>>1106578Oh that's what I meant by steamer. Reciprocating steam engines went the way of the dinosaur like 80 years ago. They haven't built any reciprocating boats on the Lakes since WWII, and even then that's because the Maritime-class boats were rushed out to fill the need for iron ore during WWII and they couldn't afford the time and money to make them turbines. I believe the last reciprocating steam engine on the Lakes was the St. Mary's Challenger, and she went cold for the last time in 2013 or so. They cut her ass off and turned her into a barge. She was quite the holdout though, most of the other old steam pistons got taken out of service by the 90s, and they were mostly just cement and salt boats (which are almost always old boats near the end of their life).
I'm not old enough to remember the old steamships, but from what some old timers have told me, they were quite the sight to behold. The engine room was just a giant open space they called "the Pit" or "the Cathedral." With a big massive engine, two or three stories tall. Big, burly guys keeping her fed, day and night. It would have been something to see, I'm sure.
>>1106577Honestly, fuck that song. You have no idea how many times people ask us about the Edmund Fitzgerald or compare everything to that. I feel bad for the Fitz's crew, yeah. I've been in my share of storms and I know they died very scared. But they weren't the first boat to sink on the Lakes, and they probably won't be the last. Not sure why everyone obsesses over it.
