Book Review: Lost & Found: Legendary Lake Michigan Shipwrecks

We recently added another title to the Water Library's collection of books on the subject of Great Lakes shipwrecks.   Accomplished diver and author Valerie Van Heest uses her extensive experience and Great Lakes contacts to allow readers the tragic sinking of these ships.  Spanning the ages of sail, steam and diesel, the book details discoveries shared with the author by some of the lake's most prolific wreck hunters.

The book describes "the many shipwrecks that became even more famous after their discoveries than at the time of their losses, gaining notoriety as historic attractions, archaeological sites, and in some cases, over bold salvage attempts or precedent- setting legal battles."

 For more information about Wisconsin's Great Lakes Shipwrecks, visit the UW Sea Grant and Wisconsin Historical Society site, wisconsinshipwrecks.org. The Water Library also has a reading list of books about Great Lakes Shipwrecks.

If you are a Wisconsin resident and would like to check out this or any other book, please fill out our book request form. If you are a UW student, faculty or staff, please request books through the Library Catalog.  

Book Review: Mighty Fitz

When it first went into service in 1958, the Edmund Fitzgerald was one of the largest and most expensive freighters ever built.  Its tragic demise on November 10th, 1975 was to become one of the most legendary shipwrecks ever witnessed in America's inland waters.  Lifelong resident of the Great Lakes region Michael Schumacher has written twenty-five documentaries on shipwrecks and lighthouses.  We are pleased to add his latest book, Mighty Fitz: The Sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald  to the Wisconsin's Water Libraries collection. 

Schumacher delves deep into the history of the ship, describing her many years on the Great Lakes, the fateful wreck, search efforts, and the subsequent controversy and investigation.  Booklist concludes that Mighty Fitz is "a thoroughly admirable addition to Great Lakes history."  We agree and encourage you to check it out.

If you are a Wisconsin resident and would like to check out this or any other book, please fill out our book request form. If you are a UW student, faculty or staff, please request books through the Library Catalog.

For more on Great Lakes Shipwrecks:

Browse Wisconsin's Water Library's Recommended Reading List on Great Lakes Shipwrecks here
Visit Wisconsin's Great Lakes Shipwrecks website here
Publisher The University of Minnesota Press' official website here
And finally, watch a clip of musician Gordon Lightfoot performing his song The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald  here

Ghost Ships of the Schooner Coast

Underwater archaeologist Tamara Thomson doesn't just photograph shipwrecks- she captures wrecks in our very own Midwestern Great Lakes. Stop by the Wisconsin Historical Museum to see her breathtaking underwater photography of the Rouse Simmons, Home, and other wrecks.

Photo via Wisconsin Historical Society

The exhibit,  "Ghost Ships of the Schooner Coast," was developed by the Wisconsin Maritime Museum, with support from the Historical Museum, as well as our friends at the UW Sea Grant. Click here for more information about the exhibit, or here to see Great Lakes shipwrecks resources at the Water Library

 Photographer Thomson explains part of the exhibit to a crew from the UW Aquatic Sciences Center.