Mark L. Thompson. Graveyard of the Lakes. Detroit: Wayne State University Press, 2000. 416 pp. $34.95, cloth, ISBN 978-0-8143-2889-7.

Reviewed by Charles C. Kolb

Published on H-Local (October, 2000)

New Perspectives on Ship Losses in the Great cern why the numbers of shipwrecks and fatali‐ Lakes ties have declined so precipitously. [Disclaimer: The opinions expressed herein He considers fve categories in his analysis: are those of the reviewer and not of his employer Stranding and Grounding; Fire and Boiler Explo‐ or any other federal agency.] sion; Collision; Foundering; and, fnally, Human Over the past ten years Mark Thompson has Factors. The human factors include navigational authored three books on maritime error, poor visibility, improper loading, and multi‐ topics.[1] His newest book is an assessment of no‐ faceted human-related factors such as hull failure table shipwrecks that occurred in the North or equipment malfunction. The majority of acci‐ American inland seas, beginning with the Grifon dents and fatalities, he concludes, have been the in 1679. Thompson, a maritime historian and for‐ result of human error, from basic mistakes and mer college administrator, is also a seasoned miscalculations to gross incompetence and negli‐ Great Lakes mariner, who serves as an ofcer gence. We are informed that 75-96 percent of all aboard ships of the USS Great Lakes Fleet, Inc. accidents were caused to human error (p. 362). This combination of scholarly and practical The reader has to only turn to contemporary knowledge is mustered to give the reader a fresh news reports to recall the loss of human life from perspective on shipping losses in the Great Lakes. the sinking of ferry boats that ply European wa‐ ters in the Baltic Sea, English Channel, and the In his narrative Thompson profles approxi‐ Greek Aegean islands, as well as Indonesian and mately sixty of the more than 25,000 wrecks that Philippine waters of the Southwest Pacifc. The occurred during a period of more than 320 years. most recent of these tragedies (26 September He refers to dozens of other examples in his as‐ 2000) is the loss of the Express Samina a 35 year- sessment. The author has two major goals: to un‐ old refurbished Greek ferry that foundered on a derstand the primary causes of the types of ship‐ well-known beacon-lit rocky outcrop on the island wrecks and their resulting fatalities, and to dis‐ H-Net Reviews of Paros with the loss of at least 76 passengers. placid-looking Great Lakes are dangerous. Noth‐ Apparently, according to the most current news‐ ing is said about the Battle of Lake Erie in 1813 paper accounts, the captain was unwell and was and the Erie Canal is mention in passing refer‐ asleep in his cabin, other veteran ofcers were ence only to increased passenger trafc and com‐ viewing a televised European soccer champi‐ merce in the early 1800s. onship elsewhere on board, while a neophyte of‐ Second, there has not been a volume on Great cer in training was the helmsman on the ship's Lakes shipwrecks published for some time. bridge. The captain and four crewmembers are Thompson's assessment is up-to-date and suggests being held on charges of manslaughter. historical factors that infuenced both the num‐ Thompson gives the reader numerous exam‐ bers and kinds of wrecks. The size of the feet, the ples, and examines statistically the relationship level of technological development, government between the number of ships on the lakes and the regulations, and the "human factor" are mitigat‐ number of casualties from 1830 to 1979. He sug‐ ing circumstances. For example, while there have gests that during the eighteenth century the num‐ been fewer wrecks during the past several ber of wrecks kept pace with the number of ships, decades, the size of the feet has but that by the twentieth century the number of also diminished. Likewise, the number of fatali‐ wrecks and number of ships declined markedly. ties has declined markedly from a high of 800 pas‐ Changes from wooden vessels to ships of steel sengers and crewmembers during the loss of the construction, and the adoption of sophisticated steamer Eastland in 1915, to the loss of the tanker navigational aids are correlated. The author ends Jupiter which exploded and burned in 1990 at Bay his narrative with six suggestions for the Coast City, Michigan, with the loss of one crewmember. Guard to improve safety within the shipping in‐ There has been no loss of life since the latter inci‐ dustry. This is an especially lucid and valuable dent a decade ago. chapter that was written by someone who Lastly, one may wish to argue with some of "knows" his subject matter and is more than a Thompson's extrapolated statistics, but he does participant-observer. provide reasonable and logical documentation for I would make three observations. First, this his numbers. The fgure of 25,000 wrecks may unique volume is not just another "shipwreck seem excessive --I thought so before reading his book" in that it provides the reader with an his‐ book -- but I am convinced that his overall num‐ torical context and the rationale for a categoriza‐ bers are probably appropriate. While providing a tion of shipwrecks. A majority of volumes devoted useful bibliography, the author fails to include ad‐ to wrecks focus upon the retelling of a single inci‐ ditional references for the interested reader, par‐ dent or accident and fail to place the event into an ticularly citations to web site shipwreck lists, elec‐ historical context. Other books fail to compare tronic and paper-based collections, and journals. and contrast the incidents and seek explanations. [4] Hence, Thompson examines more than sixty spe‐ I would only wish that my good friend, the cifc incidents and looks beyond the specifc late Robert ("Bob") MacDonald of Erie, Pennsylva‐ events for similarities and distinctions, making nia (whose grandfather was Captain of the the reader aware of the human tragedy as well as foundered steamer Sevonia lost in 1905, pp. the maritime loss. In this regard, Thompson's 227-230) were with us to enjoy this splendid syn‐ book supercedes works by Beasley (1930) and thesis and compelling narrative with its insight Bowen (1952) on Great Lakes shipwrecks.[3] The and passionate concern for those who sail on the reader is also informed subtly that the rather lakes as crew or passengers. Bob enjoyed recount‐

2 H-Net Reviews ing shipwreck stories and he would, I'm sure, information, specifcations (dimensions and ton‐ have been pleased with Thompson's assessment. nage), date of loss, place of loss, lake where loss Notes occurred, type of loss, loss of life, carrying (cargo, passengers, etc.), accident details, and sources. [1]. Thompson's other volumes, also pub‐ lished by Wayne State University Press, include an Another notable resource is "Historical Collec‐ historical overview of the shipping industry from tions of the Great Lakes" (HCGL) housed in the earliest commerce to contemporary shipping ac‐ Jerome Library at Bowling Green State University, tivities in Steamboats and Sailors of the Great Bowling Green, (located south of Toledo) Lakes (1991). His Queen of the Lakes (1994) assess‐ which has extensive collections of more than es changes through time in shipbuilding and pro‐ 9,000 books, 4,500 pamphlets, and 350 periodical fles the longest ships that sailed the Great Lakes, titles, plus manuscripts, archival materials, and while A Sailor's Logbook: A Season Aboard Great 130,000 still images. The focus of the collection is Lakes Freighters (1999) is a personal documen‐ on commercial shipping, shipbuilding, navigation, tary of life aboard lake freighters during the 1996 commercial fshing, maritime law, yachting, labor shipping season. history, freshwater ecology, recreation, and the history Great Lakes ports as well as shipwrecks. [2]. A majority of Great Lakes shipwreck vol‐ The collection also has more than 10,000 vessel umes are out of date and out of print, with a num‐ genealogies, and is overseen by Bob Graham. ber having been issued by small (sometimes ob‐ Readers can access the HCGL through the search‐ scure) publishers in small press runs. Among able OhioLINK database. The web site URL is these are books by Dana Thomas Bowen Ship‐ http://www.bgsu.edu/colleges/library/hcgl/con‐ wrecks of the Lakes (Cleveland: Freshwater Press, tact.html 1952); Norman Beasley Freighters of Fortune: The Story of the Great Lakes (New York and London: The "Great Lakes Maritime Heritage Centre," Harper & Brothers, 1930); Dwight Boyer Ships and established in 1975 at the Maritime Museum of Men of the Great Lakes (New York: Dodd, Mead, the Great Lakes at Kingston, Ontario, Canada (lo‐ 1977); Robert J. Hemming Ships Gone Missing cated on 's north shore where the (Chicago: Contemporary Books, 1992); and lake enters the St. Lawrence River), also has ex‐ William Ratigan Great Lakes Shipwrecks and Sur‐ tensive collections including archives, images, au‐ vivals , 3rd ed. (Grand Rapids. MI: Eerdmans, diovisual materials, a ships register data base, 1969). Kim A. Stabelfeldt's Explore Great Lakes and artifacts. The web site also has a very useful Shipwrecks (Wauwatosa, WI: Stabelfeldt Publica‐ search engine. The Centre has its 25th anniver‐ tions, 1992), three parts issued thus far, covers sary in the year 2000 and since 1986 published only Lake Michigan wrecks. FreshWater: A Journal of Great Lakes Maritime History and also hosts the extremely valuable and [3]. Of particular value to Great Lakes mar‐ essential maritime listserve MARHST-L. The Cen‐ itime researchers is "The Great Lakes Shipwreck ter's URL is http://www.marmus.ca/ File: Total Losses of Great Lakes Ships, 1679-1999" developed and maintained as a labor of love for The Great Lakes Historical Society's Inland over 13 years by David D. Swayze (Lake Isabella, Seas Maritime Museum, established in 1953 and MI) which has a searchable database accessible at located in Vermilion, Ohio (west of Cleveland on http://www.oakland.edu/boatnerd/swayze/ship‐ Lake Erie's southern shore), has the Clarence S. wreck/ The 2,500+ entries have the following for‐ Metcalf Library which contains books, periodi‐ mat: vessel name, other names, ofcial registra‐ cals, records, and drawings related to Great Lakes tion number, type of vessel at loss, construction

3 H-Net Reviews history. Beginning in 1945, the society has pub‐ lished the journal Inland Seas . Other useful electronic resources include: "Great Lakes Information Network" at http:// www.great-lakes.net/ and "Maritime History on the Internet: A Guide to Doing Maritime History Research Online" at http://ils.unc.edu/marirtime/ home.shtml (the latter from the University of Washington Libraries, Seattle). Copyright (c) 2000 by H-Net, all rights re‐ served. This work may be copied for non-proft educational use if proper credit is given to the au‐ thor and the list. For other permission, please con‐ tact [email protected].

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Citation: Charles C. Kolb. Review of Thompson, Mark L. Graveyard of the Lakes. H-Local, H-Net Reviews. October, 2000.

URL: https://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=4633

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