10/29/2025

N. WISCONSIN - The 50th anniversary of the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald on November 10, 1975 with all 29 souls aboard, including several from northern Wisconsin and Chequamegon Bay area, will soon be remembered with a monument dedicated to those lost.

The community of Washburn funded a memorial, using a part of the Ashland Oredock for the base, a sheet metal weathervane as the top and taconite pellets symbolizing the shipment that was never delivered to its destination. Designer Jamey Penney-Ritter made sure every piece had local historical significance and said the memorial, created by local artisans, was long overdue, as the south shore didn’t have any markers memorializing the event that changed the lives of the sailors lost, their families and community. The dedication ceremony is this Saturday, November 1 at the Washburn Marina. Find more information at washburnheritage.org/fitzgeral-memorial.