We kept it a secret, Tysall said, because you never know when things might fall apart.. SKIP TO 00:11:05 TO GET TO THIS WEEKS STORYTHIS EPISODE IS SPONSORED!!! The cause of the sinking, though, is still unknown. Its surface temperature varies with the type of season. Things were going so well that La Salle was getting ready to build a second ship. Morbid, but true. Four remain unknown and were buried at Thunder Bay. Found out that something strange can happen with bodies that are immersed in water for long periods. Reports at the time indicated there were 25 crew members aboard, though there was some uncertainty about the exact number; all perished when the Hudson sank. Visit https://www.venterrafarms.com and enter "HAUNTED15" at checkout for 15% off your order + free shipping on all CBD products.Lake Superior is considered to be one of the most haunted lakes of all time due to the insanely high number of unrecovered shipwrecks and bodies that litter the lake floor. So the unfortunate crewman, nicknamed "Whitey" or "Grandpa" by locals, just floats there in the engine room, perfectly preserved. The discovery of the body in shallow waters near Glenbrook perplexed some officials with knowledge on how the lake keeps its victims. Too many video games, I'm thinking. Prior to the European arrival in North America, the lake touching parts of three present-day U.S. states was important for indigenous populations in the region. The Quedoc made it to Fort William safe and sound, but the Kamloops would never arrive. WebI'm afraid the more recent local dive management might have a prohibition against taking close up photos of poor old Whitey's face and body. According to the National Post, more ships sink in the Great Lakes in November than any other month. denton county indictments 2021. Kirby, which originally vanished in 1916. Even La Salle himself wasn't sure what happened, and if you fast-forward a few centuries, people are still trying to find traces of the ship. In March 2019, a separate r/todayilearned post was titled: TIL bacteria will feed on a decaying body underwater and create gas, which causes the body to float to the surface. And that's important to our tale. Northern Ontario Travel says that Lake Superior isn't the only lake rumored to have a centuries-old resident: South Bay Bessie was first sighted in Lake Erie in 1793. That may or may not be true, but we cant be sure because we cant go down that far, said Van Arnum, a member of the El Dorado County Sheriffs Department and former coroner. We and our partners use data for Personalised ads and content, ad and content measurement, audience insights and product development. The linked content did not indicate that bodies in Lake Superior dont float or surface; one portion referenced corpses which had washed up elsewhere on the shoreline. Other times, he appears curious and even follows divers around as they search the ship. It is such a vast area of water. This wreck sits in 270' of water and is a fantastic dive. Michigan State Police Sgt. According to the National Park Service, the storm signals went up on December 5, and by December 12, the Kamloops was officially one of the missing. Divers report seeing Whitey follow them or stare at them while they explore the shipwreck. One of those legends is that of Old Whitey. He boarded her and later said that he had met the captain and the helmsman it was the Hudson, and they told him that they had been condemned to relive their sinking every September 16. Pete Van Arnum recalled hearing tales of Mafia members dumping bodies in Lake Tahoe back in the 1950s. After the wreck, there was speculation that the Hudsons cargo of grain shifted during the storm, and that many of the crew had gone into the hold to try to address the problem and were then trapped when the ship capsized. LOL, the temperature part I might buy, might, but the no fish part at that depth is so wrong. Some had taken to calling him Old Whitey, but those whod heard the stories of ghostly encounters knew the truth: this was Grandpas body. With its Curses, Violent Apparitions, and Portals, is Ohios Bellaire House the Most Haunted Home in the World? After all, it had been awhile. On March 6 2021, a similar post appeared on Reddits r/todayilearned: On Reddit, the original poster (OP) linked to a February 2018 blog post, which concluded with a reference to the Gordon Lightfoot song The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald, and adding: An old saying, Lake Superior doesnt give up her dead. is both folklore and fact. A warning or a curse? They usually go down and thats it., Weve had a number of cases over the years where drowning victims, or apparent drowning victims, never surfaced again, said El Dorado county sheriffs Lt. Les Lovell. Its a little bit like makeing Ox tail stew, no matter what the temperatures the meat is still gunna fall of the bone at some stage. Over the coming days, more wreckage turned up including the bodies of some of the crew, some wearing life preservers bearing the name S.S. I came across an interesting story recently that circulates among diving enthusiasts. Althought there might not have been fish to munch old Whitey away, but what about the microscopic bactieria that I would think after neary 100 years would have made a bit of damage over time. But here's the creepy one: rogue waves. It was a cool July day in 1915, and the Eastland was getting ready to shuttle 2,573 people from Chicago to a park 38 miles across Lake Michigan. The "whiteness" could also be from lack of sunlight for, I dont know 100 YEARS! Today, Grandpas well-preserved corpse is still floating in the wreck of the Kamloops, where he spends most of his time occupying the engine room. However, heres the twist. Copyright 2023 Apple Inc. All rights reserved. WebWhiteys corpse is found floating inside the engine room of the SS Kamloops, which sank on the Canadian side of Lake Superior in the 1920s and has never been removed. Stories are heartbreaking: One man on board the barge Plymouth wrote a message in a bottle, saying goodbye to his children. the ship sank in Dec/7/1977 All that cargo was left for enterprising people to loot, but that's not the weird thing. KAMLOOPS, British Colombia (AP) The remains of 215 children, some as young as 3 years old, have been found buried on the site of what was once Canadas largest Indigenous residential school one of the institutions that held children taken from families across the nation. The boulders were between 3.5 and 5 feet tall, and one still bore the traces of what looked like a carving of a mastodon. Divers say that the whole ship was eerily well-preserved, mostly because of a temperature that lingers just above freezing. That said, human remains that go down with those ships are rarely recovered, as those bodies fail to float to the surface. This disaster at the distended thumb of Lake Superior permitted the phrase The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald to replace The Wreck of the Hesperus in North American seafaring folklore. WebDrowning " Old Whitey " is the nickname given to a deceased crewman of the SS Kamloops, which sank in Lake Superior in 1927. One victim who went down with the ship the captain, now known as "Old Whitey," per Astonishing Legends remains on board the boat the frigid depths of Lake Superior his final resting place. The gases would allow a body to rise like a balloon. According to Forbes, he was shooting footage for a music video when he saw something on the horizon: It was a tall-masted ship, reminiscent of a pirate ship. You must be logged in to post a comment After no response, a search for the Kamloops began on December 12th and lasted nearly two weeks. That night, a massive storm began to hammer Lake Superior. They TheKamloops, on the other hand, was nowhere to be found. Scattered across the island were the remains of nine crew members who had managed to escape on a lifeboat. And the video is pretty darn convincing when he zooms in, you can see a surprising amount of detail and what apparently looks like sails flapping in the wind. And don't worry, it gets weirder. There are a ton of stories just like them: The Rosabelle capsized in 1921, with no signs of collision. Some even returned saying that they had seen Grandpas ghost and his body in the same trip, though never in the same room. Create an account to get started today. Effectively protecting the skin from decomposition. The SS Kamloops was a lake freighter beginning in 1924. Van Arnum, the former El Dorado coroner, referenced a fatal accident in 1980 and the eventual use of a camera to locate the victims body weeks after their death. On the night of December 6th, 1927, Lake Superior was in the grips of a violent winter storm, and the SS Kamloops was struggling to make its way through the waves, accompanied by the steamer shipQuedoc. A memorial outside the former Kamloops Indian Residential School in B.C. Back then it would have been dangerous. Ah, very true my australian companion, very true. So what were trying to do is dangle this camera on this wreck in 825 feet of water so we have more depth to get to, [shipwreck explorer Jerry] Eliason said. But on September 18, Le Griffon dropped off the face of history. The physical location of the Kamloops has since been found, according to the National Park Service, and the remains of Kamloop crew members who tried to swim to safety on the remote Isle Royale in Lake Superior were also recovered. In the 350 shipwrecks known to have happened on Lake Superior, an estimated 10,000 people have lost their lives, according to Northern Ontario Travel. Across a deceptively tranquil lake scene, text read: This is Lake Superior. To the east is Ludington, Michigan. Except for shallow bays and beaches, the water temperature in the lake seldom reaches 55 degrees F, (13 C) even during the hottest summer weather. Zenith City says that on stormy nights, some sailors claim to see the Bannockburn, a ship that disappeared in 1902. Were still no closer to understanding what made the SS Kamloops sink to her watery grave, or discovering exactly who Old Whitey really is, which may have something to do with the reason that Grandpa has stuck around his watery grave all these years. While might catch glimpses of Travel Channel is kicking off Halloween season on October 4th with a very special live event that brings together more of the networks top paranormal stars than you can For most of us, ignoring the strange people on the subway is second nature, but if you ever find yourself in the tunnels below New York City and you Tweets by @WeirdHQ It is said that, when you enter the engine room, Old Whiteys corpse (and not his spirit) even follow you about the engine roomalthough some claim that this is just an effect of movement in the water. Everyone's heard of the Loch Ness Monster, and while Nessie might be the most famous, she's certainly not the only lake monster. Her crew was never found, and neither was Captain George R. Donner. Some divers reported that as they swam through the wreckage, Grandpa's pale, bleached corpse floated right alongside them. Both kayakers capsized and the pair swam toward shore. WebIt is believed this spirit is connected to his incredibly well-preserved corpse, which awaits visitors in the engine room. During a 1994 expedition to the wreck, divers finally found the body of a crewmember for the first time. In fact, Lake Superior has earned two foreboding nicknames: The Lake That Never Gives Up Her Dead and The Graveyard of the Great Lakes. The cold water of Lake Superior does not allow bacteria to grow like it would in warmer water. TIL bacteria will feed on a decaying body underwater and create gas, which causes the body to float to the surface. Episode 123: The SS Kamloops Tragedy & the Corpse of Old Whitey. Now that you know the sad fate of those aboard, lets head back to Old Whitey. I don't remember who wrote it, but it's in one of the Alfred Hitchcock story collections and I read it several times when I was a kid. Another well-known wreck in Superior happened much earlier, though, when the SS Kamloops Canadian lake freighter sank to the depths in the winter of 1927, lost in fog and freezing temperatures (via Superior Trips). Marie, Ontarioa distance Edmund Fitzgerald could have covered in just over an hour at her top speed. His body was eventually found by Bruces Legacy in July 2018, 22 months after he had gone under. The remains are otherwise remarkably and hauntingly well-preserved. Several sleepless weeks. As exploration of the Kamloops grew, whispers of Grandpa began to make the rounds in diving circles. A further search took place in April 1928, and several fishermen discovered the remains of several of the crewmembers on Isle Royale. A more comprehensive search for the wreck and crewmembers was undertaken, but nothing was found. ), Lake Superior doesnt give up her dead because of bacteria and cold water, and she doesnt give up pollutants for the same reasons, said Matt Simcik, associate professor of environmental health sciences at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities. He never attempted to hurt or drown anyone, and never appeared angry or upset. Did Princess Diana Lose Her Royal Protection? Most of us know where the bodies are. WebSchedule a Free Consultation (314) 849-8990. In mid-November, they're the site of a collision between low-pressure, cold air from the north and warm air from the south. [University of Minnesota Duluth professor Julius Wolff wrote in his book Lake Superior Shipwrecks] that the theory was supported by the fact that only a few bodies washed ashore. ", "Any society that would give up a little liberty to gain a little security will deserve neither and lose both" - Benjamin Franklin, "They are barking, Sancho, so let's ride" According to theSmithsonian, by 1893, there were around 3,000 boats regularly making runs across the Great Lakes lakes that are so big, says Michigan Sea Grant,that they have their own microclimate. There are certainly enough possibilities that have found their way to their final resting place beneath the waves. Heres the inside story. By the next day, the two ships were caught in a severe storm on Lake Superior, with near hurricane-force winds and waves up to 35 feet (11 m) high. WebProstate Massage - Green Heaven Massage. It came true, you're lookin' at it. In December 1927, Captain William Brian of the Kamloops wrote a letter to his wife, saying that the weather was turning bad, and he never made it home. There are three theories about what happened: The ship was captured and burned, it sank in a storm, or there was a mutiny that led to the ship being scuttled. SS Kamloops story elements are probably real (except for the body swimming around). For anyone who's hunting shipwrecks in the Great Lakes, the white whale is the 17th-century Le Griffon. Then, in June, the search continued and several bodies were discovered but the wreck and the rest of the crew were never found. Eliason and Smith were also involved in the discovery of the deepest the Scotiadoc, found in about 850 to 870 feet of water near Thunder Bay, Ontario, in 2013. Meet Old Whitey, the Preserved Corpse of the SS Kamloops, Lake Superior's Most Haunted Shipwreck The ghost of Old Whitey, the preserved corpse of the haunted During this time of year the surface temperature as cold as 40 degrees and as warm as 50 degrees. Many mysteries remain about exactly what caused the accident. However, the Edmund Fitzgerald sank to the bottom a bottom that was very, very far from the surface: Carrying a full cargo of ore pellets with Captain Ernest M. McSorley in command, she embarked on her ill-fated voyage from Superior, Wisconsin, near Duluth, on the afternoon of November 9, 1975. Old whitey is the nickname given to a deceased crewman of the ss kamloops, which sank in lake superior in 1927. there is also the missing stagecoach that sopposedly fell of a cliff and into the lake they say it's still missing along with all the gold.yet another story is of a hotel from the 1800's if i remember correctly.that only ran during the summer then one summer people werent able to find it.it hasent been seen since. Despite how frightening a visit from Grandpa was, there was never any reason for alarm. Even though the deep depths of the lake contain sad and tragic stories, the surface of the water and surrounding land offers incredible scenery and opportunities for the young and old (and furry). Although the first two facts were fairly easy to quantify, the third claim that bodies in Lake Superior dont float was a bit harder to pin down. Hudson.. Lake Superior has also earned the title of being one of the Top 10 Most Haunted Lakes in the World. Generally, we might be able to find debris on the surface, or some evidence on shore. (you try to explain that one).then we have the bigfoot sightings and multipile (although hidden) haunted houses. The official record states that all of the ships crew were lost. His corpse, though, seems to know it's dead. Folklore was a common theme in pieces about the sinking of theEdmund Fitzgerald and its outsized presence in the legends around Lake Superior. Coupled with a relative lack of life at the bottom of the lake, even things like clothing and leather shoes, still stored neatly in crew cabins, were perfectly preserved, lending a dreamlike eeriness to the exploration of the sunken ship. On May 29, 2019, Manos body was found in 523 feet of water In 2016, Tyler Spink, 21, of Kalkaska, and his friend were kayaking in Platte Bay when the weather turned rough. Search parties were sent out through the Great Lakes, all of them turning up no evidence of the ship, and on the 26th, three weeks after the ships disappearance, winter weather came down hard, as did hope for the Kamloops crew, and the search was halted. It sank 17 miles from Whitefish Point on Michigans Upper Peninsula, an area that has claimed at least 240 ships. It was discovered at the lake bottom, 260 feet down. Here, in dark and perpetually frigid depths, is one of the dead that Lake Superior never gave up. According to Grand Rapids, Michigan, media outlet 98.7 FGR, though, the reason victims of shipwrecks in Lake Superior, such as "Old Whitey," don't "bloat and float" as they do in other bodies of water is that the water in the lake, averaging 34 degrees Fahrenheit, is simply too cold for the bacteria to grow that typically causes organic remains to decompose and float to the surface (via Unbound Roots). And if that werent scary enough, we also delve into the the fear known as submechanophobia, which Aly definitely has. It all started with a ship heading through Welland Canal, says GWVM. WebWhiteys corpse is found floating inside the engine room of the SS Kamloops, which sank on the Canadian side of Lake Superior in the 1920s and has never been removed. It was easy to infer after reading the title that the post claimed Lake Superior was cold enough to inhibit all growth of bacteria to prevent all bodies from rising, but its broader context made clear that this was part of the context that had to do specifically with the high-profile sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald conditions that involved a sudden and severe storm and the vessel sinking to the lakes bottom. That seems unlikely, so what are the facts? We and our partners use cookies to Store and/or access information on a device. from todayilearned. I just want mom and dad to know my fate. She signed it, Al, who is dead.. They didn't even listen when it nearly capsized in 1904 and again in 1906. It involves a ship called The SS Kamloops that sank in 1927 off Isle Royale in Lake Superior. And to the west? TIL that Lake Superior is so cold that bacteria needed to cause a submerged dead body to float and surface is unable to grow. One commenter stated referenced an article posted in the thread comments explaining how bodies are preserved in Lake Superior, but the blog post linked in fact only described one very famous partly-preserved corpse in the wreckage of the SS Kamloops. -Leo Burnett. Some divers reported seeing the pale white ghost kicked back in one of the crew bunks, quietly and calmly watching the explorers make their way through the sunken ship. They set out from Niagara on August 7, 1679, and the ship was still afloat in mid-September. That article described a 1995 dive to the site of theEdmund Fitzgerald, as well as concerns around disrupting what was effectively a final resting place for the 29 men on the vessel when it sank: [DiversMike Zlatopolsky and Terrence Tysall] set Dive Day for the end of the summer of 1995. Then there were others who reported something even more frightening: that Grandpa would follow them as they made their way through the ship, and that he wasnt just a ghost he was physical. Powered by Invision Community. There's the SS Eastland, which didn't even make it out of port. Its not as easy as one would like it to be.. A rendering of the SS Kamloops wreck "Old Whitey"'s final rest place is pictured above. Apparently, survivors had starved to death waiting for rescue even though nobody was looking for them. But to learn more about Old Whitey, we have to go back to the story of the wreck. Sadly, she ended her note with: I am the last one left alive, freezing and starving to death on Isle Royale. Van Arnum said the mans remains were perfectly preserved by the frigid waters of Lake Tahoe. However, Lake Superiors cold temperatures inhibit bacterial growth and the bodies tend to sink and never resurfaced. Sign up for a new account in our community. The ones who werent frozen to death appeared to have been partially eaten by the islands wolf population. Like another deep and cold lake, Lake Tahoe, it is true that the bodies of crew members involved in sinking ships frequently (but not always) remained in the vessel at the bottom of the lake; it was further true Lake Superior was unusually cold and bodies were sometimes preserved. However, a number of other factors hampered the recovery of the lakes dead, and Lake Superior was not a frigid vortex retaining all who drowned in or on it historically, crew members from other vessels washed ashore. By - November 27, 2022. Even if they couldn't get the body, it seems kind of odd that at first, it is stuck in an engine, and then it can somehow magically free itself and swim. The only thing I can't verify is the difficulty of the dive. She collided with a smaller boat, the Augusta,which made it safely to port, but the Lady Elgin sank with 300 passengers on board. WebDivers who have been down to the wreck have reported strange encounters such as being followed by the body or being surprised suddenly by the body floating towards them. WebMeet Old Whitey, the Preserved Corpse of the SS Kamloops, Lake Superior's Most Haunted Shipwreck The ghost of Old Whitey, the preserved corpse of the haunted SS Kamloops