On this day February 16, 1979, the EDWIN H. GOTT left Bay Shipbuilding in Sturgeon Bay bound for Two Harbors on her maiden voyage. She encountered ice in Lake Superior which damaged her side tank and she lost a rudder. Once arriving at Two Harbors she spent two months being repaired and then cleared with iron ore for Gary, Indiana on April 21, 1979. On the way she stopped for supplies and Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. There she dropped her stern anchor. It kept going and she lost the anchor and 300 feet of chain. One would say it was a rough start. Good thing sailors aren’t superstitious because she is still sailing today.
Photo at top of page: EDWIN H. GOTT under Milwaukee’s Hoan Bridge, January 2015
EDWIN H. GOTT in Milwaukee, January 2015
The GOTT was the eighth of thirteen 1,000 footers on the Great Lakes. She was built for US Steel and named after their former chairman and chief executive officer. Her appearance was different from other ore carriers of the time. The bow was fuller to allow greater cargo capacity. The stern was more squared. The pilot house and crew quarters were located aft along with the galley and engine room. The distance from the engine room to the pilothouse is that of a nine-story building. An elevator is used to service the various levels. She was 105 feet wide and capable of carrying excess of 61,000 long tons of iron ore pellets. She was one of the most powerful vessels on the lakes with her two diesel engines totaling 19,500 horsepower.
EDWIN H. GOTT leaving Milwaukee in 2005
The GOTT exclusively carried taconite loaded in Duluth, Silver Bay and Two Harbors until 1995. During the 1995-96 lay-up, she received a new self-unloading boom. Her shuttle boom was replaced with a traditional, long tubular boom making her more versatile. This new 280 foot boom was the longest in Great Lakes history being 15-30 feet longer than any other.
EDWIN H. GOTT downbound at Port Huron, October 25, 2008
Thousand footers are locked in the Great Lakes because the St. Lawrence Seaway cannot accommodate that length. The vessel maximum for the Seaway is 740 feet in length, 78 feet in beam and 26 feet 6 inches in draft.
A little fact, well known marine photographer John M. Vournakis who sailed to the other side in December 2019 at the age of 89 was a watchman on the GOTT.
The GOTT is still sailing the Lakes and is currently owned by the Great Lakes Fleet Inc.
Suzette Lopez
Photo Credit: Chuck Sterba. Great Lakes Marine Collection of Wisconsin Marine Historical Society and Milwaukee Public Library.
