November 12, 2004

An Anniversary of a Loss

Thanks to the superintendent of the Cold Spring Shops, I'm reminded of an unfortunate anniversary, and my note here is two days late.

On 10 November 1975, S.S. Edmund Fitzgerald, a Great Lakes ore carrying vessel, was lost on Lake Superior, after having departed a loading dock owned by the Burlington Northern Railroad. She was loaded with ~26,000 tons of taconite ore pellets for use in the smelters serving Detroit and the automobile industry.

Twenty-nine men were lost as a result of her sinking. Popular culture knows of this accident due to a 1976 song written and performed by the Canadian singer-songwriter Gordon Lightfoot.

For a tremendous amount of information related to the loss of Edmund Fitzgerald, see SS Edmund Fitzgerald Online.

Posted by Country Pundit at November 12, 2004 02:48 PM
Comments