TH-cam flagged and essentially shadowbanned the first version of this video for unsuitable content, so I decided to re-upload a slightly revised version. I also re-recorded the audio since a few people noted it was a bit low and poppy in parts the first time. Let me know if this is any better. Hopefully this version passes muster and remains visible for people who want to learn more about this stunning piece of Great Lakes history!
My dad was a Great Lakes sailor during the 40’s and 50’s. During the war years, and the years after, shipping on the lakes was extremely busy. The US needed iron ore for steel, and those ore carriers were out on the lakes for months at a time. I still have pictures of my dad as a sailor…and he told stories about those November storms. Dad said it was a great life, but it was hard for the wives who would be at home keeping the house, paying the bills, raising the kids, etc. I love visiting Duluth & Superior, and watching those boats come and go.
I heard I quote somewhere about someone saying "the waves of the Atlantic will throw and toss you about, while the waves on the great lakes will try and tear you apart, rip you into pieces" and the quote always stuck with me. This isn't the exactly quote but this is similar
My father ,a former US Naval Officer told me that the Great Lakes were very dangerous compared to the Atlantic ocean! And recreational sailors know that too! Very few places to find a safe harbor in the Great Lakes regions! 🤔🤔🤯🤯🇩🇪🇨🇭🇺🇲💙🌊⚓🌅⛵🌅⚓Unlike the Chesapeake Bay!
the rail fan… While the waves on the ocean can me much higher, in high wind conditions on the lakes, the waves can get pretty high too, but they tend to be much steeper and the crests closer together. They come with greater rapidity, and sometimes they can come from several different directions at the same time. Also, in a storm as late as November, when so many of them happen, the wind blown spray will freeze on everything- and every Body it settles on. When you go out on those lakes, at any time, but especially in November, there’s No doubt in your mind that you are At Sea!
I still collect coal washed up on the beach from the Price to burn in my wood stove in the winter, also west of here is a steel upside down hull riveted buried in the clay ,Sandy bottom at least 130 ft long only seen after north wind on stormy days.
I'm glad these days the technology for tracking weather has improved so much that the Great Lakes has an amazing safety record now and nothing has sank since the Fitz. What a horrible storm that was to claim so many lives and what an absolutely terrible way to go. Thank you for the reupload!
When the documentary mentioned wireless radios, I was reminded that this incident was mere months before the 1914 sealing disaster off the shores of Newfoundland and Labrador. -- An eye-opening documentary. Thanks for posting.
A storm in October 1977 on Lake Superior created waves so high that they smashed 1/2" plate glass at the Battle Island lighthouse tower 105' above the surface of the lake. Yes 105'.
An almost inverse weather pattern occurred a mere 8 months prior in 1913 and just a few hundred miles to the south of the Great lakes. That stalled out system brought biblical rain to 3 states, most notably, Ohio. It is still, to this day, considered the states worst natural disaster. Over 500 people were swept to a watery grave. 1913 was indeed a witch on the war path
Or how hard it was before technology made tracking the weather as accurate as it was. All those guys had were barometers to see that weather might be coming in- and even then the inaccuracy of predictions made sailors skeptical. A very tough lesson was learned here- those lakes are no joke.
I'm 32. Lived my entire life in Southern Ontario. Ive fished Huron/to the Lake of Two Mountains, the St Lawrence. Ive fished as far north as Timmins/Iroquois Falls regions. One thing among many things I've learned about the weather across this province in my short time as an Angler is that the Winds of November I will Always remember.
@@Bird1964 Yeah. My father, older brother, and I fishing lake Ontario. We launched from Port Dalhousie and fished out for salmon, then came in closer to shore to troll for brown trout somewhere closer to Fifty Point but closer to Stoney Creek. The winds picked up on us really bad on a clear day so we headed home. Chop was getting rough. 19ft Lund. 120 Merc on the back. We can do 45 mph on flat water. Well almost at fifty point we spotted a 10 ft (at best) tinny Bobbing right towards the barrier rocks (QEW is within eyesight). Well some fella and his child daughter were getting thrown right towards the rocks. So we tossed them the lines, tied em off, and slowly in the chop (dad driving, bro spotting ahead, and me spotting behind/watching them) towed them to 50 point launch. Safe and sound. Then we had to go through waves comes over the bow at this point in the wind storm. We had to bail out the boat as we progressed.. finally made it to Port Dalhousie.
That was very interesting! I learned a lot about the dangers of shipping on the Great Lakes in November. R.I.P. all those who gave their lives so bravely.
How many people out there realize that this event was the result of a volcanic event, more than 18 months prior and several thousand miles away. Yes, in June of 1912 was the largest volcanic eruption of the 20th century. Novarupta in Alaska altered the earth's atmosphere and weather patterns for an estimated 3 years.
I had no idea that storms on the Great Lakes could be so utterly relentless and ferocious..But they are just as severe as the Seven open Seas, with the addition of Icing. RIP all who lost their lives on the Great Lakes.
Well to be fair it was mostly the older days of no radios, weather predictions and effective survival gear and all the safety rules were put into place for sailors and the fact that the Great Lakes were exempt from enhanced safety laws for many decades after they were implemented on the oceans is a factor. They just were not considered hazardous as they were until modern times... likewise with modern advancements they have been effective in all but eliminating accidents on it by both better ships and better procedures for deal8mg with bad weather. I think the last big tragedy was the Edmond Fitzgerald in 76😊
@@norml.hugh-mann That's good to know. Stay Safe, anyone who works out there. In the past, ferries just put to sea no matter what the weather. Princess Victoria foundered between Stranraer and Larne in 1953 {Scotland -Ireland} with the loss of 104 lives- Nowadays ferries are just cancelled- plus, as you say, safety procedures are hopefully far better.
@@Oakleaf700 yup Better infrastructure for avoiding accidents on top of better ships, better positioning, better weather prediction...it all adds up to make shipping a much safer job than at the dawn of steel ships ..but it's still dangerous and the potential for disaster is why there is such a rigorous training and certification process for sailiors so they know the dangers, how accidents happened in the past, and the most effective strategies for avoiding disasters
@@StunningHistory Thanks for responding. We had a WW2 cargo ship unearthed when Shasta Lake was at an all-time low here in Redding, CA recently. I understand it was shipped to Nebraska, but if you’re looking for suggestions, you’d have a lot of viewers in this town alone for the story behind it. Just throwin’ that out there 😉
Great Lakes are so unpredictable. I sailed Buffalo, to Erie, to Dover Canada, and back to Buffalo. I've never been so terrified in my life on the open water. It was not nearly as close to what these men faced.
They aren’t. “White hurricane” is just a nickname. Hurricanes are intense tropical storms with extremely low pressure. This system was either polar or arctic. No hurricane creates snow and ice.
@@Mike_294 well what about the indian subcontinent who has hurricanes that bring snow? (yes I know that they are called cyclones but they are literally the same thing but different names).
@@parkerwebb3470 hurricanes/cyclones/typhoons are tropical maritime air masses. Tropical means that they are characterized by warm air; which does not produce snow. What you're describing is a different type of extreme low pressure system that's characterized by cold, moist air. These are called polar maritime systems and arctic maritime systems, and are pretty rare. Maritime means that the air mass was formed over a body of water, and that there is moisture present (which is required for a storm to occur). The Indian subcontinent does experience cyclones and cyclone-like weather; however, if snow is present, then it is not a cyclone by definition because the air mass is polar (cold) instead of tropical (warm). You can learn more about the different types of air masses here: www.noaa.gov/jetstream/synoptic/air-masses
You failed to mention that part of the responsibility for the appalling loss, was the companies pressuring their captains to make the journeys, against their better judgement. If memory serves, at least one of the captains was told not to bother showing back up to work, if he didn’t embark.
You are a scuba diver ??? Awesome. I want someone to find the James C Caruthers from this storm. To me, The Caruthers is the Titanic of Great Lakes shipwrecks not the Fitzgerald.
These stories I’ve never Heard of i so Thank You for the history of such a Wicked storm taking so many lives in such a horrific way. I’d really enjoy a more detailed account of this storm and the ships that it claimed and of course all the seamen and women
I remember going across Lake Michigan on the S.S Badger car ferry, back in 1982. The trip was from Ludington to Kewaunee during the evening hours. Anyway we ran into a storm like I've never seen before. I managed to get to the bow area where I saw the biggest waves I've ever seen in my life. Wow! I almost wet myself when I saw those waves. That ship was Rocking like a Rocking chair. I believe this was late Spring or early summer. I'll never that trip.
While snowmobiling in the UP of Michigan we stopped by Lake Superior. As the waves 🌊 hit the huge ice wall it sounded like dynamite as it hit. That lake is no joke. Extremely dangerous lake. In many ways.
@@Imgone2024 yes. It was snowing so hard we couldn’t see 10 feet in front of us. And when we get to the lake shore all you can hear was A thunderous sound every time a wave hit the 20 foot wall of ice.
Money money money…in a nutshell. Come a long way but still there are countless examples, and I’m sure much wasn’t reported to this day. Nice video as usual!
It’s good to see this topic covered even in the area the white hurricane isn’t well remembered. An important part of the story isn’t covered however ship captains were under enormous pressure to make as many runs as possible by their companies. Captains who were seen as too timid were routinely fired setting a dangerous precedent in corporate culture. The ferocity of the storm is still unprecedented to this day catching even seasoned sailors off guard. These late fall storms when the first cold blast of the year runs into warm air ahead and still warm waters are known as blows or 3 day blows. The warm southerly winds blow for a day ahead of the storm and then switch to the north wrapping around the system for another 24 hours by the 3rd day the storm usually is dying down. The confluence of the two systems tricked captains into thinking the worst was past. There was always the pressure of getting a last run in before the locks into and out of Lake Superior on the St Mary’s River start freezing shutting down the major shipping routes for the season. The story of the Henry B Smith is quite poignant the captain had a reputation as a veteran who wouldn’t risk his crew his company threatened him if he missed anymore runs then he was to be replaced. The man was so well respected that dock workers came in for him on Sunday to load the ore at the Marquette docks. The storm was rising fiercely as he left still battening down the hatches. Later reports from survivors stated multiple times that the wind and waves were so powerful that navigating into the breakwaters of harbors was impossible he went down only 30 miles after leaving Marquette. The the level of severity not allowing captains to steer to safety without getting hit broadside by the massive waves. The captain it seems having tried to turn around and failed sought shelter in Keewenaw Bay hoping the highland peninsula would act as a windbreak. He unfortunately didn’t make it another ship piloted by a 18 year old helmsman was ordered by his captain to make for the safety in Port Huron. The helmsman would have had to turn broadside into the weather to make it into the refuge of the St Clair River he ran his ship aground on the beach in front of a hotel. The captain later commented the young man for saving all their lives as another ship wrecked and went down in Port Huron. There were a whole host of problems including ships built underpowered with single boilers for 500+ ft steel freighters to save money, lack of accurate forecasting, lack of wireless & a harsh industry standard. The loss of the Edmund Fitzgerald was such a shock not only because of the mysterious circumstances of its sinking. But that it had everything that the lessons of earlier generations said were needed for safe commerce on the lakes. It had a strong diesel power plant all the latest modern technology at its disposal including radar to navigate in white out conditions though rouge waves apparently knocked it out before it sank. Workplace safety standards also greatly improved as well along with good communications not to mention the ability to call on modern coast guard helicopter search and rescue.
Very good video,grew up in Mi. Never heard of this event. Spent 6 years on the oceans and took 35° rolls for days on end. You stay tired,sleep for days if you could. Have lost equipment and near deaths, but everyone whent home.
Born n bred in N.Michigan. 1930s. But older brother ,mid 40s to 50s worked the Great Lakes. On ships. Many say being on our Great Lakes is more dangerous than ocean sailing. Im a #NavyVeteranKorea n retired now in Grand Haven Michigan. Homes on Lake Michigan. Shes a beautiful Lady but never will be calm n tame very long. Superior is 10× as dangerous.
It's still very hard to trust the weather service. Just one of many, many examples, it is not unheard of for the NWS to issue a picture-perfect marine forecast (sunshine, calm winds, zero waves), and also issue a small craft warning. The two forecasts are incompatible, and it's up to the captains to determine which, if either, is accurate.
the day of my 60+ years that left me feeling the least safe was spent on a fishing boat twelve miles off of Cape May, NJ. A boat is the last place to be if safety is your concern.
It amazes me that it's a lake, yet they get 35 ft waves. I've never seen the Great lakes so I can't say, but I've lived on the Atlantic Ocean my whole life and I've seen some huge waves, especially when I was in the military and our ship traveled the Pacific down into the see you Japan and Indian Ocean and we hit a typhoon around the Philippines. I was scared for my life. But that's an ocean, I just look at lakes that I have seen and I just can't imagine it. Of course, I know the Great lakes are huge and probably look like an ocean
I have been on the Lakes since I was 10. I have seen times that when she gets mad, she gets mad real fast. Those Lakes are nothing to trifle with. Move it. Move it fast.
We live super close to Lake Erie and just the boats that get torn up or the kids who drown each year is crazy! People need to respect the Lakes! Their just as deadly if not more dangerous than the ocean
The one thing that really exploded the strength of the storm was that a tropical front came up from the south and combined with what was already there and it turned into a bomb cyclone
Back then ship owners didn't care about loss of human life. Profits and greed ran the day for captains and boat owners alike. Things changed in modern times only because of insurance settlements and lawsuits by family members
I totally agree with you. The James C Caruthers is the Titanic of the Great Lakes shipwrecks. I really hope that they find this boat in my lifetime. Why did it go down ??? I can't understand. This storm must have been something
The Great Lakes look so small compared to the oceans, but that much water that close together means you need as much awe and fear for the Great Lakes as you do for the Atlantic and the Pacific. They are beautiful but deadly. They will allure you and captivate you, but you can never trust them. If you have lived near the Great Lakes, there is a strong chance you will one day personally know the name of someone claimed by them; yet despite the tragedy, the waves call you to the shores again and again.
My son found a piece of coal on the Lighthouse park beach in Port Huron which is about five miles south of where the Price washed ashore. The ship was loaded with coal.
I read years ago that the lake waters were warmer than usual that Nov., due to unusually hot summer. And that this contributed to the ferocity of the storm. Any truth to that...anybody?
To my knowledge, there is no mention of water temps at that time. Wasn't a considered observation at the time. Early days of meteorology. My Grandfather was on one of the LSS crews on the "Waldo" rescue. I'll double check for records next time I'm in Eagle Harbor.
If true, the warmer waters may have played into stronger storms. The warmer Atlantic temperatures this year could have produced some horrible hurricanes if other conditions had been right.
@jamesmordovancey517 I'm not a sailer but have lived in Michigan most of my 62 years, the weather forecasts for the great lakes and Michigan ( Illinois, Minnesota and Wisconsin with an eastern wind) are flakey at best, you have a large body of water ( lake Michiagan that is affected by incoming storms, the storms can suck the heat out and enhance that storm as it travels north, then you have Superior, that is a huge, deep lake, I can remember it being nice in August as a kid but then a small storm churned it up and those cold deep waters pushed the sun heated water away. The water near shore dropped 20 degrees. It takes a lot to change the temperature of superior so the weeks leading up to the 1913 event really matter as does the summer and even summers and winters prior, a couple degrees can make a difference. Lake Huron is on the east side of Michigan and I have seen it throw Ice slabs 20x 30 ft 2 foot thick on the shores with the wind coming from the east. Erie is the shallower of the great lakes, it can change temperature quickly and if you're out fishing it can kick 3 or 4ft waves up in just a few minutes and freeze solid faster than you can imagine. The picture I'm trying to paint is even with today's technology, all these different lakes have their own personality but at the same time can affect a storm or building storm differently. They create weather differently and its always changing from day to day, week to week and month to month. The amount of data needed to perfectly predict the weather around the great lakes is absurd. Even today we get rain or snow when they say 0 chance, no rain or snow when storms are predicted, temperatures 10-15 degrees colder or hotter than what they thought and right on the mark sometimes. In a perfect storm as was 1913 everything was set to disaster. They have improved but still have work to do.
I actually watched the version which ultimately was shadowbanned; and while I admit I am not qualified to judge videos according to TH-cam standards, I honestly do not recall anything objectionable. Im waiting to see how THIS version measures up. Fingers crossed! 😃
my Dad and Great Uncle were cooks on the Edmond Fitzgerald. When my U cle retored my Dad left. lucky for me..2 years later it sank. I would have never been born in 78.
The ships of the day were grossly under powered and could not maintain forward movement even under full power because the ships were being driven backwards by the 100 mph winds. Many were driven into shore and run aground. Think about being trapped in a basin that was being hit by such a large weather event that you were incapable of steering away from it or out of it because the distance required did not exist in a lake basin. 72 hours of wind blowing like that would push you hundreds of miles before the ship could find refuge. If this type of wind hit ocean going ships, they could turn with the wind and ride it out until it died out. No such luxury in an inland lake even a Great Lake. There were incidents reported in all the Great Lakes in this storm. Huron had the most.
You got that exactly right. The wright brothers spad airplane had more horsepower than these old boats. Grossly underpowered. No wonder why so many went down. When a storm hit, they couldn't get into shore and beach it. The waves had more power than a ships engine back then
They lost 8 boats on Huron in this storm. 7 of them have been found. The James C Caruthers is still missing. This particular ship is the Titanic of the Great Lakes shipwrecks.
Wasn't this the storm where it was in the 70's in the morning, guys got stuck out duck hunting downriver Michigan and they died from exposure, when the temp dropped off, and the snow and wind cranked up?
I think that may have been the Armistice Day storm of 1940. It's the same storm that led to the collapse of the original Tacoma Narrows Bridge collapse.
35 foot waves ?? Absolutely. Look at pics of the Edmund Fitzgerald on the bottom of Lake Superior. The bridge is literally smashed in from a rogue wave
Because we don't know where it went down. Also, there were reports of a "debris field" with items belonging to the Carruthers. We may not ever find it because there is simply nothing to find, as it broke up into too many pieces.
Well. The boats are so much safer today. The Fitzgerald was the last freighter that went down in 1975. Procedures changed after that. The public was pissed. The jury is still out on what caused the Fitzgerald to go to the bottom. But it isn't a mystery to me.
That’s an entirely different situation. That was a coastal hurricane that killed people inland. This was an inland hurricane and blizzard where most of the people killed were on the ships.
It's nice to see the great tradition of profit before people still goes on, despite the inconvenience of losing 250 people. Good old American way. Some things never change.
I stillgather coal from the price to burn inthe wood stove in the winter,in the summer we could stand on the boiler and be up to our necks in water,i also found ships carpenter tools along side of her haul R
100 years ago, these ships were grossly underpowered. The wright brothers spad airplane had more horsepower than these ships did back then. Sometimes in storms these ships would actually get pushed backwards by waves. That's how small the engines were. And when a storm came out of nowhere. They were literally hours from the shoreline. Nowhere to go but to the bottom
TH-cam flagged and essentially shadowbanned the first version of this video for unsuitable content, so I decided to re-upload a slightly revised version. I also re-recorded the audio since a few people noted it was a bit low and poppy in parts the first time. Let me know if this is any better. Hopefully this version passes muster and remains visible for people who want to learn more about this stunning piece of Great Lakes history!
Yeah, the weather report that time is combine with instinct and knewn forsure only. Not justlike now. Update,indate and over-date ( astrologi )
Just going to say it.. TH-cam was so fing wrong!!! Thank you for still putting up the good fight!
I hate how TH-cam censors valid historical content
I watched both versions: both are terrific! 💖
Can you give us a clue what had constituted unsuitable content on an earlier version of the same story?
My dad was a Great Lakes sailor during the 40’s and 50’s. During the war years, and the years after, shipping on the lakes was extremely busy. The US needed iron ore for steel, and those ore carriers were out on the lakes for months at a time. I still have pictures of my dad as a sailor…and he told stories about those November storms. Dad said it was a great life, but it was hard for the wives who would be at home keeping the house, paying the bills, raising the kids, etc. I love visiting Duluth & Superior, and watching those boats come and go.
Is your name really Richard Johnson?
Great comment, Dick Dickson.
Right, wasn't a good family life. I did 10 and quit for a family.
I heard I quote somewhere about someone saying "the waves of the Atlantic will throw and toss you about, while the waves on the great lakes will try and tear you apart, rip you into pieces" and the quote always stuck with me.
This isn't the exactly quote but this is similar
Salt water is denser, then fresh water is so it's easier for a boat to float in
My father ,a former US Naval Officer told me that the Great Lakes were very dangerous compared to the Atlantic ocean! And recreational sailors know that too! Very few places to find a safe harbor in the Great Lakes regions! 🤔🤔🤯🤯🇩🇪🇨🇭🇺🇲💙🌊⚓🌅⛵🌅⚓Unlike the Chesapeake Bay!
the rail fan… While the waves on the ocean can me much higher, in high wind conditions on the lakes, the waves can get pretty high too, but they tend to be much steeper and the crests closer together. They come with greater rapidity, and sometimes they can come from several different directions at the same time. Also, in a storm as late as November, when so many of them happen, the wind blown spray will freeze on everything- and every Body it settles on. When you go out on those lakes, at any time, but especially in November, there’s No doubt in your mind that you are At Sea!
I still collect coal washed up on the beach from the Price to burn in my wood stove in the winter, also west of here is a steel upside down hull riveted buried in the clay ,Sandy bottom at least 130 ft long only seen after north wind on stormy days.
I'm glad these days the technology for tracking weather has improved so much that the Great Lakes has an amazing safety record now and nothing has sank since the Fitz. What a horrible storm that was to claim so many lives and what an absolutely terrible way to go. Thank you for the reupload!
The boats are no longer allowed to sail in storms. They now have to shelter when the gales come rushing down.
@@ZillyWhalelawyers and liability.....
When the documentary mentioned wireless radios, I was reminded that this incident was mere months before the 1914 sealing disaster off the shores of Newfoundland and Labrador. -- An eye-opening documentary. Thanks for posting.
Was their wireless communication back in 1913 a pigeon or Morse code ?
@@mudstick3184 Morse code, I'm guessing.
A storm in October 1977 on Lake Superior created waves so high that they smashed 1/2" plate glass at the Battle Island lighthouse tower 105' above the surface of the lake. Yes 105'.
The 22 year old captain blows my mind. You will rarely find if at all that level of dedication to a job these days, absolutely astounding.
An almost inverse weather pattern occurred a mere 8 months prior in 1913 and just a few hundred miles to the south of the Great lakes. That stalled out system brought biblical rain to 3 states, most notably, Ohio. It is still, to this day, considered the states worst natural disaster. Over 500 people were swept to a watery grave. 1913 was indeed a witch on the war path
People don't always realize how brutal the Great Lakes can be.
Or how hard it was before technology made tracking the weather as accurate as it was. All those guys had were barometers to see that weather might be coming in- and even then the inaccuracy of predictions made sailors skeptical. A very tough lesson was learned here- those lakes are no joke.
...and how Suoerior can go from smooth as glass to 20ft waves without warning
I'm 32. Lived my entire life in Southern Ontario. Ive fished Huron/to the Lake of Two Mountains, the St Lawrence. Ive fished as far north as Timmins/Iroquois Falls regions. One thing among many things I've learned about the weather across this province in my short time as an Angler is that the Winds of November I will Always remember.
I bet you have some incredible stories to share! Sounds exciting. 😊
@@Bird1964 Yeah. My father, older brother, and I fishing lake Ontario. We launched from Port Dalhousie and fished out for salmon, then came in closer to shore to troll for brown trout somewhere closer to Fifty Point but closer to Stoney Creek. The winds picked up on us really bad on a clear day so we headed home. Chop was getting rough. 19ft Lund. 120 Merc on the back. We can do 45 mph on flat water. Well almost at fifty point we spotted a 10 ft (at best) tinny Bobbing right towards the barrier rocks (QEW is within eyesight). Well some fella and his child daughter were getting thrown right towards the rocks. So we tossed them the lines, tied em off, and slowly in the chop (dad driving, bro spotting ahead, and me spotting behind/watching them) towed them to 50 point launch. Safe and sound. Then we had to go through waves comes over the bow at this point in the wind storm. We had to bail out the boat as we progressed.. finally made it to Port Dalhousie.
That was very interesting! I learned a lot about the dangers of shipping on the Great Lakes in November. R.I.P. all those who gave their lives so bravely.
The old TH-cam doing TH-cam thing...regardless, Excellent work! Fast becoming one of my favorites on this platform! Cheers!
How many people out there realize that this event was the result of a volcanic event, more than 18 months prior and several thousand miles away. Yes, in June of 1912 was the largest volcanic eruption of the 20th century. Novarupta in Alaska altered the earth's atmosphere and weather patterns for an estimated 3 years.
Really? Crazy
Thank you! Had no idea. Thought it was those evil SUVs.
@@Galen-864 😄
Happy to have found your channel. Making my way through your older videos. Keep up the great work!
I had no idea that storms on the Great Lakes could be so utterly relentless and ferocious..But they are just as severe as the Seven open Seas, with the addition of Icing.
RIP all who lost their lives on the Great Lakes.
Well to be fair it was mostly the older days of no radios, weather predictions and effective survival gear and all the safety rules were put into place for sailors and the fact that the Great Lakes were exempt from enhanced safety laws for many decades after they were implemented on the oceans is a factor. They just were not considered hazardous as they were until modern times... likewise with modern advancements they have been effective in all but eliminating accidents on it by both better ships and better procedures for deal8mg with bad weather. I think the last big tragedy was the Edmond Fitzgerald in 76😊
@@norml.hugh-mann That's good to know. Stay Safe, anyone who works out there.
In the past, ferries just put to sea no matter what the weather.
Princess Victoria foundered between Stranraer and Larne in 1953 {Scotland -Ireland} with the loss of 104 lives- Nowadays ferries are just cancelled- plus, as you say, safety procedures are hopefully far better.
@@Oakleaf700 yup
Better infrastructure for avoiding accidents on top of better ships, better positioning, better weather prediction...it all adds up to make shipping a much safer job than at the dawn of steel ships ..but it's still dangerous and the potential for disaster is why there is such a rigorous training and certification process for sailiors so they know the dangers, how accidents happened in the past, and the most effective strategies for avoiding disasters
Time well spent! Wonderful job on this one 💯
Thanks, Mark!
@@StunningHistory Thanks for responding. We had a WW2 cargo ship unearthed when Shasta Lake was at an all-time low here in Redding, CA recently. I understand it was shipped to Nebraska, but if you’re looking for suggestions, you’d have a lot of viewers in this town alone for the story behind it. Just throwin’ that out there 😉
I was clueless that hurricanes are a actual thing on the great lakes! I love history and adore huge ships. You got a new subscriber here!👍👏👏👏
Great Lakes are so unpredictable. I sailed Buffalo, to Erie, to Dover Canada, and back to Buffalo. I've never been so terrified in my life on the open water. It was not nearly as close to what these men faced.
They aren’t. “White hurricane” is just a nickname. Hurricanes are intense tropical storms with extremely low pressure. This system was either polar or arctic. No hurricane creates snow and ice.
@mike_294 thanks for the clarification. I didn't think hurricanes were on the great lakes, I'm so glad I hadn't completely lost my marbles😉
@@Mike_294 well what about the indian subcontinent who has hurricanes that bring snow? (yes I know that they are called cyclones but they are literally the same thing but different names).
@@parkerwebb3470 hurricanes/cyclones/typhoons are tropical maritime air masses. Tropical means that they are characterized by warm air; which does not produce snow.
What you're describing is a different type of extreme low pressure system that's characterized by cold, moist air. These are called polar maritime systems and arctic maritime systems, and are pretty rare. Maritime means that the air mass was formed over a body of water, and that there is moisture present (which is required for a storm to occur).
The Indian subcontinent does experience cyclones and cyclone-like weather; however, if snow is present, then it is not a cyclone by definition because the air mass is polar (cold) instead of tropical (warm).
You can learn more about the different types of air masses here:
www.noaa.gov/jetstream/synoptic/air-masses
You failed to mention that part of the responsibility for the appalling loss, was the companies pressuring their captains to make the journeys, against their better judgement. If memory serves, at least one of the captains was told not to bother showing back up to work, if he didn’t embark.
It sounds like one of them did essentially quit his job and survived.
It is too bad that greedy men prevail and because of that, others have to pay with their life.
@richardthomas5362
Sucks how even the lives of captains weren't valued. Shows how far one's greed can lead to the suffering of others
@@thalmoragent9344 Then company management has seminars to discuss why they have no trust from the rank and file.
Or they actually had a work ethic and wanted to do their jobs. Can’t leave that out either.
Shame people always to turns things about corporate greed.
Good job I like it. Thanks for taking time and patience to try it again
That means a lot, thank you!
I have been scuba diving on the hydrus, John mcgean, and Regina. 3 of the wrecks in Lake Huron caused by this storm.
Great video.
You are a scuba diver ??? Awesome. I want someone to find the James C Caruthers from this storm. To me, The Caruthers is the Titanic of Great Lakes shipwrecks not the Fitzgerald.
Love all your videos! Keep up the amazing work dawg
You and the others who do your magical thing! You are a gift each day!
Great video. My son’s great, great grandfather was captain of the coast guard lightship lost on Lake Erie.
These stories I’ve never Heard of i so Thank You for the history of such a Wicked storm taking so many lives in such a horrific way.
I’d really enjoy a more detailed account of this storm and the ships that it claimed and of course all the seamen and women
Very interesting subjekt and professional narration.
I remember going across Lake Michigan on the S.S Badger car ferry, back in 1982. The trip was from Ludington to Kewaunee during the evening hours. Anyway we ran into a storm like I've never seen before. I managed to get to the bow area where I saw the biggest waves I've ever seen in my life. Wow! I almost wet myself when I saw those waves. That ship was Rocking like a Rocking chair. I believe this was late Spring or early summer. I'll never that trip.
Wow, scary!
Wow I bet! 😬 I live in South east MI & get nervous driving over the Mackinaw bridge in the fall! Yikers
While snowmobiling in the UP of Michigan we stopped by Lake Superior. As the waves 🌊 hit the huge ice wall it sounded like dynamite as it hit. That lake is no joke. Extremely dangerous lake. In many ways.
What an incredible experience!
@@Imgone2024 yes. It was snowing so hard we couldn’t see 10 feet in front of us. And when we get to the lake shore all you can hear was A thunderous sound every time a wave hit the 20 foot wall of ice.
Well done man, this was great to watch!
Money money money…in a nutshell. Come a long way but still there are countless examples, and I’m sure much wasn’t reported to this day. Nice video as usual!
I live right where this happened. Plaques are all over the weather can be challenging here.
It’s good to see this topic covered even in the area the white hurricane isn’t well remembered. An important part of the story isn’t covered however ship captains were under enormous pressure to make as many runs as possible by their companies. Captains who were seen as too timid were routinely fired setting a dangerous precedent in corporate culture. The ferocity of the storm is still unprecedented to this day catching even seasoned sailors off guard. These late fall storms when the first cold blast of the year runs into warm air ahead and still warm waters are known as blows or 3 day blows. The warm southerly winds blow for a day ahead of the storm and then switch to the north wrapping around the system for another 24 hours by the 3rd day the storm usually is dying down. The confluence of the two systems tricked captains into thinking the worst was past. There was always the pressure of getting a last run in before the locks into and out of Lake Superior on the St Mary’s River start freezing shutting down the major shipping routes for the season. The story of the Henry B Smith is quite poignant the captain had a reputation as a veteran who wouldn’t risk his crew his company threatened him if he missed anymore runs then he was to be replaced. The man was so well respected that dock workers came in for him on Sunday to load the ore at the Marquette docks. The storm was rising fiercely as he left still battening down the hatches. Later reports from survivors stated multiple times that the wind and waves were so powerful that navigating into the breakwaters of harbors was impossible he went down only 30 miles after leaving Marquette. The the level of severity not allowing captains to steer to safety without getting hit broadside by the massive waves. The captain it seems having tried to turn around and failed sought shelter in Keewenaw Bay hoping the highland peninsula would act as a windbreak. He unfortunately didn’t make it another ship piloted by a 18 year old helmsman was ordered by his captain to make for the safety in Port Huron. The helmsman would have had to turn broadside into the weather to make it into the refuge of the St Clair River he ran his ship aground on the beach in front of a hotel. The captain later commented the young man for saving all their lives as another ship wrecked and went down in Port Huron. There were a whole host of problems including ships built underpowered with single boilers for 500+ ft steel freighters to save money, lack of accurate forecasting, lack of wireless & a harsh industry standard. The loss of the Edmund Fitzgerald was such a shock not only because of the mysterious circumstances of its sinking. But that it had everything that the lessons of earlier generations said were needed for safe commerce on the lakes. It had a strong diesel power plant all the latest modern technology at its disposal including radar to navigate in white out conditions though rouge waves apparently knocked it out before it sank. Workplace safety standards also greatly improved as well along with good communications not to mention the ability to call on modern coast guard helicopter search and rescue.
YAYYYYYY! Lake Michigan, YAYYY! Big storm, BOOM! That video was epic! Nature's power is awe-inspiring! 🌊⚡️ Thanks for sharing the excitement! 🙌🎉
Very good video,grew up in Mi. Never heard of this event. Spent 6 years on the oceans and took 35° rolls for days on end. You stay tired,sleep for days if you could. Have lost equipment and near deaths, but everyone whent home.
That is rough! Glad you and your crew always made it home safely.
Great video! Love learning more about Canadian history.
I really enjoyed the video! Thanks 👍
National Weather Service (NWS) brought this to my attention thanks to a calendar on the wall. I never knew about this weather event. Very interesting!
Born n bred in N.Michigan. 1930s. But older brother ,mid 40s to 50s worked the Great Lakes. On ships. Many say being on our Great Lakes is more dangerous than ocean sailing. Im a #NavyVeteranKorea n retired now in Grand Haven Michigan. Homes on Lake Michigan. Shes a beautiful Lady but never will be calm n tame very long. Superior is 10× as dangerous.
Excellent video. Thank you.
This is really well done! Hat's off!
I live 20 minutes inland from lake Michigan and i can tell you lake effect is the real deal come winter time here.
I had not heard of this storm. Gracias.
Good and informative work. Can’t say I enjoyed because of the loss of life only. But I’ll continue to follow you.
Love this video!
Thank you, Reagan! 🙏
It's still very hard to trust the weather service. Just one of many, many examples, it is not unheard of for the NWS to issue a picture-perfect marine forecast (sunshine, calm winds, zero waves), and also issue a small craft warning. The two forecasts are incompatible, and it's up to the captains to determine which, if either, is accurate.
This was El Niño just like this coming winter!!! Oh no Mr. Bill
When you were reading the list of ships lost during the storm and it just kept going....and going....and going. Damn 🙁
Shocking. I never knew this terrible history.
the day of my 60+ years that left me feeling the least safe was spent on a fishing boat twelve miles off of Cape May, NJ. A boat is the last place to be if safety is your concern.
This is so very scary and sad. May they all rest in peace 😢
It amazes me that it's a lake, yet they get 35 ft waves. I've never seen the Great lakes so I can't say, but I've lived on the Atlantic Ocean my whole life and I've seen some huge waves, especially when I was in the military and our ship traveled the Pacific down into the see you Japan and Indian Ocean and we hit a typhoon around the Philippines. I was scared for my life. But that's an ocean, I just look at lakes that I have seen and I just can't imagine it. Of course, I know the Great lakes are huge and probably look like an ocean
The great lakes are actually small seas
Lake Superior tends to be the lake to take down the most ships.
Thanks for the content
I have been on the Lakes since I was 10. I have seen times that when she gets mad, she gets mad real fast. Those Lakes are nothing to trifle with. Move it. Move it fast.
We live super close to Lake Erie and just the boats that get torn up or the kids who drown each year is crazy! People need to respect the Lakes! Their just as deadly if not more dangerous than the ocean
Nice job, very nice.....
"well...that's a relief." Lol got em. Nice video. Very interesting.
Thank you!
The one thing that really exploded the strength of the storm was that a tropical front came up from the south and combined with what was already there and it turned into a bomb cyclone
The audacity to call the loss of lives an inconvenience is disrespectful on so many levels, especially to the families.
Back then ship owners didn't care about loss of human life. Profits and greed ran the day for captains and boat owners alike. Things changed in modern times only because of insurance settlements and lawsuits by family members
James Carruthers is my personal Holy Grail shipwreck, not just in the Great Lakes, but in the world. Also, who else is here on the 110th anniversary?
I totally agree with you. The James C Caruthers is the Titanic of the Great Lakes shipwrecks. I really hope that they find this boat in my lifetime. Why did it go down ??? I can't understand. This storm must have been something
I been asking this question for years. 550 ft long and no sign of the wreck in 110 years. My personal favorite as well
@@gregorylyon1004 I'm glad to see it isn't just me.
The Great Lakes are another animal. Love them.
So happy to subscribe ; very reverent video💖✝️
thanks and good job
The Great Lakes look so small compared to the oceans, but that much water that close together means you need as much awe and fear for the Great Lakes as you do for the Atlantic and the Pacific. They are beautiful but deadly. They will allure you and captivate you, but you can never trust them. If you have lived near the Great Lakes, there is a strong chance you will one day personally know the name of someone claimed by them; yet despite the tragedy, the waves call you to the shores again and again.
My wife's grandfather was on the Bradley, he didn't make it.
That is really sad. The Bradley was a huge freighter. Terrible loss of human life
Great story
What good does it do to get your vision fixed if you're dead! So sad
My son found a piece of coal on the Lighthouse park beach in Port Huron which is about five miles south of where the Price washed ashore.
The ship was loaded with coal.
I read years ago that the lake waters were warmer than usual that Nov., due to unusually hot summer. And that this contributed to the ferocity of the storm. Any truth to that...anybody?
To my knowledge, there is no mention of water temps at that time. Wasn't a considered observation at the time. Early days of meteorology. My Grandfather was on one of the LSS crews on the "Waldo" rescue. I'll double check for records next time I'm in Eagle Harbor.
If true, the warmer waters may have played into stronger storms. The warmer Atlantic temperatures this year could have produced some horrible hurricanes if other conditions had been right.
@@tthappyrock368 Thanks. I'm the type that wonders about such things
@jamesmordovancey517 I'm not a sailer but have lived in Michigan most of my 62 years, the weather forecasts for the great lakes and Michigan ( Illinois, Minnesota and Wisconsin with an eastern wind) are flakey at best, you have a large body of water ( lake Michiagan that is affected by incoming storms, the storms can suck the heat out and enhance that storm as it travels north, then you have Superior, that is a huge, deep lake, I can remember it being nice in August as a kid but then a small storm churned it up and those cold deep waters pushed the sun heated water away. The water near shore dropped 20 degrees. It takes a lot to change the temperature of superior so the weeks leading up to the 1913 event really matter as does the summer and even summers and winters prior, a couple degrees can make a difference. Lake Huron is on the east side of Michigan and I have seen it throw Ice slabs 20x 30 ft 2 foot thick on the shores with the wind coming from the east. Erie is the shallower of the great lakes, it can change temperature quickly and if you're out fishing it can kick 3 or 4ft waves up in just a few minutes and freeze solid faster than you can imagine.
The picture I'm trying to paint is even with today's technology, all these different lakes have their own personality but at the same time can affect a storm or building storm differently. They create weather differently and its always changing from day to day, week to week and month to month. The amount of data needed to perfectly predict the weather around the great lakes is absurd. Even today we get rain or snow when they say 0 chance, no rain or snow when storms are predicted, temperatures 10-15 degrees colder or hotter than what they thought and right on the mark sometimes. In a perfect storm as was 1913 everything was set to disaster. They have improved but still have work to do.
Exilant video!
That November 13th, 1913 edition of The Detroit News cost a penny. The Federal Reserve was created also in 1913. Boats sink. Dollars, too.
I actually watched the version which ultimately was shadowbanned; and while I admit I am not qualified to judge videos according to TH-cam standards, I honestly do not recall anything objectionable. Im waiting to see how THIS version measures up.
Fingers crossed! 😃
Good video
Just moved to Michigan, so ill enjoy this whether! 😂
I remember being a kid during this time in light house
@@eat_a_dick_trudeau haha, hell yeah sonny…im up there. Lol
You would have to be at least 115 to remember this.
How did it get here?
my Dad and Great Uncle were cooks on the Edmond Fitzgerald. When my U cle retored my Dad left. lucky for me..2 years later it sank. I would have never been born in 78.
The ships of the day were grossly under powered and could not maintain forward movement even under full power because the ships were being driven backwards by the 100 mph winds.
Many were driven into shore and run aground.
Think about being trapped in a basin that was being hit by such a large weather event that you were incapable of steering away from it or out of it because the distance required did not exist in a lake basin.
72 hours of wind blowing like that would push you hundreds of miles before the ship could find refuge.
If this type of wind hit ocean going ships, they could turn with the wind and ride it out until it died out.
No such luxury in an inland lake even a Great Lake.
There were incidents reported in all the Great Lakes in this storm.
Huron had the most.
You got that exactly right. The wright brothers spad airplane had more horsepower than these old boats. Grossly underpowered. No wonder why so many went down. When a storm hit, they couldn't get into shore and beach it. The waves had more power than a ships engine back then
They lost 8 boats on Huron in this storm. 7 of them have been found. The James C Caruthers is still missing. This particular ship is the Titanic of the Great Lakes shipwrecks.
They say the black hurricane of 1813 also severe.
The Great lakes are bad ass!!!.. don't get caught up in the word lakes.... These are Great lakes!!
Except for the greed of the Wheeler's and dealer's, shipping on the lakes would be stopped, during this dangerous season.
Time & weather wait for no one !
Wasn't this the storm where it was in the 70's in the morning, guys got stuck out duck hunting downriver Michigan and they died from exposure, when the temp dropped off, and the snow and wind cranked up?
I think that may have been the Armistice Day storm of 1940. It's the same storm that led to the collapse of the original Tacoma Narrows Bridge collapse.
Ice covered upside down boat, ship.
Never heard a 35 ft waves in the Great Lakes
35 foot waves ?? Absolutely. Look at pics of the Edmund Fitzgerald on the bottom of Lake Superior. The bridge is literally smashed in from a rogue wave
There was also damage to the railing around the top aft deck of the Anderson during the storm that took the Fitz down.
Why can't we find the James C Caruthers???
Because we don't know where it went down. Also, there were reports of a "debris field" with items belonging to the Carruthers. We may not ever find it because there is simply nothing to find, as it broke up into too many pieces.
Rain sleet snow or hail nothing stops the US sailor......seamen are a rough tough lot.... For they roll the dice every time they hit the Waves 🌊
Well. The boats are so much safer today. The Fitzgerald was the last freighter that went down in 1975. Procedures changed after that. The public was pissed. The jury is still out on what caused the Fitzgerald to go to the bottom. But it isn't a mystery to me.
With the advent of modern forecasting and radar we'll never see another loss of life like that. "Katrina enters the chat"
tgats riughy
That’s an entirely different situation. That was a coastal hurricane that killed people inland. This was an inland hurricane and blizzard where most of the people killed were on the ships.
Well. We haven't lost a major freighter since the Fitzgerald in 1975. But yes it can happen again
Pride and stubbornness a b d greed has killed many sailor's!
So, those men (and lady) had perished, all 'cause of corporate money's 🤔??? I see nothing much, has changed 😔…………
It's nice to see the great tradition of profit before people still goes on, despite the inconvenience of losing 250 people. Good old American way. Some things never change.
I can understand them not trusting government agencies. It’s still the same today and in my opinion they’re even much less trustworthy.
Lake Superior does not give up their dead.
I stillgather coal from the price to burn inthe wood stove in the winter,in the summer we could stand on the boiler and be up to our necks in water,i also found ships carpenter tools along side of her haul
R
I can’t imagine the feeling that man had after coming home to his Father pissed about spending money on a wake and funeral.
“ buried in Ontario” is too vague, please name the cities
Probably in Goderich. There is a whole section in the huron County museum dedicated to this.
Probably in Goderich
Some in Sarnia not.
Some in Sarnia ont.
The profits these men died for created the world we live in.
The global warming then was horriffic!! Thank god we are doing so much better now!
After the Fitzgerald went down in 1975, procedures changed. It's rather obvious because we haven't lost a freighter since.
Wow
Ships are not as buoyant in the fresh water as the salt water, which I think plays into the detriment of some vessels.
100 years ago, these ships were grossly underpowered. The wright brothers spad airplane had more horsepower than these ships did back then. Sometimes in storms these ships would actually get pushed backwards by waves. That's how small the engines were. And when a storm came out of nowhere. They were literally hours from the shoreline. Nowhere to go but to the bottom
Truth will out (apologies to Wm. Shakespeare)