The Great Lakes & its shipping industry
There's a paradox here. The Great Lakes is a place of great beauty. And even though the shipping industry has a romantic allure, by nature, it's a grimy business.
Vids and docs about the Great Lakes
Most Americans are woefully ignorant about the Great Lakes. They have no idea they contain 21% of the world's freshwater. Or that you can sail for hundreds of miles and never see a shoreline. Or the deepest part of Lake Superior reaches down 1300+ feet. Did you know that on a tiny strip of land on the tip of Michigan's pinky finger there are sand dunes 450 feet tall that rival the Sahara? That across the northern parts of the state at night you can see the aurora borealis? (I remember years ago, my brother and cousin, after seeing the northern lights for the first time, came bursting into our family cabin yelling, in all seriousness, that we were being invaded by aliens.) These environments are what surround the people of the Great Lakes. They are what they know. It's part of their blood. It's where they carry their pride.
Creation of the Great Lakes | How the Earth Was Made (S1, E7) | Full Episode | History (45:12)
Source: History
Dunes in Michigan | A Pure Michigan Summer (2:12)
Source: Pure Michigan
Great Lakes, 1946 (2:12), Highly Recommended!
Source: Travelfilmarchive
On the shores of the Great Lakes (2:20)
Source: Smithsonian Channel
Drain The Great Lakes of America | Secrets of the Freshwater Oceans (45:11)
Source: EPIX's Pictures
What’s so great about the Great Lakes? - Cheri Dobbs and Jennifer Gabrys (4:47)
Source: TED-Ed
Worthy reading about the Great Lakes
By Jerry Dennis
Highly Recommended!
I can't say enough great things about this book. Definitely my favorite on the topic of the lakes, in general. Part travelogue, the author travels the lakes on a tall-masted schooner, and part comprehensive history of the lakes. Dennis makes it all personal and compelling.
By Dan Egan
Admittedly, it's been awhile since I read this one, but it's an extremely readable account of the ecological dangers facing the Great Lakes.
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By Dave Dempsey
Fun books about the Great Lakes that the family can enjoy on that long road trip up to Whitefish Point to visit the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum.
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Shorts about Great Lakes weather
Other weather content presented was specifically discussing the weather of November 10, 1975. Here are some fascinating docs about general weather on the Great Lakes.
by Scary Interesting, 20:52
Highly recommended. If nothing else, watch the first five minutes, which does an effective job of explaining the uniqueness of Great Lakes weather and what is known as "The Lake Effect."
by MLive, 1:42
Mark Torregrossa talks about the Great Lakes largest recorded waves, including a segment on the Fitz storm, in this fun little short.
by MLive, 1:38
Mark explains tsunamis and seiches on the Great Lakes, which are both news to me. There have actually been tsunami deaths on the Great Lakes and I'd never heard of a seiche before, even though Mr. Warren was the best Earth Science teacher ever.
Working on the lakes
C.R.A.P.: Mackinac Bridge Cable Light Change (2:35)
Source: Mike Rowe
Living on a Great Lakes Freighter (7:30)
Source: Great Lakes Now
Cooking for the Crew (9:30)
Great Lakes Now
Careers on the Water - Aboard the Algoma Equinox (19:30)
Source: Careers on the Water
Sailing on a Great Lakes Freighter (14:35)
Source: Joe Franta
St. Clair & Detroit Rivers HD time-lapse (7:50)
Source: FarAway418
Careers on the Water - Aboard the Algoma Equinox (6:52)
Source: Careers on the Water
Navigating the Great Lakes: Life on the Lee A. Tregurtha (43:50)
Source: Upper Michigan's Source | TV6 & FOX UP
Roger Blough Series Nov 1995 (16:15)
Source: KBJR Archive
Books about working on lake freighters
By Frank Boles
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I LOVE this book. But then again, for my project I needed detailed descriptions and accounts of the operations of lake freighters, plus life on board. This book is a treasure.
By Nelson "Mickey" Haydamacker with Alan D. Millar
First hand account as a deckhand on Great Lakes freighters. Full of personal stories and details about life on board the boats.
By Richard Hill
Another first hand account of a deckhand on Great Lakes freighters (billed as a coming-of-age story). This one takes on more of a diary approach. Good insights into the lakes in the 1970s.
Freighters and shipping-industry vids and docs
You'd think you need to be a Lake Freighter nerd to love these docs. Instead, they turn you into a Lake Freighter nerd. Someday, I want to work for Great Lakes Now. Those people rock it. Their docs are punchy and fascinating.
Freighters on the Move (26:46)
Source: Great Lakes Now
World’s Toughest Boat Trips | The Great Lakes, USA | Free Documentary (51:25)
Source: Free Documentary
Freighter Madness (26:45)
Great Lakes Now
Great Lakes Adventure - 1965 (21:45)
Source: Detroit Historical Society
The History of Great Lakes Freighters (13:50)
Source: Shipwreck Sunday
The Long Ships Passing - 1959 (30:00)
Detroit Historical Society
Freighters and shipping-industry books
Admittedly, all these books are for total Lake Freighter nerds. If you don't need or want to know the ins and outs, and personal stories, of how lake boats operate and function, these are not for you. But if you are, then these will keep you up at night, either reading or skimming.
By Patrick D. Lapinski
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A great reference book for shipping geeks.
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By Patrick D. Lapinski
Another great reference book for shipping geeks.
By Jr. Wolff, Julius F.
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A classic reference book found in nearly every library in Michigan.
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Live cams for shipping nerds
Boat watching can be addictive. But not everyone lives within driving distance of the lakes. These live cams let you enjoy the thrill of boat watching without having to travel. Put these vids on your big screen and let them run all day in the background. You'll get addicted too.
Detroit River Live Cam from the Dossin Museum, Detroit, Michigan USA
Duluth Aerial Lift Bridge Cam
Port Huron, Michigan USA | StreamTime LIVE
Duluth, Minnesota: Harborcam
2025-05-25 Morning | Windsor, Ontario, Canada | Detroit Skyline, Michigan, USA
Duluth Canal Cam
Superior caught raging on camera
These videos provide some atmospherics. They give you just an inkling of what Superior can do. When writing my Fitz project, I'd put these videos on a looped playlist in the background. They're enough to give you anxiety. Imagine these scenes many times worse, and at night, and you're on board. There aren't many of us who would choose to work the freighters for a living. It takes a certain kind of spirit.
Other Great-Lakes shipwreck stories
The Fitzgerald isn't the only fascinating and gripping shipwreck story on the Great Lakes. Estimates vary, but there are about 6000 shipwrecks at the bottom of the Great Lakes. These videos highlight a few.
Ghost Ships of the Great Lakes: Lost Beneath the Waves (44:17)
Source: National Geographic
The story of the Carl D. Bradley shipwreck in 1958 on Lake Michigan (14:01)
Source: 13 On Your Side
5 Mysterious Ghost Ships (1:10:37)
Source: Big Old Boats
Ships and Shipwrecks (26:46)
Source: Great Lakes Now (Detroit PBS)
The Search for Great Lakes Shipwrecks (32:12)
Source: 13 On Your Side
The Tragic Loss of the Daniel J. Morrell (33:14)
Source: Big Old Boats