Hacker News Reader

Comment by shotta | Hacker News Reader

I have always loved this song about a shipwreck on the Great Lakes. https://youtu.be/FuzTkGyxkYI

I have to say, I grew up on Lake Superior in Wisconsin, and it’s funny to hear the Edmund Fitzgerald referred to as just “a shipwreck.” In this area, the sinking of the Fitzgerald easily has more cultural relevance than the Titanic.

In the small towns that surround Lake Superior, it’s not uncommon to run into someone who lost a loved one, so be careful making jokes in bars — and there are jokes[1].

The mystery of it is also intriguing. To this day no one knows exactly how or why the Fitzgerald sank. The last radio message received from the captain said, “We’re holding our own,” and no distress signal was ever sent. Everyone onboard died.

It’s worth reading the Wikipedia page[2].

[1]: https://youtu.be/udZFnUb4Q6A

[2]: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_Edmund_Fitzgerald

29 people died half a century ago, and it’s not uncommon to run into one of their loved ones in a random bar? I am skeptical of that claim.

It sank in 1975. There could certainly be children of the sailors alive, and a spouse who was in their 30’s at the time would be around their 80’s now. That doesn’t seem far fetched.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birthday_problem, and I presume "loved one" might include cousins, grandchildren, etc.

Maybe "not uncommon" was a bit strong, but it happens. What you have to realize is that these are very small towns[1], shipping is a big industry for the area, and a guy two generations ago can have a lot of grandchildren.

[1]: Check out the list of cities on Lake Superior on Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cities_on_the_Great_La... The three largest are Thunder Bay (108,800), Duluth (86,600), and Sault Sainte Marie, ON (72,000). After that, the mean population of the remaining "cities" is 7,495. I grew up in Ashland, which at 7,908 brings the average up :)

> I have to say, I grew up on Lake Superior in Wisconsin, and it’s funny to hear the Edmund Fitzgerald referred to as just “a shipwreck.”

How should one address it? The Great, Most Exalted, Venerable Shipwreck?

I wasn't intending to say that GP should have called it differently, nor implying that they weren't paying it "proper respect" or something. I was just trying to provide context as to the cultural significance of the event to the area, because I think it's interesting.

There is a museum in Michigan dedicated specifically to the Edmund Fitzgerald. When I was there, I realized that they would play this song every other song; they'd play Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald, then some other contemporaneous song, then Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald, then some other contemporaneous song, etc. And Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald is relatively long compared to the other songs of its era, so it's probably playing in the museum about two-thirds of the time.

I could never work there. I'd go insane.

Those in the Rust Belt can visit the National Museum of the Great Lakes in Toledo, OH: https://nmgl.org/

They had an exhibit of finding and searching the Edmund Fitzgerald when I was there last.

Some decent scuba-wreck diving in the Lakes. I've scuba dived a few, one right off of U Chicago is snorkel depth, and one about 20 ft off of Evanston, IL.

Regardless, the Naval Aviation Museum has pulled a lot of airplanes from Lake Michigan: https://www.history.navy.mil/research/underwater-archaeology...

Don't forget to try the beer!

https://www.greatlakesbrewing.com/edmund-fitzgerald

The Edmund Fitzgerald sank in water shallower than it was long.

Gordon changed the lyrics at one point when additional information came to light.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com