[2] The report concluded that these devices failed to prevent waves from inundating the cargo hold. During 1974, she lost her original bow anchor in the Detroit River. The wreck hasnt been visited since they removed the ships bell in 1994 and as of 2006 Canada will fine you up to $1.2M if you are within 500m of the wreck with any kind of submersible. [17] Originally coal-fired, her boilers were converted to burn oil during the 197172 winter layup. [175], Under maritime law, ships fall under the jurisdiction of the admiralty courts of their flag country. SS Edmund Fitzgerald (ogs kaldet Mighty Fitz, The Fitz og The Big Fitz) var et amerikansk fragtskib, som sejlede i Great Lakes-distriktet i Nordamerika. [119] Conjecture by proponents of the Six Fathom Shoal hypothesis concluded that Edmund Fitzgerald's downed fence rail reported by McSorley could occur only if the ship "hogged" during shoaling, with the bow and stern bent downward and the midsection raised by the shoal, pulling the railing tight until the cables dislodged or tore under the strain. Hudson Company-designed furnishings[20] included deep pile carpeting, tiled bathrooms, drapes over the portholes, and leather swivel chairs in the guest lounge. The vessel had also developed a list. They found that the Canadian 1973navigational chart for the Six Fathom Shoal area was based on Canadian surveys from 1916 and 1919 and that the 1973U.S. Lake Survey Chart No. Compiled from over 50 years of exhaustive research by Gerald Metzler, the database is in the process of being digitized from a collection of over 30,000 handwritten vessel records. Last vessel built by this shipyard. [16], At approximately 7:10p.m., when Arthur M. Anderson notified Edmund Fitzgerald of an upbound ship and asked how she was doing, McSorley reported, "We are holding our own." Former Second Mate Richard Orgel, who served on Edmund Fitzgerald in 1972 and 1973, testified that "the ship had a tendency to bend and spring during storms 'like a diving board after somebody has jumped off. [64] Canadian Coast Guard aircraft joined the three-day search and the Ontario Provincial Police established and maintained a beach patrol all along the eastern shore of Lake Superior. [82], The stress fracture hypothesis was supported by the testimony of former crewmen. For other uses, see, Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in 1975, Subsequent changes to Great Lakes shipping practice, The Fitzgerald Theater is not named after the, Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, research, development, test, and evaluation, American Society for Testing and Materials, Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacons, National Transportation Safety Board (1978), "Lost Ships in Canadian Waters Silver Coin Series Continues with SS Edmund Fitzgerald Saga", "Admiralty and Maritime Law Research Guide", "Historical Collections of the Great Lakes: Great Lakes Vessels Online Index", "Detroit Church Broadens Its Scope Marking, "Exhibitions at Dossin Great Lakes Museum", "Orlando, Chicago divers first to touch the wreck of the, "30th anniversary, "The Legend Lives On": Diving the, "Gordon Lightfoot Changes 'Edmund Fitzgerald' Lyrics", "50 Years of Music with Gordon Lightfoot", "Lightfoot Changes 'Edmund Fitzgerald' Lyric", "Instrumented Sled, ROV Join to Provide Enhanced Images of, "Shipwreck Overshadowed Fitzgerald's Legacy", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=SS_Edmund_Fitzgerald&oldid=1131231124, Pages with non-numeric formatnum arguments, Articles with dead external links from August 2018, Articles with permanently dead external links, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles containing potentially dated statements from 2005, All articles containing potentially dated statements, Articles with dead external links from September 2017, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Edmund Fitzgerald, president of Northwestern Mutual, Fitz, Mighty Fitz, Big Fitz, Pride of the American Side, Toledo Express, Titanic of the Great Lakes, Lost with all hands (29 crew) in a storm, November 10, 1975, Single fixed pitch 19.5ft (5.9m) propeller. The christening and launch ceremony was held on June 7, 1958, and was attended by more than 15,000 people. Darbynwoods. Edmund Fitzgerald previously reported being in significant difficulty to Arthur M. Anderson: "I have a bad list, lost both radars. [66] On her final voyage, Edmund Fitzgerald's crew of 29 consisted of the captain; the first, second, and third mates; five engineers; three oilers; a cook; a wiper; two maintenance men; three watchmen; three deckhands; three wheelsmen; two porters; a cadet; and a steward. The Fitzgerald suffered from structural problems. [82] He said: This placement does not support the hypothesis that the ship plunged to the bottom in one piece, breaking apart when it struck bottom. [15] Edmund Fitzgerald's three central cargo holds[16] were loaded through 21 watertight cargo hatches, each 11 by 48 feet (3.4 by 14.6m) of .mw-parser-output .frac{white-space:nowrap}.mw-parser-output .frac .num,.mw-parser-output .frac .den{font-size:80%;line-height:0;vertical-align:super}.mw-parser-output .frac .den{vertical-align:sub}.mw-parser-output .sr-only{border:0;clip:rect(0,0,0,0);height:1px;margin:-1px;overflow:hidden;padding:0;position:absolute;width:1px}516-inch-thick (7.9mm) steel. Saying "Fellas, it's too rough to feed ya." [170] One concern was that shipping companies pressured the captains to deliver cargo as quickly and cheaply as possible regardless of bad weather. In the state of Michigan, one of the most tragic tales of mystery and woe is that of the Edmund Fitzgerald, a massive freighter ship that capsized during a storm over Lake Superior in . [37] Two widows of crewmen filed a $1.5million lawsuit against Edmund Fitzgerald's owners, Northwestern Mutual, and its operators, Oglebay Norton Corporation, one week after she sank. [19], By ore freighter standards, the interior of Edmund Fitzgerald was luxurious. "[122], Maritime author Stonehouse reasoned that "unlike the Lake Carriers, the Coast Guard had no vested interest in the outcome of their investigation. [48] Two of Edmund Fitzgerald's six bilge pumps ran continuously to discharge shipped water. [179] Robert Hemming, a reporter and newspaper editor, reasoned in his book about Edmund Fitzgerald that the USCG's conclusions "were benign in placing blame on [n]either the company or the captain [and] saved the Oglebay Norton from very expensive lawsuits by the families of the lost crew."[180]. The SS Fitzgerald carried taconite iron ore from the mines near Duluth, Minnesota to the ironworks in Detroit, . Boats & Ships; Other Boat & Ship Collectibles; Share. the family didn't tell Brabon's sister, who . Departing Superior [116], The NTSB conducted computer studies,[117] testing and analysis to determine the forces necessary to collapse the hatch covers[118] and concluded that Edmund Fitzgerald sank suddenly from flooding of the cargo hold "due to the collapse of one or more of the hatch covers under the weight of giant boarding seas" instead of flooding gradually due to ineffective hatch closures. "[55], By late in the afternoon of November 10, sustained winds of over 50 knots (93km/h; 58mph) were recorded by ships and observation points across eastern Lake Superior. Conversion to oil fuel and the fitting of automated boiler controls over the winter of 197172. [103] The southeastern part of the lake, the direction in which Edmund Fitzgerald was heading, had the highest winds. She was en route to the steel mill on Zug Island, near Detroit, Michigan,[38] with a cargo of 26,116 long tons (29,250 short tons; 26,535t) of taconite ore pellets and soon reached her full speed of 16.3 miles per hour (14.2kn; 26.2km/h). She was found with cracks after the Big Fitz sank and then they scrapped her in 1986, so . It bore markings different from those of rings found at the wreck site, and was thought to be a hoax. Edmund Fitzgerald reported winds of 52 knots (96km/h; 60mph) and waves 10 feet (3.0m) high. The efforts of a third freighter, the Toronto-registered SSHilda Marjanne, were foiled by the weather. It puts into perspective the sheer power of . [121], Paul Hainault, a retired professor of mechanical engineering from Michigan Technological University, promoted a hypothesis that began as a student class project. The Edmund Fitzgerald was lost with her entire crew of 29 men on Lake Superior November 10, 1975, 17 miles north-northwest of Whitefish Point, Michigan. [170] Of the official recommendations, the following actions and USCG regulations were put in place: Karl Bohnak, an Upper Peninsula meteorologist, covered the sinking and storm in a book on local weather history. while a sister ship, the Arthur M. Anderson survived the wrath of the Lake Superior. Her existence was a sign of . Link as the support vessel, and their manned submersible, Celia. [4] While navigating the Soo Locks he would often come out of the pilothouse and use a bullhorn to entertain tourists with a commentary on details about Edmund Fitzgerald. Her sister ship, the Arthur B. Homer was ordered soon after. "Hull 301" of Great Lakes Engineering Works, River Rouge yard, was christened the Edmund Fitzgerald, and launched and delivered for service later this season. The NTSB Edmund Fitzgerald investigation concluded that Great Lakes freighters should be constructed with watertight bulkheads in their cargo holds. And am taking heavy seas over the deck. The Edmund Fitzgerald remains the largest ship to have ever sunk in Lake Superior still to this day. It was designed to carry taconite pellets (a type of iron ore) from mines near Duluth to iron works in Detroit . [9], Edmund Fitzgerald left Superior, Wisconsin, at 2:15p.m. on the afternoon of November 9, 1975,[37] under the command of Captain Ernest M. McSorley. Her destination was Zug Island on the Detroit River. Marie, Ontarioa distance Edmund Fitzgerald could have covered in just over an hour at her top speed. The Edmund Fitzgerald set numerous records for carrying the most amount of . The second sister follows close behind before the water can drain, heaves herself over the railings, smears . Red, died aboard the ship Nov. 10, 1975. . The sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald was a tragedy of epic proportions. Keel laid March 18, 1959; launched Nov 7, 1959. '"[189], The day after the wreck, Mariners' Church in Detroit rang its bell 29times; once for each life lost. A large galley and fully stocked pantry supplied meals for two dining rooms. On NPR's Weekend Edition Saturday on February 14, 2015, Gordon Lightfoot said he was inspired to write the song when he saw the name misspelled "Edmond" in Newsweek magazine two weeks after the sinking; Lightfoot said he felt that it dishonored the memory of the 29 who died. [31] Loading Edmund Fitzgerald with taconite pellets took about four and a half hours, while unloading took around 14hours. [3][4] GLEW laid the first keel plate on August 7 the same year. Of the big lake they called Gitche Gumee. He therefore chose a route that gave Wilfred Sykes the most protection and took refuge in Thunder Bay, Ontario, during the worst of the storm. [101], In 2005, NOAA and the NWS ran a computer simulation, including weather and wave conditions, covering the period from November 9, 1975, until the early morning of November 11. "[166] The USCG did not broadcast that all ships should seek safe anchorage until after 3:35p.m. on November 10, many hours after the weather was upgraded from a gale to a storm. The Fitzgerald departed from Superior, Wisconsin on the afternoon of November 9, 1975. Fitzgerald and her sister the . The large cargo vessels that roamed the five Great Lakes were known as lakers, and the S.S. Edmund Fitzgerald was, at the . [106], At the time of the sinking, the ship Arthur M. Anderson reported northwest winds of 57mph (50kn; 92km/h), matching the simulation analysis result of 54mph (47kn; 87km/h). Mark Thompson, a merchant seaman and author of numerous books on Great Lakes shipping, stated that if her cargo holds had watertight subdivisions, "the Edmund Fitzgerald could have made it into Whitefish Bay. . The cuisine was reportedly excellent and snacks were always available in the lounge. What happened on that fateful night to the ship and the entire 29-man crew? Christened: June 8, 1958. Marie, Michigan, with 1 foot (0.3m) of water. The massive ship sank in a severe storm on Lake Superior Nov. 10, 1975, killing all . An underwater camera gives a view into the pilot house of the wrecked Great Lakes ore carrier Edmund Fitzgerald. As a workhorse, she set seasonal haul records six times, often breaking her own record. [181] NTSB's investigation resulted in 19recommendations for the USCG, four recommendations for the American Bureau of Shipping, and two recommendations for NOAA. Based on the NWS forecast, Arthur M. Anderson and Edmund Fitzgerald instead started their trip across Lake Superior following the regular Lake Carriers Association route, which placed them in the path of the storm. [120], The LCA believed that instead of hatch cover leakage, the more probable cause of Edmund Fitzgerald's loss was shoaling or grounding in the Six Fathom Shoal northwest of Caribou Island when the vessel "unknowingly raked a reef" during the time the Whitefish Point light and radio beacon were not available as navigation aids. I detected undue stress in the side tunnels by examining the white enamel paint, which will crack and splinter when submitted to severe stress. The U.S. Navy also contracted Seaward, Inc., to conduct a second survey between November 22 and 25. . With a deadweight capacity of 26,000 long tons (29,120 short tons; 26,417 t), and a 729-foot (222 m) hull, Edmund Fitzgerald was the longest ship on the Great Lakes, earning her the title Queen of the Lakes until September 17, 1959, . [76] The GLSHS paid $10,000 for three of its members to each join a dive and take still pictures. The USCG responders instructed him to call back on channel12 because they wanted to keep their emergency channel open and they were having difficulty with their communication systems, including antennas blown down by the storm. Arthur B. Homer was permanently laid up in 1980 and broken for scrap in 1987. "[133] George H. "Red" Burgner, Edmund Fitzgerald's steward for ten seasons and winter ship-keeper for seven years, testified in a deposition that a "loose keel" contributed to the vessel's loss. The full name was SS Edmund Fitzgerald. [4] The vessel ran aground in 1969, and she collided with SS Hochelaga in 1970. "[21], Northwestern Mutual wanted to name the ship after its president and chairman of the board, Edmund Fitzgerald. "[107] Cooper went on to say that these two waves, possibly followed by a third, continued in the direction of Edmund Fitzgerald and would have struck about the time she sank. 5 hatch coaming. Her entire crew of 29 souls perished. Air conditioning extended to the crew quarters, which featured more amenities than usual. ", Lightfoot changed the third line to "At 7 p.m. it grew dark, it was then". It took six minutes to reach the wreck, six minutes to survey it, and three hours to resurface to avoid decompression sickness, also known as "the bends. The final voyage of Edmund Fitzgerald, that commenced on November 9th, 1975, and its subsequent disappearance, are extremely mysterious. That good ship and true was a bone to be chewed. [132], When Bethlehem Steel Corporation permanently laid up Edmund Fitzgerald's sister ship, SS Arthur B. Homer, just five years after going to considerable expense to lengthen her, questions were raised as to whether both ships had the same structural problems. Sections of the coaming in way of the No. [53], Captain Cooper of Arthur M. Anderson first called the USCG in Sault Ste. When launched, she was the largest ship on the Great Lakes, and she remains the largest to have sunk there. [135] Reports indicate that repairs to Edmund Fitzgerald's hull were delayed in 1975 due to plans to lengthen the ship during the upcoming winter layup. The ship was carrying a cargo of iron ore pellets weighing about 26,100 tons, and it left from Superior, Wisconsin, heading to the steel mill on Zug Island. [13] The moulded depth (roughly speaking, the vertical height of the hull) was 39ft (12m). But even this many years later, the story still captivates the public's . [109], The July 26, 1977, USCG Marine Casualty Report suggested that the accident was caused by ineffective hatch closures. 9 included the notation, "Canadian Areas. A series of 16consecutive hatch cover clamps were observed on the No. [3] The hold depth (the inside height of the cargo hold) was 33ft 4in (10.16m).

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