Edmund Fitzgerald: Photos of the Great Lakes' most famous ship
WHITEFISH POINT, MI - Forty-nine years ago today, the Edmund Fitzgerald was caught in the grip of a deadly storm on Lake Superior.
Investigators would later say the Mighty Fitz’s course had put it in the “worst possible place” amid the monstrous waves of that November gale.
When it sank with all 29 souls aboard on Nov. 10, 1975, the big freighter became the Great Lake’s most well-known shipwreck.
RELATED: Edmund Fitzgerald’s final hours: 8 things to know
The Fitzgerald’s demise was shared around the world in Gordon Lightfoot’s song “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald,” while the harrowing details of the ore carrier’s last journey became part of mariner lore.
Today, we remember the lives lost. And we honor the amazing bravery of those who risked their own lives to search for a crew who would never be rescued.
We’re highlighting a collection of photos that have been shared by our friends at the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum, the Associated Press, the U.S. Coast Guard, and other ship enthusiasts.
We’ve included some interesting facts about the Fitzgerald’s work history as a stellar cargo hauler, and some of the heartbreaking conversations that marked its final hours.
To the Mighty Fitz, we offer the formal salute: 3 longs and 2 shorts.
RELATED: 2024 Edmund Fitzgerald Memorial Ceremony: The Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum at Whitefish Point in the Upper Peninsula will be offering a livestream memorial service at 7 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 10. See the streaming details here.
Part 1: The Early Days
The Edmund Fitzgerald’s launch at Great Lakes Engineering Works on June 7, 1958.
The Edmund Fitzgerald launch at Great Lakes Engineering Works on June 7, 1958.
Edmund Fitzgerald seen from the Ambassador Bridge. In this photo, the vessel is underway (downbound) on the Detroit River in 1960.
Edmund Fitzgerald seen from the Ambassador Bridge
Originally a coal-fired "laker," the Edmund Fitzgerald was later outfitted to burn oil, and had a diesel-powered bow thruster. She was owned by Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company of Milwaukee.
The Edmund Fitzgerald under construction.
The Edmund Fitzgerald
The Edmund Fitzgerald was not only an ore-hauling workhorse with nearly 750 round trips to her credit, she was also the largest freighter on The Great Lakes for 13 of her 17 years.
Part 2: The Day of the Storm
CONVERSATION AT 3:30 P.M. ON NOV. 10, 1975
At 3:30 p.m. The Fitzgerald’s captain, Ernest McSorley, calls the nearby freighter Aurthur M. Anderson’s captain, Jesse Cooper, to report damage and say his ship would slow to let the Anderson catch up. Minutes later, the U.S. Coast Guard issues directions for all ships to find safe anchorage because the Soo Locks have been closed.
McSorley: “Anderson, this is the Fitzgerald. I have sustained some topside damage. I have a fence rail laid down, two vents lost or damaged, and a list. I’m checking down. Will you stay by me til I get to Whitefish?”
Cooper: “Charlie on that Fitzgerald. Do you have your pumps going?”
McSorley: “Yes, both of them.”
The Arthur M. Anderson ore carrier takes on a load of taconite Oct. 25, 2005 in Duluth, Minn. The Anderson was called upon to help search for the ill-fated Edmund Fitzgerald in rough Lake Superior waters in 1975. The Fitzgerald, an ore carrier, sank Nov. 10, 1975. (AP Photo/Jim Mone)AP
CONVERSATION AT 5:30 P.M. ON NOV. 10, 1975
At 5:30 p.m., the Fitzgerald crew is advised by Swedish ship Avafors the Whitefish Point beacon and light are disabled by power failure.
Avafors: “Fitzgerald, this is the Avafors. I have the Whitefish light now but still am receiving no beacon. Over.”
Fitzgerald: “I’m very glad to hear it.”
Avafors: “The wind is really howling down here. What are the conditions where you are?”
Fitzgerald: (Undiscernable shouts overheard) “DON’T LET NOBODY ON DECK!”
Avafors: “What’s that, Fitzgerald? Unclear. Over.”
Fitzgerald: “I have a bad list, lost both radars. And am taking heavy seas over the deck. One of the worst seas I’ve ever been in.”
Avafors: “If I’m correct, you have two radars.”
Fitzgerald: “They’re both gone.”
Even after the Edmund Fitzgerald disappeared from radar, it took a while to organize a search effort because of the fierce storm pounding Lake Superior. The Arthur M. Anderson, which had been trailing the Fitzgerald for more than a day, was the first to search. By then, the doomed freighter had already plunged to the lake's bottom and had broken in two.
Image of the Edmund Fitzgerald shipwreck taken during a dive in 1995 to recover the ship's bell. The ship sank in a storm off Whitefish Point in Lake Superior on Nov. 10, 1975.
Image of the Edmund Fitzgerald shipwreck taken during a dive in 1995 to recover the ship's bell.
FINAL CONVERSATION ON NOV. 10, 1975
At 7:10 p.m. the Anderson calls the Fitzgerald with navigation instructions. The Anderson is about 10 miles behind the doomed freighter.
Anderson: “Fitzgerald, this is the Anderson. Have you checked down?”
Fitzgerald: “Yes we have.”
Anderson: “Fitzgerald, we are about 10 miles behind you, and gaining about 1 1/2 miles per hour. Fitzgerald, there is a target 19 miles ahead of us. So the target would be 9 miles on ahead of you.”
Fitzgerald: “Well, am I going to clear?”
Anderson: “Yes. He is going to pass to the west of you.”
Fitzgerald: “Well, fine.”
Anderson: “By the way, Fitzgerald, how are you making out with your problem?”
Fitzgerald: “We are holding our own.”
Anderson: “Okay, fine. I’ll be talking to you later.”
At 7:15 p.m. the Fitzgerald disappeared from the Anderson’s radar. More than an hour later, the Coast Guard began an active search. The 29 crew members aboard all perished.
This 1976 underwater photo shows a close up of the pilot house of the freighter Edmund Fitzgerald after it sank at the bottom of Lake Superior on Nov. 10, 1975. The freighter split in two when it was caught in a severe storm and sank with its load of iron ore and crew of 29 men. (AP Photo)ASSOCIATED PRESS
This underwater photo of the sunken SS Edmund Fitzgerald was taken by an unmanned submersible robot, as a research team investigates the wreck site 17 miles northwest of Whitefish Point, Mich., on August 24, 1989. The 729-foot ore freighter sunk on November 10, 1975, during a severe storm, taking its load of iron and the crew of 29 men to the bottom of the Lake Superior. (AP Photo)ASSOCIATED PRESS
Part 3: Pieces Recovered, Dives to the Wreck Site
The No. 2 lifeboat that was recovered after the Edmund Fitzgerald sank.
Life vests recovered after the Edmund Fitzgerald sank.
An oil-splattered life ring from the Edmund Fitzgerald was among the limited debris recovered after the sinking.
Lake Superior claimed all 29 men aboard the Mighty Fitz, from a young deckhand to its veteran captain.
When the U.S. Coast Guard surveyed the Edmund Fitzgerald's wreck site in 1976, it used a U.S. Navy submersible to get video of the ship's two halves on the lake bottom, covered in mud. Artist sketches made from this video are included in the official Marine Casualty Report issued in 1977.
A helicopter, aiding in the search for the missing Edmund Fitzgerald lost in a severe storm in Whitefish Bay on Lake Superior just north of Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, is fueled at a landing pad at Whitefish Point on Tuesday on Nov. 12, 1975. The Fitzgerald went down with a crew of 29 while carrying about 26,000 tons of taconite pellets. (AP Photo/JCH)ASSOCIATED PRESS
Lake Superior claimed all 29 men aboard the Mighty Fitz, from a young deckhand to its veteran captain.
Image of the Edmund Fitzgerald shipwreck taken during a dive in 1995 to recover the ship's bell.
The Edmund Fitzgerald's bell now is displayed at the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum at Whitefish Point. Canadian explorer Joseph MacInnis led a 1995 expedition to recover it. This quest gave the families of the lost crew members a tangible memorial.
The crew aboard the USCGC HOLLYHOCK visited the site of the wreck of the SS Edmund Fitzgerald in 2016 for a brief memorial service.
The Hollyhock's crew tossed 29 roses into the water - one for each mariner lost in the sinking during a storm on Nov. 10, 1975.
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