November 10th every year Split Rock Lighthouse marks the anniversary of the loss of the Edmund Fitzgerald with a public program that includes a reading of the names of the 29 men who lost their lives on the Fitzgerald on November 10th, 1975. The lighthouse, an aid to Lake Superior navigation for 59 years (1910 - 1969), is normally closed during the winter, but is reopened for this one day event and the beacon is lighted at dusk. Hundreds of visitors have attended this event each year since the ceremony was started in 1985 on the tenth anniversary of the sinking of 'the Big Fitz.'
Split Rock Lighthouse is located outside of Two Harbors, Minnesota. The lighthouse commands a panoramic view of Lake Superior from the 130 foot cliff from which it stands on. Built after a 1905 fierce storm that sank one ship nearby and more than 30 others on Lake Superior. Superior is the most unpredictable, deepest, and coldest of the Great Lakes.
Visitors can view films and exhibits about the lighthouse and the big lakes storms and shipwrecks.
More information is available about Split Rock Lighthouse at the North Shore Visitor Guide.
Fun facts about Lake Superior are also available on the North Shore Visitor Guide
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