The life and death of Edmund Fitzgerald

Exploring the tragic story of Great Lakes freighter memorialized by Lightfoot in famous 1976 folk ballad

On May 1, Canada lost a cultural icon when singer/ songwriter Gordon Lightfoot died. Who among us hasn’t listened transfixed by such Lightfoot songs as “If You Could Read My Mind,” “Canadian Railroad Trilogy,” “Carefree Highway” and, of course, probably his best-known song “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.” While probably everyone reading this column has heard that song, how many know the entire story of the Edmund Fitzgerald?

She was launched on June 7, 1958. At the time she was the biggest vessel on the Great Lakes. For the next 17 years, she sailed the Great Lakes and on six different occasions broke records for the massive cargoes she carried.

Serving on the “Big Fitz” was a very popular posting for her crews. She was well built, had comfortable living quarters and was considered very safe.

But by 1975, there were some ominous signs. Over the years, her owners had pressed the United States Coast Guard to allow for increased cargo loads. I

n 1975, she sat over a metre deeper in the water when fully loaded with cargo than she did when the ship was launched.

The crew was now calling her a “wet ship.” A former crew member, Jim Woodard, told the Duluth NewsTribune, “she took on water all the time and her tunnels flooded out on her. We always had to go down and pump them out.”

The fully loaded Fitzgerald sailed out of Superior, Wis., at 2:20 p.m. on Nov. 9, 1975. Lake Superior was calm; however the National Weather Service was issuing a gale warning for the region. By 7 p.m., the waves on Lake Superior were rising and winds beginning to howl. The freighter, Arthur M. Anderson, was about 24 kilometres behind the Fitzgerald and Capts. Ernest McSorley of the Fitzgerald and Bernie Cooper of the Anderson agreed to stay close to the other and battle the storm together.

Early on the morning of Nov. 10, as the two ships fought waves of six metres and higher, McSorley and Cooper agreed to change course and sail closer to the Ontario shoreline, feeling that would allow them to escape the worst of the storm.

By mid-afternoon, McSorley reported to Cooper that the Fitzgerald was taking on water and she had lost two vents and a fence rail. So far her pumps were keeping up with the water. The stories of her being a “wet ship” must have been going through McSorley’s mind at this point.

Just after 4 p.m., McSorley radioed the Anderson and informed them that the Fitzgerald had both of her radars destroyed by large waves and asked the Anderson to track her on their radar. Was the Fitzgerald now riding lower in the water, allowing the waves to reach her radar masts?

At 7:10 p.m., the Anderson requested a status report from McSorley. He responded “we are holding our own.” At 7:15 p.m., the Fitzgerald entered a squall and at 7:20 p.m. she vanished from the Anderson’s radar. The Anderson tried repeatedly to raise the Fitzgerald to no avail. The American and Canadian Coast Guards were alerted and they began a massive search along with other ships in the area. But the Fitzgerald and her crew of 29 were gone.

Only a very small amount of wreckage was discovered. A shattered lifeboat washed up in Ontario. The wreck was discovered in Canadian waters days later.

What sank the Fitzgerald? The official inquiry blamed leaking hatch covers that allowed water into the cargo hold. Some feel the Fitzgerald hit a hidden shoal that ripped a gaping hole in her keel that eventually sank her. Others suggest “rogue waves” drove her suddenly to the bottom of Lake Superior.

Whatever the reason, the Edmund Fitzgerald, forever memorialized by Lightfoot, was the largest vessel to ever sink on the Great Lakes.