35 years ago tonight.....

[drjeff]

One of the most famous freshwater shipwrecks of all time happened

 

[smitty77]

One of the most famous freshwater shipwrecks of all time happened

Sad story - but LOVE that song.

 

[wa-loaf]

I was just reading about it. They were saying ocean going sea captains refuse to sail in a storm on the great lakes.

 

[Glenn]

They've had some really good shows about that on History or Discovery.

 

[Angus]

I remember 20 years ago tonight like it was yesterday TEXAS 45 Houston 24.

 

[Warp Daddy]

The Big Fitz's Capt Edmund Mc Sorley was raised here in the town where we are

 

[Puck it]

The Big Fitz's Capt Edmund Mc Sorley was raised here in the town where we are

And you and I know that you do not mess around with the lakes when a storm comes in.

To anyone that has not seen the lakes. They are immense.

 

[Warp Daddy]

And you and I know that you do not mess around with the lakes when a storm comes in.

To anyone that has not seen the lakes. They are immense.

Correct : The Gales of November are absolutely fearsome on the Great Lakes , even here on the Mighty St Lawrence.

I've been on NAVAL destroyers as a guest and sailed to Buffalo with them from here on educators tours . the NAVY Captains turn the ship's helm over to the professional St Lawrence SEAWAY Pilots-

- the River and it's shoal infested water made them extremely uneasy in any kind of turbulance

 

[roark]

inspired a pretty good beer...

 

[WakeboardMom]

As big as they are, the lakes are not the ocean. Wave patterns and more are completely different. I know this from the men in my fam; one of whom is a naval officer who grew up on my lake. ; )

BTW...Happy Veterans Day to all who've served our wonderful country. I will be thanking my favorite veteran; the naval lt. mentioned above and my oldest son.

 

[snoseek]

So I've speant countless hours behind the helm and gone through some nasty stuff, including a very very scary movement through the backside of hurricane andrew in 92, this lake must get pretty rowdy to sink a ship. It was pretty small i guess. I've never even heard this story. Did they ever determine how this happened? Was it a rouge storm? Were they not sealed properly? Sad story indeed.

 

[Puck it]

So I've speant countless hours behind the helm and gone through some nasty stuff, including a very very scary movement through the backside of hurricane andrew in 92, this lake must get pretty rowdy to sink a ship. It was pretty small i guess. I've never even heard this story. Did they ever determine how this happened? Was it a rouge storm? Were they not sealed properly? Sad story indeed.

729' is not that small. The Paul Tregurtha is currently the largest ship in the Great Lakes at 1013'. That is as long as an aircraft carrier. It is too big to get out of the Seaway.

 

[SkiDork]

Timeline available here: http://www.ssefo.com/info/timeline.html

Initial theory was breakup on the surface but that was later disputed due to the location of the 2 halves of wreckage on the bottom. Alternate theories were taking on water through improperly sealed or faulty hatches. Listing had been reported a few times by McSorley while still in radio contact with the Anderson

 

[dmc]

And then we had to listen to that song from 76 to 77... for those of us who were cognizant of music at that time in history...

 

[Angus]

video reminds me the USA has almost no commercial large vessel boat yards left and the ore was probably headed for a mill of some sort and that domestic industry has been gutted too.