887 That is one of the best comments I have ever read on YT. Thanks.
Companies do not care about their people. We are all just "human resources", to be used to meet company goals.
target fixation
I stick to the stroke theory.
It surely is a possibility - but the captain was mumbling and staying in his cabin as much as he could.
This change in behaviour doesn't line up with getthereitis.
Dwight Boyer of Cleveland covered "The Enigma of Tatey Bug Burke" in his 1971 book True Tales of the Great Lakes. Whie researching, he contacted the Midland, Ontario, newspaper where I worked, asking for information from the official enquirty of the Arlington foundering. My wife Daphne and I gave hime everything we could find about it, and he thanked us by coming to Midland and taking us out to dinner! If Dwight was still with us, I'm sure he would welcome the news that the wreck has been found after all these years.
I don't usually click on UA-cam notifications, but Big Old Boats seems to be the exception! Cheers to you and your team!
Me too-your channel’s great! Thanks!
Me too. Excellent channel @@tundrawomansays694
I got to see a presentation by Dan Fountain, who located the wreck, last weekend. He speculated that the captain had a heart issue since there was a family history, and the last photos of him showed a man who looked far older than his actual age.
Fun fact- Dan and the museum folks thought they had located the Bannockburn, until the ROV lit up the name board on the stern.
Small brain hemmorage? Can cause unusual behaviour.
I too thought some acute illness. Especially as he wasn't communicating and wanting to take to his bed. It wouldn't have been seasickness, even.
Perhaps Alzheimer or other form of dementia in relatively early stages or maybe an anomaly in blood circulation in his brains
Manic Depression. Classic.
Drunk. 😂 Geniuses.
@@redtobertshateshandles A Captain wouldn't go to work drunk. His crew would also know if the Captain was drunk.
Wow. This was exceptionally interesting, especially with the wreck being found so recently. I, like others, suspect the captain had suffered a stroke or other cerebral damage. I'll raise a glass to the crew and to the captain, and to the lake that "never gives up her dead." Thanks very much.
I really appreciate the way you speak clearly and at a moderate speed with no hysterics. Very professional. Bless you.
Interesting.
Knowing the way Lake Superior preserves bodies, I wonder if the Captain is still there and what an autopsy might reveal.
If he wasn’t washed out of the wheelhouse as it went down, then there’s some evidence of him still in there somewhere.
There were bodies on the bridge of the MS Estonia after it went down for some years. Probably still are.
When he is still with her, his Body probably got preserved trough adipoceration.
However, I think it's unlikely one could find something that detailed.
I would let him rest there as he went down with her alone.
@@rosemiller417 Like 'Old Whitey' on the SS Kamloops, turned to a waxy-soap from almost a century under the waters of Lake Superior.
I was heading toward some rough water this Saturday morning, but Big Old Boats steered me to a mellow harbor. Thanks B.O.B. 👍😁
Just the person you needed to help you get ship shape!
@@caseking3656 ☺️🤟😊👍
Good choice 👌👍
Best reply I’ve seen in a while!
when they discovered it every structure of the ship still intact under 600ft+ deep.
Could the captain possibly suffered a small aneurism?
That would explain his bizarre behavior
Or then, maybe a stroke, or an anomaly in brains blood circulation or maybe early stages of Alzheimer or other dementia. He may also have had a brain tumor right in the wrong place.
Like Joe Biden?
@@mastercontrol469 If my source of information is correct, it is now confirmed by objective sources that Biden has actually fallen ill with dementia (I am not surprised at all). That would mean he cannot be allowed to run a second term but requires permanent medical assistance for whatever years alive he has left.
@@mastercontrol469basically
@@mastercontrol469Yep! Or Mitch McConnell.
God, that image you described of Capt. Burke sadly waving goodbye to the crew as his ship sank, is probably one of the saddest things I've ever heard. :'(
The captain probably went down with the ship out of guilt since he told them to get back on their original course
It’s not so much guilt as knowing that you made the critical mistake. Going down with the ship makes sure that you don’t have to deal with the consequences. It also kind of helps redeem your name a bit in the eyes of the public. That way your family, particularly any children you may have, don’t end up as the children of disgraced former captain whose bad decisions sank his ship, they at least end up as the children of the gallant captain who stayed at his post right till the bitter end. And in Burke’s case in particular, it meant he didn’t have to go back and face his two brothers. After all, they trusted him and he destroyed the best ship in their fleet. Given that this was still the tail end of the Great Depression, that this loss probably caused their business severe financial hardship if it didn’t outright bankrupt it, and that the loss was clearly his fault, the resulting fights could well have torn the family apart. He may have also recognized that if he died in the wreck, his brothers might get some sympathetic treatment from their creditors
Maybe it is the other way round. He was suicidal and wanted to die.
@@augustosolari7721and try and take everyone on the ship with him? Not entirely impossible but doubtful.
Possibly it was just a case of "get-there-its"
@@michaelimbesi2314 I agree. Also there's the adage about not speaking ill of the dead, so he will mostly be spoken of reverently, The classic 'Captain Going Down With His Ship'. If an inquiry is conducted into the sinking, well, he's not here to answer any questions, so we're probably not going to ask too many of those questions.
Hopefully, the ship was insured. If memory serves, aren't there clauses like, if its an 'Act of God' insurance pays, but if its negligence / recklessness, insurance doesn't pay; so, the Captain is not here to answer any questions, therefore the ship sunk due to an 'Act of God' (bad weather) or something like that perhaps?
@@charliekezza It's "get-there-itis," not "get-there-its."
It sounds like the Captain suffered some sort of medical emergency. Poor guy. I wonder if he really understood what was happening to him (and around him)
As a commercial airline pilot we are trained in CRM (crew resource management)….ships and their command authority are similar in their need for teamwork oriented decision process’ to produce the best outcome. It seems shipping happens at a slower pace and can lull skippers into a false comfort as conditions worsen and options fade quickly…lots of aviation lessons learned from these old shipping stories. Thanks for the excellent content.
Had CRM training been a thing back then, we probably wouldn't be watching this video now.
Big props to the ship that picked the guys up in 15 minutes! That captain was Jonny on the spot.
They actually recovered and delivered the every last bushel of wheat . Fulfilling Tatey Bug’s hardline stance on delivery at all costs.
I'm sure that was huge consolation to the families
How could waterlogged wheat be recoverable after 80 years on the bottom of the Lake? or how could there be any wheat left , washed away and eaten by the fish? IDK anything about Great Lakes shipping, I just discovered this subject on You Tube. Thank you.
Great video. Growing up and going to school in Wyandotte, where the Arlington was built, freighter watching was a favorite past time of many. In the 60's my Grandfather would take us to Bishop Park to watch the big old boats. Seemed like they went by every few minutes back then. Grandpa would clip the vessel passages from page 2 of the Detroit papers and keep it in his pocket.
I like that little insert from “A Night To Remember”. 👍 Another well done video - very interesting & informative. Your work always impresses me. Cheers
I was hoping for a short clip from "Titanic" instead. Jack and Rose down in the cargo hold with a Model T filled with grain.
I got interviewed for the local radio when the Arlington was discovered. fascinating story and mystery that I'd only heard in passing before it was found.
Great video!
It's an absolute miracle that all of the crew were saved (except the captain, of course).
I agree with the commenters who suspect that the captain may have suffered a stroke.
I think it most likely that the captain had a stroke.
Yes! The SS Arlington. This is the one I've been waiting for since it was first discovered a couple of weeks ago.
This leads me to one of my morbid curiosity questions; are the captains remains still on the bridge? I'm always curious what becomes of crew in the cold of Superior.
Having seen the initial release from the shipwreck hunters I was hoping for a programme which would tell us the story of this incident. Thank you.
Having seen your account, I was wondering if Captain Burke had had a stroke or similar incident, and a number of your correspondents clearly think the same. Poor man; may he rest in peace. I suspect that the First Mate would have had his hands full already in coping with the crisis, without wondering if he should usurp the Captain's authority as well. He and his crew all did exceptionally well in such a crisis.
Sounds like captain Burke had a stroke or something. Tha chief mate should have took over command of the ship.
Last Week, when I saw the discovery of the Arlington on the (TV) news, I thought: "I wonder how long B.O.B. will take to do a segment on it's back story? I bet its You Tuber is on it right now!" And sure enough, it appeared, and so soon! Thanks so much for such a fine job.
Captain Burke must've gone insane some time before they sailed.
Thanks goodness the other ship was there or else it could have been another Fitzgerald.
I'm also surprised that they would discover the wreck at this time (Winter) of year, knowing Superior's reputation. And evidently it's too warm this year for ice.
But did they find Burke himself in the wheelhouse, or his bones if he wasn't in fact in the legendary "waxy" or "soapy" state?
A story very well told. It sounds like the Captain was at the ball bearings in a matchbox stage mentally.
The waters and her mysteries. Thanks man.
Grizzled old captain trusts his ship more than weather forecasts. His ship is found at the bottom of the lake.
This has been my Ted talk.
Fantastic work as always, Brad. I appreciate the detail you put into these stories I've never heard of. It's always as if I truly experience it personally.
Ya never know what goes through people's heads.
I had a friend who was a retired laker. He'd been having problems with his legs and after seeing a doctor he was told he might lose his ability to walk. a few days later he got up one morning, dressed and walked down to the river and drowned himself.
Woohoo!! Way to make my Saturday🎉🎉🎉🎉
Thank you so much for consistently offering great content. Much appreciated, my friend.
Excellent video! Such a sad story. What a very scary event for the crew. You wonder how they could go right back out there with those memories in their minds, and the same for the families as well. It's great to see this story told in such a thoughtful way. Thank you for your wonderful videos and all your efforts!
My Dad, Lloyd Amundson sailed on The Great Lakes out of Duluth 1943-45 on Henry J. Ford, he spoke often of how the weather could change in an instant. They were sailing out of Buffalo the day President Roosevelt died.
Reminds me of Captain Davidson's behavior during the last voyage of the El Faro.....
Captain Davidson's behavior was moreso reliant on "gethereitis" and using outdated weather information.
Captain Burke's behavior seems to have been caused by a brain aneurysm or outright stroke.
Sounds like old Tatey was just done livin.
These are such great videos! The narrator has a perfect voice for the stories he tells. Thank you!
Thank you, Bradley!
Thanks for another excellent episode!
Great work BoB. Glad to hear the crew made it off safely.
As a Michigander, I love these stories.
The poet in me smells a possibility here...The Legend of Tatey Bug Burke. 🤔⚓
It seems as though the Captain "checked out' mentally. The crew was at the mercy of someone who was incapacitated. The fear must have been palpable.
Thanks again for the content
I have a new phobia thanks to all of your Great Lakes videos.
Sir, you have a very pleasant calming effect of your voice. Nice video, very enjoyable.
A story worth telling, and well narrated.
Best UA-cam channel
That's remarkable that the Arlington was found recently. As for Tatey Bug, sorry not sorry, but I'm about to come down on him like a pile of rocks in a landslide. I don't know what was going through his head that day, but it's clear that he really dropped the ball on this one, ESPECIALLY after you mentioned the previous wrecks he'd been in, none of which were his fault, and how heroically he acted in them. Deliberately steering this little old ship into a roaring gale when it's weighed down by cargo so much to the point that its already shallow freeboard is only *3-and-a-half-feet* above the waterline, when everyone else who had their heads screwed on right could see that that was stupid and were all in favor of steering further away to hug the coastline and avoid the full brunt of the storm is inexcusable. He must've had some brain damage, and it honestly sounds like it. If that were the case, then you have a cognitively impaired, incapable and incompetent captain on your hands. A recipe for disaster. Mind you, I'm giving him the benefit of the doubt here, in suggesting that maybe something was just wrong with him and not something else more stupid or even sinister. Nonetheless, as far as I'm concerned, his brothers made a mistake convincing him to join them.
wow! this is all quite very local to me in geography. Very great video!
I love your channel so much.
Interesting video.
Thanks 👍
One of the best Historical documentaries I've seen on UA-cam!
Congrats🎉
You are one of the best storytellers on You Tube!
Well done once again my Friend, thank you.
Such a very strange tale... some onset of dementia perhaps?
One must wonder what was going on in the Captain's personal and professional life. He was reluctant to join his brothers in the family business. Who knows the state of the business at that time, as well. His unusual behavior leads one to think he was suffering from a medical issue, or may have been dealing with a mental health crisis. Apart from this, I'm surprised First Officer Maxey did not relieve the Captain of duty, and take charge. Possibly he was concerned with loss of his job, and loyalty to Burke kept him from doing so. Thankfully the Collingwood was at hand. Quite an interesting story.
Macksey did a brilliant job in ensuring the safety and survival of those onboard (and thank God the Collingwood was close by too) but I wonder why he didn't take the opportunity to relieve the Captain of his command when it became increasingly clear that he wasn't mentally able to effect command of his ship?
At that point was too late way out in the open.
ONCE AGAIN, A TRIUMPH!!! GEORGIA LOVES YA'LL ❤️
He probably had some medical thing happen to him. This is a mystery, like The Big Fitz and the hundreds of other shipwrecks
Great video! However, did your microphone change? I usually watch these videos with my BT headphones, but I'm using wired today - I don't know if it the headphones or the mic but the audio quality is phenominal!
I saw this on the discovery on the news and wondered how long before I saw her story❤❤
Thanks great story
Great Channel! This kind of stuff is what UA-cam was invented for! 😎
Nice documentary.⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Dude was dealing with something in a society that would not tolerate it
Can’t imagine a ship being built in my old hometown of Wyandotte. That fact surprised me
Great videos. Is that you Kip?
3.5 feet of freeboard is insane to take out in any poor weather on Superior.
Very Interesting. A real success story that with the exception of the Captain, the crew survived
That was a weird one. He seemed like a laid back responsible captain. And the crew remained loyal to his orders. Great that they survived
9:18 : the music is very reminiscent of Ennio Morriconne's soundtrack for The thing.
An incredible mystery indeed.
When I heard about the Arlington being found I was just waiting for this video to appear in my recommended
New video! Today is a good day.
Great video, don't mess with the Gales of November ever.
Their is a fantastic story on the Great Lakes regarding the 2 Boblo boats. You might want to do a documentary on them?
It was May 1st.
@garyszewc3339 Yes, I was referring to how violent Lake Superior is.
First mate should have assumed command, declaring to the crew a medical emergency for the captain. But it was a different era back then. With a do and do not list of things varying from boat to boat, and captain to captain. While it is sad he went down with arlington, medical emergency or not, he did so with great courage and honor. Seeing his crew rescued and waving goodbye, at the helm doing what he obviously loved to do. Captain of his boat...
PLEASE do a video on the Rms Majestic 1922, you have done a video on each of her sisters and I believe she has the best story of them all, look into it please😊
Big old BOAT 🚢 Join your utube videos are awesome my friend
I didn't know grain could be so dangerous. I've heard of silos burning and exploding, but I didn't know it could swell and burst bulkhead.
Cool thing is you can cruise the Great lakes once again like laker size cruise ships I would love to go around The Gails of November😊😂🎉❤❤❤
It's gales. And it happened May 1st.
I stand corrected: that's "Old Whitey" on the wreck of the S.S. Kamloops? Is "he" for real?
Burke reminds me of Capt Queeg of the Caine Mutiny
The one thing that is clear is that the Captain was having some kind of medical emergency, I agree it sounds most like a stroke. He was obviously too incapacitated to do much besides occasionally leaving his room.
He may have felt something was wrong with him and wanted to get to shore as soon as possible without admitting the reason. But he just kept deteriorating as time passed.
It’s tragic that the officers felt they could not do what needed to be done. When it was apparent the Captain was incapacitated, the second in command should have just taken over.
The Captain was probably so disoriented by the end, and so ill, that he simply did not understand he was about to die.
I am so relieved the crew did not have to pay the ultimate price for the Captain’s mistakes.
It’ll be interesting if the captain body is still inside, assuming it didn’t get washed or floated out by the time the ship it bottom (think it’s at 650 feet). Probably pretty well preserved, with all things considered.
Owen sound elevators have no unloading equipment. Load only port
Legend has it the crew was in fear of their lives and took matters into their own hands
It kind of seems like the captain was severely depressed/suicidal. Is it possible he suffered a midlife crisis at the worst possible time and went totally numb to everything, then decided he'd rather die than deal with the fallout from his actions?
It is more likely that the captain had a stroke than that he had a mental crisis.
The shuffling, mumbling and incoherent speech suggests some kind of brain bleed or stroke. Would explain the unusual behaviour
The stroke theory makes more sense.
I'm old, and you may not believe it if young, but in those days, people weren't self-indulgent enough to cultivate depressive thoughts, emotions, and attitudes. It wasn't a thing.
Adversity was faced, as was hard work. Responsibility was taken on. People called on inner strength instead of feeling sad/whining as a career and as an identity defining characteristic and behavior pattern.
It is part of a luxurious, selfish lifestyle to indulge in depressive and/or suicidal fantasies rather than to just carry out one's responsibilities in life.
In old days, people didn't expect a bed of roses, go off the deep end when life was hard or challenging.
Ahhhh so instead y'all were "self indulgent" only in some medical conditions... What a dangerous way of thinking.
18:35 you get to see a few glimpses underwater at the ship.
I like big old boats
That WAS a weird one
The crew needed to relieve him of command and confine him to quarters, then head in and get the Capt. to a hospital. But it’s incredibly hard to do that, and could be considered mutiny.
The captains of the ships in those days had way too much power.
I would say that he definitely had some kind of a medical issue that was affecting his judgment and ability to think reasonably. That obviously did something to his situational awareness.
The fact that he entered the bridge gave an order and then retreated to his cabin, especially in the midst of a storm doesn't make any sense at all.
Or possibly maybe he just wanted to die. And put himself in a situation that would not only assure him that he would die but also that he could make sure his crew would have a chance of surviving. The scenario that unfolded here is definitely one that would allow both of those things to happen.
For whatever reason you chose to die RIP Captain