Lake Superior is beautiful when calm, but an absolute BEAST when stirred by storm. I've seen both Lakes Superior and Michigan under both conditions. The Great Lakes are more like inland seas but not as large as the oceans so storm waves will contact shore and go back against the next waves coming in. The Fitz was at the eastern end of Superior so the storm winds coming from the west had traveled the length of the open lake. Just do a search and you will see just how huge the lakes are. Ocean going vessels can easily travel on them, as long as the ships fit through the locks.
I was so sad to hear of Gordon Lightfoot's passing away recently. Loved his music! This song is a beautiful tribute by one of the best Canadian songwriters & storytellers. This is based on a true story & the lyrics tell the sad tale of the sinking of the ship & loss of lives in 1975. Gordon Lightfoot has had many hits through his long career such as "Sundown", "Early Morning Rain", "Steel Rail Blues", "Ribbon Of Darkness", "Carefree Highway", "Rainy Day People", "Cotton Jenny", "Black Day In July", "Canadian Railroad Trilogy" etc.
Lightfoot never took a cent for this song. He signed the royalties over to the families of the Fitz-G. To this day, those families still see royalties from this song. There’s a museum in a town somewhere on Superior that’s dedicated to the history of the Great Lakes. They tell the stories of many ships that have succumb to the lakes and memorialize those who met the same fate. It’s their mission to search and archive all wreaks found on the Great Lakes. To put Lake Superior into context, it’s said that some sailors train on Superior because if you survive the Witch of the Great Lakes, you can survive sailing anywhere. She’s known for rearing her head on very short notice and catching sailors off guard. I saw another comment here saying that the lake is so deep which is why people were never recovered. While that’s true, people have dived the site. So seemingly, it wouldn’t have been impossible. As far as I’m aware, no bodies have ever been found, but there are bodies down there though. Lake Superior is very very cold. So cold that it basically preserves the bodies. Even if they did find people, I’m not sure they would have recovered them. Instead they’d let them rest at sea. Ultimately, Lake Superior is a massive graveyard for both ships and for those who lost their lives in one way or another. Those who live on Superior are very aware of this and know she deserves respect.
"We're holding our own" - The Edmund Fitz Gerald's last words- Fun fact: This song was #1 in Canada and #2 in the USA for years. Gordon Lightfoot could have made millions off it easy. However, he didn't because he gave all the proceeds to the 29 families of the crew. Gordon Lightfoot was an awsome guy.
I'm glad you felt the emotion of this song, Chaz. It has made me cry every time I'm ever heard it, including this one. This song came out when I was 11 and has affected me deeply my entire life. I knew nothing of the wreck (like most people) before the song came out. But it makes me feel deeply for the families every time I hear it!
The Edmund Fitzgerald is the largest ship to have sunk in Lake Superior. She went down with all 29 crew. Because she sank in deep water, the bodies were never recovered and the wreckage is considered a maritime grave site. The loss prompted changes to the shipping rules on the Great Lakes. My family used to vacation in a town on the shores of Lake Superior every other year. Most of the locals were fishermen. Almost every family had lost someone to a storm on the lake because the weather is so unpredictable and often violent.
Lake Superior is beautiful when calm, but an absolute BEAST when stirred by storm. I've seen both Lakes Superior and Michigan under both conditions. The Great Lakes are more like inland seas but not as large as the oceans so storm waves will contact shore and go back against the next waves coming in. The Fitz was at the eastern end of Superior so the storm winds coming from the west had traveled the length of the open lake. Just do a search and you will see just how huge the lakes are. Ocean going vessels can easily travel on them, as long as the ships fit through the locks.
I was so sad to hear of Gordon Lightfoot's passing away recently. Loved his music! This song is a beautiful tribute by one of the best Canadian songwriters & storytellers. This is based on a true story & the lyrics tell the sad tale of the sinking of the ship & loss of lives in 1975. Gordon Lightfoot has had many hits through his long career such as "Sundown", "Early Morning Rain", "Steel Rail Blues", "Ribbon Of Darkness", "Carefree Highway", "Rainy Day People", "Cotton Jenny", "Black Day In July", "Canadian Railroad Trilogy" etc.
Lightfoot never took a cent for this song. He signed the royalties over to the families of the Fitz-G. To this day, those families still see royalties from this song. There’s a museum in a town somewhere on Superior that’s dedicated to the history of the Great Lakes. They tell the stories of many ships that have succumb to the lakes and memorialize those who met the same fate. It’s their mission to search and archive all wreaks found on the Great Lakes.
To put Lake Superior into context, it’s said that some sailors train on Superior because if you survive the Witch of the Great Lakes, you can survive sailing anywhere. She’s known for rearing her head on very short notice and catching sailors off guard.
I saw another comment here saying that the lake is so deep which is why people were never recovered. While that’s true, people have dived the site. So seemingly, it wouldn’t have been impossible. As far as I’m aware, no bodies have ever been found, but there are bodies down there though. Lake Superior is very very cold. So cold that it basically preserves the bodies. Even if they did find people, I’m not sure they would have recovered them. Instead they’d let them rest at sea. Ultimately, Lake Superior is a massive graveyard for both ships and for those who lost their lives in one way or another. Those who live on Superior are very aware of this and know she deserves respect.
This is a true story put to song. It sank up on Lake Superior (between Michigan and Canada) in the 70s.
Thanks for the context Jeff!
"We're holding our own"
- The Edmund Fitz Gerald's last words-
Fun fact:
This song was #1 in Canada and #2 in the USA for years. Gordon Lightfoot could have made millions off it easy. However, he didn't because he gave all the proceeds to the 29 families of the crew. Gordon Lightfoot was an awsome guy.
I'm glad you felt the emotion of this song, Chaz. It has made me cry every time I'm ever heard it, including this one. This song came out when I was 11 and has affected me deeply my entire life. I knew nothing of the wreck (like most people) before the song came out. But it makes me feel deeply for the families every time I hear it!
True story of an actual disaster...........lyrics tell the story........
The Edmund Fitzgerald is the largest ship to have sunk in Lake Superior. She went down with all 29 crew. Because she sank in deep water, the bodies were never recovered and the wreckage is considered a maritime grave site. The loss prompted changes to the shipping rules on the Great Lakes. My family used to vacation in a town on the shores of Lake Superior every other year. Most of the locals were fishermen. Almost every family had lost someone to a storm on the lake because the weather is so unpredictable and often violent.
It's is sad, but a tribute to the men and family.
Gee, Chaz. Do you have the huevores to survive SHTF? G-d bless you.