On 10 Nov. 1975, the largest ship on the Great Lakes, the SS Edmund Fitzgerald sank.

On 10 Nov. 1975, the largest ship on the Great Lakes, the SS Edmund Fitzgerald sank.

The ship left Superior, WI on the afternoon of 9 November and was heading toward a steel mill near Detroit, MI, when it was caught in a severe storm the next day, with near-hurricane force winds and waves of 35 feet.

Shortly after 7 pm, the ship sank about 17 miles from the entrance to Whitefish Bay (near Sault Ste. Marie, MI). No distress signals were sent, and all 29 crew members were lost.

Gordon Lightfoot read about the disaster in the 24 Nov. 1975 issue of Newsweek magazine and was inspired to write a song based on the events. “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” was released a year later on 20 Nov. 1976.