Star Tribune
Two century-old shipwrecks discovered in Lake Superior
DULUTH — The steamship C.F. Curtis was towing two barges loaded with lumber on Lake Superior on November 18, 1914, when it encountered gale force winds that sank all three vessels in what has been described as “the graveyard of the Great Lakes.”
For more than 100 years, the final resting places for the Curtis, the Annie M. Peterson and the Selden E. Martin, which took down a combined 28 people, has been a mystery. But the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society announced Tuesday that two of the ships have been found. A crew discovered the Curtis as part of a 2021 sweep that brought about nine shipwreck finds. Then came a surprise this past summer: The discovery of the Marvin a few miles from the Curtis.
The Curtis, piloted by Capt. Jay G. Jennings, was headed from Baraga, Mich., to Tonawanda, N.Y., along with the barges — a trio that made up a quarter of the fleet that belonged to the Edward Hines Lumber Company, a bigtime player once described as the “Napoleon of the lumber industry.” The ships reportedly carried more than 2 million board feet of lumber.
Self-described “amateur historian” Ric Mixter said there were no weather warnings that would’ve given the captain pause. The forecast was for “moderate to fresh southwest winds” that would shift to northwest by the following evening, and possibly snow.
The gales, which are sustained winds reaching up to 54 miles per hour, started up hours into the voyage.
In the days after the disappearance, a dozen bodies and debris — including life belts stenciled with “Str. Curtis” — washed ashore near Grand Marais, Mich.
Two of the Curtis’ crewmembers were said to have made it to shore alive, possibly by lifeboat, before succumbing to exhaustion and exposure. According to a news report, they both climbed a 20-foot embankment. One hit the top, then slipped and was unable to recover. The other made a “plucky” fight for his life. He reportedly walked and crawled 4 miles to the breakwater in Grand Marais.
“Here his body was found face down, his arms outstretched in an effort to get up the breakwater,” according to an article in the Duluth Herald.
Two unidentified women were also found, one with a piece of ore up her sleeve. A handful of the bodies were never identified.
Shipwreck researchers found the Curtis north of Grand Marais, Mich., 600 feet below the surface in 2021. It’s identity was obvious: The name of the lumber company was clearly printed on the bow. There was a perfectly intact grinding wheel and machinery that no human had seen for more than 100 years. An “H,” for “Hines,” on a smokestack, a load of lumber, a “mashed” pilot house and the red paint used to define Edward Hines’ name on the side of the ship can all be easily seen on underwater film footage.
The research crew went out again to a specific target area on Lake Superior this past summer. Darryl Ertel, director of marine operations for the shipwreck museum, using a remotely operated vehicle found lumber, a tow line, and remains of paint. Then the Selden E. Marvin nameplate was revealed perfectly intact.
“It blew my mind,” Mixter said. “I almost cried. Also, this is a gravesite. Human beings were lost here.”
One sobering sign: a shirt — or maybe a sheet — caught beneath a tow rope, a piece that emphasized the loss of human life for Mixter, who is based in Michigan.
With both of these finds, there is just one more piece of the puzzle remaining. The third ship — the Annie M. Peterson — has yet to be found.
The Lynx are in the hot seat.
The team lost Game 3 of the WNBA Finals series against the New York Liberty on Wednesday night 77-80, setting the stage for a decisive match at Target Center on Friday night. Fans in the arena reacted with resounding disappointment after Sabrina Ionescu sunk a three-pointer to break away from the tie game and dashed the Lynx’s chance at forcing overtime.
Before we get to the reactions, first things first: The Lynx set an attendance record, filling Target Center with 19,521 spectators for the first time in franchise history. That’s nearly 500 more than when Caitlin Clark was in town with the Indiana Fever earlier this year.
Despite leading by double digits for much of the game, the Lynx began the fourth quarter with a one-point lead over the Liberty and struggled to stay more than two or three points ahead throughout.
The Liberty took the lead with minutes to go in the fourth quarter and folks were practically despondent.
Of course, there were people who were in it solely for the spectacle. Nothing more.
The Lynx took a commanding lead early in the first quarter and ended the first half in winning position, setting a particularly jovial mood among the fanbase to start the game.
Inside Target Center, arena announcers spent a few minutes before the game harassing Lynx fans — and Liberty fans — who had not yet donned the complementary T-shirts draped over every seat.
DULUTH – The Minnesota and Wisconsin transportation departments will make upgrades to the Richard I. Bong Memorial Bridge in the summer of 2025, in preparation for the structure to become the premiere route between this city and Superior during reconstruction of the Blatnik Bridge.
Built in 1961, the Blatnik Bridge carries 33,000 vehicles per day along Interstate 535 and Hwy. 53. It will be entirely rebuilt, starting in 2027, with the help of $1 billion in federal funding announced earlier this year. MnDOT and WisDOT are splitting the remaining costs of the project, about $4 million each.
According to MnDOT, projects on the Bong Bridge will include spot painting, concrete surface repairs to the bridge abutments, concrete sealer on the deck, replacing rubber strip seal membranes on the main span’s joints and replacing light poles on the bridge and its points of entry. It’s expected to take two months, transportation officials said during a recent meeting at the Superior Public Library.
During this time there will be occasional lane closures, detours at the off-ramps, and for about three weeks the sidewalk path alongside the bridge will be closed.
The Bong Bridge, which crosses the St. Louis River, opened to traffic in 1985 and is the lesser-used of the two bridges. Officials said they want to keep maintenance to a minimum on the span during the Blatnik project, which is expected to take four years.
Red Wing will celebrate the grand opening of its first permanent set of pickleball courts next week with an “inaugural play” on the six courts at Colvill Park on the banks of the Mississippi, between a couple of marinas and next to the aquatic center.
Among the first to get to play on the new courts will be David Anderson, who brought pickleball to the local YMCA in 2008, before the nationwide pickleball craze took hold, and Denny Yecke, at 92 the oldest pickleball player in Red Wing.
The inaugural play begins at 11 a.m. Tuesday, with a rain date of the next day. Afterward will be food and celebration at the Colvill Park Courtyard building.
Tim Sletten, the city’s former police chief, discovered America’s fastest-growing sport a decade ago after he retired. With fellow members of the Red Wing Pickleball Group, he’d play indoors at the local YMCA or outdoors at a local school, on courts made for other sports. But they didn’t have a permanent place, so they approached the city about building one.
When a city feasibility study came up with a high cost, about $350,000, Sletten’s group got together to raise money.
The courts are even opening ahead of schedule, originally set for 2025.
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