Though its sinking was tragic, the Mighty Fitz was just one of thousands of shipwrecks on the Great Lakes. And the reason we all know that one? Of course, it’s the Gordon Lightfoot song. As the author John U. Bacon admits, were it not for Lightfoot’s stirring ballad, he likely wouldn’t have written his latest book — a definitive account of the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald. Yes, Bacon says, the gales of November did come early that year. Yes, the ship’s captain and her crew were well seasoned, and their passing was heartbreaking for those left behind, “the wives, and the sons and the daughters.” Bacon joins us to explore the fascinating story of this memorable maritime disaster.
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- John U. Bacon is the author of more than a dozen books. His latest is The Gales of November: The Untold Story of the Edmund Fitzgerald.