Lake Superior off Whitefish Point, MI Edmund Fitzgerald Sinking, Nov 1975

ORE CARRIER SINKS IN LAKE SUPERIOR STORM.

OIL SLICK, DEBRI[sic] SPOTTED ON LAKE.

Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. (AP) -- An oil slick, two empty lifeboats and debris were spotted today on Lake Superior near where the ore carried EDMUND FITZGERALD sank in a storm with 29 crewmen aboard, the Coast Guard said.
"It has sunk. The ship disappeared off the radar scopes in the area and we've searched 18 hours for the vessel. We classify as sunk," declared BRYAN NORRIS, a spokesman at Coast Guard headquarters in Washington.
Ogelbay Norton Co., owner of the 17-year-old freighter, identified the Fitzgerald's Captain as E. R. McSORLEY of Toledo, Ohio, and said 28 others, including a cadet sailor, were onboard.
Some debris was reported washed up at Pancake Point on the Canadian shore near Batchawana Bay, about 50 miles northwest of Sault Ste. Marie. Ontario police were dispatched to the area to search for survivors.
"We're finding a lot of debris and we've found a couple of life boats. But we haven't found any people alive or dead," said Chief JERE BENNETT of the Coast Guard air rescue station at Sault Ste. Marie in Michigan's eastern Upper Peninsula.
"There's a lot of debris, but we haven't found anything that's a part of the ship, only things that would have washed off," he said.
The freighters Roger Blau Wilfred Sykes joined the vessel Arthur M. Anderson to search the area for survivors. Coast Guard C130 airplanes and helicopters were surveying the area.
Debris began turning up after 5 a.m. about 13 miles north of Whitefish Point, some 45 miles northwest of here. None of the recovered items could be definitely linked to the 729-foot-long Fitzgerald, however, the Coast Guard said.
Waves in the area today diminished to four to seven feet after mounting to as high as 25 feet Monday night in winds gusting to 75 miles per hour.
The water temperature was 51 degrees.
"It sure looks like she sank," he said.
The Fitzgerald was last heard from about 7:10 p.m. Monday when it said it was taking on water but had turned on working pumps.
According to radio chatter overheard from the lakes freighter Arthur M. Anderson, which is assisting in the search, crewmen were trying to determine whether the oar came from the Fitzgerald.
The Fitzgerald was last reported near the U. S.-Canadian boundary about 65 miles northwest of here. The lifejackets and debris were spotted about 5 a.m. by searchers on the Anderson about 13 miles north of Whitefish Point, 45 miles northwest of the Soo in Michigan's Upper Peninsula.
A flare was seen about 1 a.m. some 15 milies northeast of the last known location of the Fitzgerald, according to Coast Guard officials here. However, the flare could have been dropped by searching aircraft planes to illuminate the area, sources said.
The Anderson heard the Fitzgerald radio she was taking on water Monday night and followed the Fitzgerald for about 10 miles, keeping the vessel in sight, Coast Guard officials said. The Anderson, a U. S. Steel fleet vessel, also tracked the Fitzgerald on its radar scope, the Coast Guard said.
No distress call was reported from the Fitzgerald. It told the Anderson it was not in danger as its pumps were working, officials said.
Then, with seas cresting, the Fitzgerald disappeared from the Anderson's radar screen and was lost visually as well. It has not been located since.
The Coast Guard dispatched one plane and two helicopters to the area to assist in the search.
The Coast Guard vessel, Woodrush, a 100-foot buoy tender, was steaming to the area from Duluth, Minn., about 400 miles away. One official said it might take as long as 15 hours for the Woodrush to reach the area.

Daily Globe Ironwood Michigan 1975-11-11

Crew Listing of the Lost Sailors on the Edmund Fitzgerald.
ERNEST M. McSORLEY, 63, captain.
JOHN H. McCARTHY, 62, first mate.
JAMES A. PRATT, 44, second mate.
MICHAEL E. ARMAGOST, 37, third mate.
GEORGE J. HOLL, 60, chief engineer.
EDWARD E. BINDON, 47, first assistant engineer.
THOMAS E. EDWARDS, 50, second assistant engineer.
RUSSELL G. HASKEL, 40, second assistant engineer.
OLIVER J. CHAMPEAU, 51, third assistant engineer.
DAVID E. WEISS, 22, deck cadet.
EUGENE W. O'BRIEN, 50, wheelman.
JOHN J. POVIACH, 59, wheelman.
JOHN D. SIMMONS, 60, wheelman.
RANSOM E. CUNDY, 53, watchman.
KARL E. PECKOL, 55, watchman.
WILLIAM J. SPENGLER, 59, watchman.
THOMAS BENTSEN, 23, oiler.
RALPH G. WALTON, 58, oiler.
BLAINE H. WILHELM, 52, oiler.
GORDON E. MacLELLAN, 30, wiper.
ROBERT C. RAFFERTY, 62, steward.
ALLEN G. KALMON, 43, second cook.
FREDERICK J. BEETCHER, 54, porter.
NOLAN E. CHURCH, 55, porter.
THOMAS E. BORGESON, 41, able seaman maintenance man.
JOSEPH W. MAZES, 59, special maintenance man.
BRUCE L. HUDSON, 22, deckhand.
PAUL A. RIIPA, 22, deckhand.
MARK A. THOMAS, 21, deckhand.

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Researched and Transcribed by Stu Beitler. Thank you, Stu!