Known as a boat nerd.Originally Posted by early morning
If you’re on FB, there are great groups with lots of pics and video of the boats.
Known as a boat nerd.
If you’re on FB, there are great groups with lots of pics and video of the boats.
Thanks, Tradd; that was a great video. I've seen bits and bobs of that footage in museum exhibits about the Fitzgerald, but never so much of it.
In Duluth, MN, there's a restored ore carrier, the William A. Irvin. We took a tour of that ship many years ago. They let you climb down the ladder into the cargo hold and view the crew's quarters and the kitchen. Even having been on cruise ships, I found the size of those carriers impressive. It's hard to think about one going down on a lake (though if a lake could do it, Superior is one of the few).
Thanks, dado, for posting this thread!
Success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome. - Booker T. Washington
There was a really bad storm in 1913 that was the worst on the Great Lakes. It was a true freshwater hurricane. Then there was the Armistice Day Storm of 1940 that took down three freighters on Lake Michigan, as well as two smaller boats.
They're not "carriers." They're actually called "lakers." And vessels on the Great Lakes are called boats.
After the 1940 storm, the losses seem to have really slowed down. More modern weather forecasting and stuff like radar helped. Then the sinkings became legendary.
Carl D. Bradley, broke in two on the surface, in a storm on northern Lake Michigan, November 18, 1958. Two survivors.
Cedarville, sunk in the Straits of Mackinac after a collision with a Norwegian "saltie." May 1965. I've actually dived this one and swam through the huge gash from the collision. the Norwegian ship had a bow reinforced for ice breaking and sliced through the Cedarville like a hot knife through butter. 10 crew lost when the Cedarville rolled and sank two miles from shore. The Cedarville was owned by the same company as the Bradley and they were sister ships. Sailed out of the small northeastern Michigan town of Rogers City. Town was devastated.
Daniel J. Morrell, broke in two on the surface, in a storm on Lake Huron. She sank off the Thumb. Her stern was under power and sank five mile away. November 29, 1966. One survivor.
Both the Bradley (built 1927) and the Morrell (built 1908) were constructed of an older type of steel that gets brittle at very cold temperatures, such as seen on the Great Lakes. Structural failure from this steel was the likely cause of both sinkings. This steel wasn't used after 1948. The Morrell's sister ship, the Daniel Y. Townsend, sailing through the same storm, limped into port with a crack on her deck. She never sailed again.
The Fitz, the Bradley, and the Morrell were all on the last run of the season. Just get one more in...
To those not used to the Great Lakes, these ships might all seem to be very old, but without the corrosion salt water causes, Great Lakes vessels can go for years. There have been some that were close to 100 years old before they were retired. The current oldest laker on the US side, is the Alpena, a cement carrier. She was launched in 1942. She was shortened from her original length, as the Leon A. Fraser. Another, the Kaye E. Barker, is a few months younger than the Alpena. The famous US Coast Goard vessel, the Mackinaw heavy ice breaker, on the Great Lakes was launched in 1945 and retired in 2006.
OK, I've proven I am most definitely a boat nerd.
I had an acquaintance who spent every weekend recording the flags of all the freighters which passed through the locks on the Welland canal. It was really interesting listening to his research on the international aspects of shipping on the Great Lakes in the 1980's. I think of him every time I drive over the bridge on Hwy 20 to Niagara Falls. I wonder if the results would be different today.
As Cicero said, “Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all the others.”
You dont have lakes like that, practically an ocean. Girlfriend, you dont have Weather with a capital W: hurricanes, tornados, violent thunderstorms, freezing tundras and 4’ snows. These Weather events shape the populace.
There’s a reason the Great Lakes are called “inland seas.” They create their own weather, too.
The early French explorers called them “sweet water seas.” They were astonished to learn they were fresh water n
We definitely don't have Weather, as a general rule. And I'm good with that.
Fabulous links, Tradd. Thanks so much for sharing. I haven't listened to the song in a while as I usually can't get through it without shedding some tears.
To give pleasure to a single heart by a single act is better than a thousand heads bowing in prayer." Mahatma Gandhi
Be nice whenever possible. It's always possible. HH Dalai Lama
In a world where you can be anything - be kind. Unknown
Please, please - keep at it, this is wonderful stuff!OK, I've proven I am most definitely a boat nerd.
OK, and with that encouragement, I’ll post some more stuff later.
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