Dover Library discusses the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald
The SS Edmund Fitzgerald was a large vessel with a crew of 29 that moved from one Great Lake port to another.
On Monday, Oct. 25, the Dover Public Library will host John Barnett, who will share his recollections of the 1975 sinking of the SS Edmund Fitzgerald on Lake Superior. The program will begin at 6:30 p.m. in the community room.
In summer 1975 Barnett from Mechanicstown took a job with the Penn Central Railroad. He worked in Cleveland as a lakefront lift bridge operator and train director for rail traffic. Little did Barnett know he would be part of the history of two events in that time period.
The SS Edmund Fitzgerald was a large vessel with a crew of 29 that moved from one Great Lake port to another. On Nov. 10, 1975, a strong storm caused the ship to sink in Lake Superior. All 29 crew members perished. Barnett will share his memories of the tragic sinking of the “Titanic of the Great Lakes.”
Also in summer 1975, a mob war broke out on both sides of Cleveland. The five-year war between the Italian Mafia and the Irish Mafia was about gambling and drugs. The famed Danny Greene became the subject of the movie, “Kill the Irishman.”
Barnett is a 42-year railroad veteran of Penn Central, Conrail and Norfolk Southern. He retired in June 2010. He has written many stories about the railroads, the Civil War and events that took place since Carroll County was created in 1842.
Barnett has been a board member of the Carroll County Board of Elections for six years and is the current board chairman. He is a Civil War re-enactor with the 19th Ohio Light Artillery and the 29th Ohio Volunteer Infantry.
The library is located at 525 N. Walnut St. in Dover. To register, call the library at 330-343-6123.