Half a century ago, the freighter SS Edmund Fitzgerald set off from the western edge of Lake Superior with a cargo full of iron ore. Within hours, a ferocious storm gathered in strength, ultimately producing 60-foot waves and sinking the prized vessel. There were no survivors. The exact cause of its demise remains unknown.
Over the decades, any ships have faced a similar fate on the Great Lakes. But the tragedy of the Edmund Fitzgerald looms the largest in our collective national memory—and it led to changes in the maritime industry that dramatically improved the safety of shipping. In this episode, host Ari Daniel speaks with author John U. Bacon about what made the ship famous even before it sank, what we know and don’t know about the crew’s final moments, and the ship’s lasting legac
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