Courtesy Photo The Carl D. Bradley is seen on the water in this undated photo.

ROGERS CITY — Less than 45 miles northwest of Northport and 16 miles southwest of Lake Michigan’s Gull Island lies the remains of the Great Lakes freighter the Carl D. Bradley.

The freighter broke apart in 40-foot waves 64 years ago today.

The Bradley’s sinking claimed the most significant Great Lakes crew loss in 70 years, with 33 lives.

The 1975 sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald claimed 29 lives.

Launched in 1927, the 638-foot Bradley was then the largest and most sophisticated freighter on the lakes. The ship’s frequent homeport was Rogers City and owner was Michigan Limestone and Chemical Co.

On Nov. 17,, 1958, after depositing a limestone load, the Bradley departed Gary, Indiana en route to Manitowoc, Wisconsin. There, the freighter was to undergo winter season upgrades and repairs.

Mid-route, the captain was directed to return to Rogers City for one last load.

A sudden, every-100-years storm blew in over Lake Michigan causing the empty Bradley to twist and heave between the massive waves.

The two survivors, Frank Mays and Elmer Fleming, revealed crewmen could literally hear the rivets popping from the hull.

As it neared 5:30 p.m., Mays recalled he heard a loud thud and then a second thud. From the pilot house, an urgent rescue call was given, “This is the Carl D. Bradley. Mayday! We are going down.”

The Bradley’s final voyage was coming to an end. With a separated bow and stern, the ship plunged 375 feet to Lake Michigan’s bottom.

The sinking is estimated to have occurred in less than 15 minutes.

Crewmembers in the pilot house, on deck, and below deck scrambled for their lives. Mays and Fleming were able to make it to an 8-by-10-foot liferaft. Two other crew members joined them, but, through the night, the massive waves and 36-degree water claimed those other crew members.

Mays and Fleming literally held onto the raft’s wooden floor with fingers in between each slat.

With radio and television stations broadcasting the Bradley news, during the night, dozens of emotional Rogers City residents drove their vehicles from their Lake Huron coast to the Lake Michigan shoreline. There, with their vehicle headlights shining on the roaring lake, they looked for Bradley survivors.

The U.S. Coast Guard dispatched an Albatross search-and-rescue plane and the cutter Sundew. As the morning’s sun rays broke, the Sundew’s crew spotted the two survivors on the liferaft.

The rescue was very tricky in the 20- to 25-foot waves and frigid winds.

Once Mays and Fleming were rescued, along with retrieving the liferaft, the Sundew headed to Charlevoix, which had the nearest hospital.

Eighteen crew member bodies were recovered and 15 bodies were never found.

In Rogers City, 23 women became widows and 54 children were now fatherless. The Rogers City High School and various houses of worship would soon honor the Bradley’s crew.

The crew and freighter became a national news story, including a lengthy feature in Life Magazine.

Fleming passed away in 1969. Mays passed in January 2021.

In recent years, several deepwater dives with video and still cameras descended on the Bradley. On several of those dives, Mays accompanied the diving team. Most impactful was when the diving team removed the ship’s bell, which is now on display in Rogers City.

The bell was later replaced with a new bell engraved with the captain and crew’s names and placed back on the Bradley.

On Saturday, family members, dignitaries, and guests will honor the Bradley’s 64th anniversary at Rogers City’s historic Rogers City Theater. The ceremony begins at 1 p.m., followed by the premier of “The Men Long Forgotten.”

In Rogers City, the bell will toll 33 times.

Jeffrey D. Brasie is retired health care CEO and frequently writes op-eds and feature stories. He is a former Alpena resident and resides in suburban Detroit and is a U.S. Navy and U.S. Navy Reserve veteran.

Contemporary Great Lakes ship disasters

May 11, 1953

Henry Steinbrenner

426 feet

17 lives lost

June 20, 1953

Scotliadoc

426 feet

One life lost

Nov. 18, 1958

Carl D. Bradley

638 feet

33 lives lost

May 6, 1965

Cedarville

590 feet

10 lives lost

Nov. 29, 1966

Danial J. Morrell

580 feet

28 lives lost

Nov. 10, 1975

Edmund Fitzgerald

729 feet

29 lives lost

Source: Bowling Green University Institute for Great Lakes Research