| Lake Superior
The Edmund Fitzgerald Investigations |
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Coast Guard Captain Jim Hobaugh led investigators to the wrecksite during the spring of 1976. Using an unmanned black and white camera called CURV III, they searched for clues on what happened to the ship.. and why not one of the 29 crewmembers could be found.
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The first humans to see the wrecksite in person were aboard the Sou Coupe, a flying saucer shaped sub used by Jacques Cousteau. The famous undersea explorer left his son Jean Michele in charge of the dives on the Fitzgerald. A single dive was made on September 24th, 1980 by pilot Albert Falco and cinematographer Colin Mounier. |
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In 1989 a team led by a Michigan SeaGrant dove to the Fitzgerald using an underwater Remote Operated Vehicle or ROV. The mission tested a new stereoscopic camera that recorded the Fitz in 3-D. |
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Sub pilot Tim Askew is shown at left checking the underwater camera system of Clelia, which dove the Fitzgerald in July of 1994. Incredible underwater images were recorded during several days of diving, especially from Clelia's huge dome front 'window'. |
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No investigations were as controversial as the one that involved this teenager from Soo Ontario. Diving in the research submersible Delta, he found the first of the missing men from the Edmund Fitzgerald. Located with a lifejacket on his body, the crewman was found outside of the wreckage. Arguments exist over whether the find was significant, but few can dispute the interest generated after the announcement of the crewman was made. |
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The most expensive visit to date was assembled to remove the Fitzgerald's bell from atop the pilothouse. Two Canadian Navy subs and a man inside a NEWT suit visited the wreck for several days while using a torch to cut the bell from it's mount.
Cleaned and polished to it's original luster, the bell is now on display at the Whitefish Point Shipwreck Museum in Paradise, Michigan
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Dive with  Ric Mixter into the mystery of the Great Lakes largest shipwreck. See exclusive footage of the building of the ship near Detroit and hear from the men who built this record-breaking ship 50 years ago.
Explore the wrecksite with the original Coast Guard investigators and learn what they found 500 feet below Lake Superior. Then hear from expeditions from Cousteau to Whitefish Point Museum and delve into the controversy of raising the bell to the surface. This 60 minute documentary is unmatched in it's scope and contains incredible DVD extras that you can explore after you watch the documentary. Click PRODUCTS at the top of this page to order your copy today! |
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