Transportation
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The S.S. Edmund Fitzgerald, flagship of the Oglesbay-Norton fleet, sailed for 6,857 days on the Great Lakes carrying iron ore to supply the steel mills of Michigan and Ohio. Built at the Great Lakes Engineering Works at River Rouge, Michigan, nine miles west of here, she became the largest freighter to traverse the inland seas when launched, measuring 729 feet long and 75 feet wide. On January 7, 1974, while at anchor in the Detroit River one mile west of Belle Isle, the Fitzgerald lost her bow anchor. The 12,290 pound anchor remained undisturbed until July 20, 1992, when it was recovered, and it stands as a tribute to the S.S. Edmund Fitzgerald, the men who built her, and the maritime heritage of the State of Michigan.
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Detroit, Michigan · United States
