Freshwater Fury: Great Lakes Shipwrecks

To many, the Great Lakes symbolize summer vacations, beach outings, kayaks, and cookouts. To those in the shipping industry, the history of malevolent storms, lost vessels, and lost lives reveals just how treacherous these inland seas can be. A new exhibit opened recently at The History Museum, on view through July 12, 2026, exploring the depths of these fascinating events, entitled Freshwater Fury: Great Lakes Shipwrecks.

The Great Lakes have claimed over 6,000 vessels and over 30,000 lives since humans first navigated these waters in hand-crafted boats. Only about a quarter of these shipwrecks have been discovered. Perhaps none of these is better known than the freighter Edmund Fitzgerald, which vanished on Lake Superior fifty years ago this year, on the night of November 10, 1975, taking all 29 crew members with it. The exhibit includes a special section on the Fitzgerald. Visitors will also learn the stories of over 20 other wrecks from across the region, along with Indiana’s surprising history of underwater archeology and investigation.

Written and curated by The History Museum’s archivist and St. Joseph County Historian, Travis Childs, with assistance from the museum’s exhibits team, Freshwater Fury: Great Lakes Shipwrecks revisits one of The History Museum’s most popular regional history topics.

“Travis has great expertise in this area,” says Kristie Erickson, Chief Curator and Deputy Executive Director. “Our patrons have clamored for us to return to the topic, so we have been really delighted to provide the exhibit team with a renewed canvas to explore it.”

Special exhibit talks are planned around the anniversary of the Fitzgerald’s sinking.

Freshwater Fury: Great Lakes Shipwrecks is included with museum admission.