Heritage

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There have been songs written about the gales of November on the Great Lakes but, the deadliest of all was in 1913 ... The Great Lakes Storm also known as the 'White Hurricane'.

"It was a perfect storm," explained author, Paul Carroll, who recently spoke at the Bruce County Museum and Cultural Centre  in Southampton.  "Raging from November 7th through November 10th, it derived its force when two major storm fronts came together and were fed by the Great Lakes' relatively warms waters.  With waves more than 35 ft. or 11m. high, 90 mph or 145 km/h winds and snowsqualls, few ships caught on the lakes even stood a chance."

Carroll has written a book on the subject and one ship, in particular, the Wexford.  For almost a century, she lay somewhere on the Lake Huron bed evading discovery.  "More than 19 ships were destroyed and 250 people killed, with many ships losing all hands aboard," says Carroll, but the lake hit hardest was Lake Huron on November 9th and it was there that the Wexford got caught."

According to Carroll, the Wexford originally built in  1883 in England, sailed first to Argentina before finally being sold to the Western Steamship Company to end her days as a grain cargo ship on the Great Lakes.

When the Great Storm began, the young captain was Bruce Cameron, who at 23 already had 10 years of sailing experience under his belt.  His young wheelsman (steering), Orin Gordon, was only 16 and the young crew and at least 23 to 25 passengers were on board.

"He originally did not want to set out," explained Carroll, "but older more 'seasoned' captains were sailing and, not wanting to appear weak, Cameron followed suit.  It's difficult to imagine what it must have been like as waves higher than the ship and whiteouts swept over the ship taking with them crew members."  

 When she finally sank off the Huron coast, she settled in approximately 75 feet of water .  Although more than a dozen sightings of her were reported, she remained elusive until 2000, when she was finally discovered.

"Once she was discovered and before she could be archeologically surveyed," added Carroll, "divers stripped her of all her artifacts in a way that can only be described as 'rape and pillage' which, thankfully, is now against the laws of the sea."

Carroll's passion for the subject is apparent during his presentation and the emotion he feels for the youth who sailed during the times transferred to the audience as many sat in silence when the ship's roll was shown and the young faces of the crew became more than just a name.  Headstones bearing their names and the early date of their deaths is a poignant reminder of the strength and fury that can be found on the Great Lakes.

Carroll, along with his wife Mary, is also a sailor.  Together the couple have sailed the Great Lakes and inland waterways to the Gulf of Mexico and up the freshwater river of Rio Dolce in Guatemala aboard the boat, the Solsean.

His passion for the water is found in his books  "The Solsean Chronicles", Four Years on the Great Lakes: 1813-1816, The Wexford and Freshwater Heritage that he co-authored with Don Bamford.

His books are found locally at the Bruce County Museum and Cultural Centre, Southampton or by going to www.dundurn.com .

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Tuesday, October 26, 2010