Lake Superior: A Watery Graveyard

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Picture taken by Christian Dalbec in Tettegouche State Park – Waves crashing into a 100-foot cliff.

Lake Superior attracts thousands of visitors from around the world each year. What many don’t see is how quickly the lake can transform from a sleeping kitten with glassy waters to a raging tiger with 30-foot waves when a storm blows in – a nightmare for those working the Superior waters. Hundreds of shipwrecks lay on the cold, dark, rocky bottom of Lake Superior. A haven for scuba divers, these shipwrecks lay preserved in the icy depths of the lake. The Lake Superior Visitor states:

All over the Great Lakes, wooden schooners were colliding, breaking away and sinking. Others were destroyed by fire. Actually, it wasn’t usually the dark, stormy nights, but the inexperienced crews that caused most of the shipping accidents in the late 1800s. However, Lake Superior shipwrecks continued well into the late 1900s.

Working Ship
Lake freighter working the waters near Two Harbors, Minnesota

The Edmund Fitzgerald

Perhaps the most well-known wreck on Lake Superior is that of the Edmund Fitzgerald – thanks to the popular 1976 folk song “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” by Gordon Lightfoot. Sean Ley, Development Officer, at the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum writes:

The final voyage of the Edmund Fitzgerald began November 9, 1975 at the Burlington Northern Railroad Dock No.1, Superior, Wisconsin. Captain Ernest M. McSorley had loaded her with 26,116 long tons of taconite pellets, made of processed iron ore, heated and rolled into marble-size balls. Departing Superior about 2:30 pm, she was soon joined by the Arthur M. Anderson, which had departed Two Harbors, Minnesota under Captain Bernie Cooper. The two ships were in radio contact. The Fitzgerald being the faster took the lead, with the distance between the vessels ranging from 10 to 15 miles.

Aware of a building November storm entering the Great Lakes from the great plains, Captain McSorley and Captain Cooper agreed to take the northerly course across Lake Superior, where they would be protected by highlands on the Canadian shore…

According to Captain Cooper, about 6:55 pm, he and the men in the Anderson’s pilothouse felt a “bump”, felt the ship lurch, and then turned to see a monstrous wave engulfing their entire vessel from astern. The wave worked its way along the deck, crashing on the back of the pilothouse, driving the bow of the Anderson down into the sea.

No one knows exactly what happened to the Edmund Fitzgerald, but 29 men lost their lives on that fateful day. The great ship did not survive the 80mph winds nor the 25 foot waves that Lake Superior threw at the “Fitz” that day. Ley writes that “what caused the ship to take on water, enough to lose buoyancy and dive to the bottom so quickly, without a single cry for help, cannot be determined.”

Shipwrecks are still being discovered today. In fact, the J.S. Seaverns, a 130-ft. ship that went under in 1884, was just discovered in the summer of 2016. The J.S. Seaverns was used to haul supplies to lumber camps and to transport supplies to build railroads. Amazingly, 132 years later, much of the ship is still largely intact writes Andrew Krueger from the Duluth News Tribune.

Ships aren’t the only vessels to sink to their watery graves only to be preserved in the arctic water – the same goes for people.

Lake Superior Doesn’t Give Up Her Dead

An old saying, “Lake Superior doesn’t give up her dead.” is both folklore and fact. The cold water of Lake Superior does not allow bacteria to grow like it would in warmer water. The bacteria that usually causes the body to bloat and float is kept at bay in the frigid waters of Lake Superior. Because the temperature of the water is so cold, bodies can be preserved for many years in the deep depths of Lake Superior where water lingers around 34F or 1.1C. I can’t imagine the secrets and stories that Lake Superior has yet to reveal – or may never reveal. Even though the deep depths of the lake contain sad and tragic stories, the surface of the water and surrounding land offers incredible scenery and opportunities for the young and old (and furry).

See the last installment to my Lake Superior series here: Lake Superior: The World’s Best Playground

37 Replies to “Lake Superior: A Watery Graveyard”

  1. I used to spend a few weeks every summer camping on Lake Superior. I saw the Nortthern Lights for the first time there. It’s beautiful!!

    1. The Lake Superior area is one of the most amazing places to explore. We still try to get up there a few weeks each year, and it never gets old. In fact, I wouldn’t mind living on the lake. Waking up to the lake would be a pleasure each and every day. 🙂

    2. Very cool and very spooky.

  2. It intrigues me, and scares me at the same time!!!

    1. I think that’s park of the allure of the lake, honestly! It’s so huge, cold, and sometimes scary. I just wrote back to Katie that I’d never fish that lake for fear that I’d hook into something icky at the bottom of the lake. I wonder if that has ever happened? Thanks for reading and taking the time to comment, Ritu!

  3. Super spooky!! I remember my mom referencing that song a lot growing up.

    1. Right! I never care to fish that lake – not knowing what I’ll hook into. 😉

  4. I love this! There are so many fascinating stories surrounding the Great Lakes.

    1. There sure are! Thanks so much for reading and taking the time to comment. 🙂

  5. This is absolutely fascinating! Being on the other side of the world, I’d never given too much thought to these lakes but now I’m so curious.

    1. Well if you ever end up exploring over here, you’ll definitely have to check out the Great Lakes. They are amazing, and surrounded by so much beauty. Thanks for your comment, Amelia!

  6. This is pretty eerie (no pun on lakes intended)! Another super piece Erin

    1. The lake can feel pretty eerie, but that’s part of the lure too. 🙂 Thanks so much, Orla!

  7. Fascinating. Is Lake Superior freshwater?

    1. Thanks! Yes, a giant freshwater lake. The water is completely clear, but very cold.

  8. The story of The Edmund Fitzgerald is really sad…but then if you think that none of those bodies have decomposed, it becomes pretty gruesome! Does that mean every so often a limb will wash ashore like the spare toes that seem to wash ashore on the Pacific coastline here!?

    1. Actually, no! The bodies are almost perfectly preserved. There have been just a few divers to go down to the wreck, but family of the deceased were not happy. They look at the wreck as their loved ones final resting place. I guess the bodies look almost just as they would have when the ship went under. Crazy, right?

      1. Eep. That really would be upsetting if the family went diving!

    2. By the way, have you seen toes wash ashore there?!? That would completely freak me out.😱

  9. I went to Duluth when I was in Minneapolis and the Aerial Lift Bridge at the Lake Superior was amazing. Until I saw kale Superior, I never knew lakes could be so huge. Sharing my Duluth trip here when you get time to check out –
    https://www.happinessandfood.com/duluth/

    1. I love Duluth. My best friend moved there when I was in fifth grade, my husband went to college there, and my family has been vacationing there and along the North Shore since I was very young. I’m so glad you had the chance to see the area while you were here! I’ll happily check out your post. 🙂

  10. Oh man, I feel like a ghost story about the waters of lake superior would be amazing. Preserved bodies in the deep! Whoa.

    1. The whole idea of those sunken ships with dead bodies (that we know are down there) in water that is so clear and cold really freaks me out. It would make an excellent ghost story and I’m sure you could find one if you Googled this. There are many stories – especially about the Fitzgerald.

  11. I was always fascinated by that line in the song about Superior never giving up its dead. Sounds spooky in the song and yet such a scientific explanation.

    1. You’ve got it! There is definitely science behind the lake never giving up her dead. And, yes – very spooky!

    2. I spent a lot of time on Superior as a lad. My father was a sport diver in the 60s and 70s. In the 60s SCUBA diving as a sport, non commercial, was very much in its infancy. I tagged along on dive trips along the north shore and at the Michigan state park, Isle Royale. My father once found linen still stacked on a shelf in the galley of a 100 year old wreck. With limited oxygen in the water. And the 34 degree water prohibiting bacteria, the entire galley area appeared unmolested by the sinking of the ship. I have sooo many great childhood memories of that time.
      There is a body still on the wreck of the Kamloops. In tact. It’s been viewed by many divers over the years. He is casually referred to as “Old Whitey”. Because of his bleached pale appearance. Coming upon that while diving a wreck….😳. I think that would absolutely qualify as SPOOKY haha.

      1. Hi Lee!

        Thanks so much for sharing your stories! I bet you loved those trips as a child. I know I would have! And, very interesting that there is still a body on the Kamloops! I’ll have to share that information with my kids. They’ve been so interested in the old shipwreck stories. I’m thankful, because I still enjoy them myself. Especially first-hand experiences like yours! Thanks again!

  12. Wow! Thanks so much for sharing what must be the tip of the iceberg of Lake Superior’s secrets. I’m Australian and haven’t been to America so it’s all a long way off for me. However, that’s what I love about blogging…being able to read local stories and in effect do some virtual trave.
    xx Rowena

    1. I completely agree with you, Rowena! And, thanks so much for stopping by to check out the North Shore of Lake Superior here. If you ever get the chance to travel to Minnesota – the North Shore is the first place I’d recommend you go – I promise you won’t be let down. Thanks again! 🙂

  13. Great! thanks for sharing about Lake Superior’s secret.

    1. You are very welcome! Such interesting history surrounds the Great Lakes – which is not surprising given the size, temperature, and the ability to turn turbulent. I often wonder what else is hidden underneath the surface of the water.

      Thanks so much for reading and taking the time to comment!

  14. There are so many fascinating stories surrounding the Great Lakes.

    1. There sure are! I love hearing stories and learning the history that these lakes hold. I feel a little jittery thinking about what lies beneath the surface of the Great Lakes. I’m not sure I’d want to fish the bottom of the lake.

      Thanks so much for stopping by and taking the time to comment.

  15. What an incredible story, sad though^^. but the lake looks stunnings, I like place with stories^^

    1. Me too! History has a special place in my heart. Thanks so much for reading. 🙂

  16. My pleasure ^^

  17. I do enjoy your shows very much. I had watched a u tube about the people who died on the Titanic. After I watched The Edmund Fitzgerald I wonder if the bodies that went down on there water was so cold it felt like it burned Titanic are frozen in the ship as well. I felt that water at the Titanic museum it is unimaginable that anyone could survive even one minute

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