On November 10, 1975, one of the worst storms of the century hit Michigan's
upper peninsula. Christopher Chabot (then a junior in high school) spent
that stormy eve working on his homework six miles from the shore of lake
that claimed the captain and the crew of the Edmund Fitzgerald.
The following year Chabot heard Gordon Lightfoot's song while driving along
the lake. The line...
"The church bell chimed, 'til it rang 29 times
For each man on the Edmund Fitzgerald."
especially haunted him and he was hooked on the story and has collected
information about the wreck ever since.
In his early twenties, Chabot was a freelance reporter for a number of Mid-West
newspapers and also wrote a book on the history of Michigan. In the summer
of 1992, Chabot atten
ded a lecture
given by Fred Shannon (the noted expert on the Fitzgerald) on the final
voyage of the ill-fated ore carrier and realized it was a story to be told.
Before tackling the script, Chabot spent the next years researching the
Fitzgerald and sailing life and talked to surviving family members. In addition,
Chabot joined Fred Shannon's 1994 Expedition to the bottom of Lake Superior
and the Edmund Fitzgerald. When the body of a Fitzgerald crew member was
found just outside the ship, newspapers from around the world scrambled
for more details. Out of respect for the men lost and their families, no
diver or submersible from Fred Shannon's crew entered the wreckage of the
boat itself.
In memory of the men entombed with their ship, the crew of the Anglian Lady
left a commemorative plaque on the bottom of Lake Superior where the Edmund
Fitzgerald rests. The names of the 29 men lost are etched into the brass
of the plaque as well as the names of the 16 crew members of the Anglian
Lady who worked so hard to piece together this important part of America's
tragic history. Pictured is Chabot, who's own name appears on the plaque,
just before it was lowered to the bottom.
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