Gordon Lightfoot’s “Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” History

November 10th, 1975, The Edmund Fitzgerald broke in half and sank in Lake Superior taking 29 crew members with her.  Gordon Lightfoot wrote "Wreck of The Edmund Fitzgerald" as a historical folk song. Gordon felt that the ship and crew deserved more than what the media had done to cover the story.  Normally, a historical folk song doesn't tend to chart, but this one did.

"Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" peaked at #2 on the charts (behind Rod Stewart's "Tonight's The Night").  I do not believe for a second that Gordon was motivated to write the song as a "hit," but it is an interesting side note.  The song also received Grammy nominations for Song of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Performance.

Back in 2014, Gordon held an AMA (Ask Me Anything) on Reddit.  During the course of questions, he was asked about the song.  Gordon said, "The Edmund Fitzgerald really seemed to go unnoticed at that time, anything I'd seen in the newspapers or magazines were very short, brief articles. I felt I would like to expand upon the story of the sinking of the ship itself."

Gordon did his homework.  He bought old newspapers and put the story together in chronological order.  As for the melody, Gordon gave credit to an old Irish folk song he remembers hearing as a young child, "I think it was one of the first pieces of music that registered to me as being a piece of music," he continued. "That's where the melody comes from, from an old Irish folk song."

For years now, I have played "Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" at noon on November 10th each year to honor the crew and respect this sad chapter in Michigan's history.  Thank you, Gordon Lightfoot, for honoring these souls.  You forever hold a special place in the hearts of Michiganders. RIP

How well do you know Michigan?  Scroll down for a chance to test your skill by population.  Even though I've done City of the Week for years, I don't think I could guess all ten correctly.  If memory serves me right, Detroit, Sterling Heights, and Warren are definitely on the list... But I didn't look yet.  What are your guesses?

It's been a long day. So, let's play a game! I'm sure you know that Detroit is the most populated city in the state of Michigan. That's an easy one. However, can you name the 10 largest cities in Michigan by population?

Before finding this list, I took a shot at guessing the top ten. I got the top two! After that, it was all a mess. I guess it's true that you learn something new everyday. Today, I learned which cities in Michigan have the biggest population.

It is significantly easier to name the four largest cities in the country by population than it is within the state of Michigan. Without looking it up, I would say the top five are: New York, NY; Los Angeles, CA; Chicago, IL; San Francisco, CA; and Houston, TX. Now, let me look it up...and according to MacroTrends.com I am wrong. According to them, the list goes NYC, LA, Chicago, Houston, and Dallas. I was close! For some reason I thought San Francisco was higher on the list. Looks like it's just their rent prices that make the top five. Ouch.

We already know that Detroit is going to be at the top of the list. This isn't a secret or a spoiler alert. We all know it. I'd be willing to bet you can name number two, as well. However, once we get passed the top two, I think it gets much more challenging. Is it one of the college towns? A close suburb of Detroit? That's a good way to start thinking. Use your Sherlock Holmes deduction skills to figure out which cities in Michigan have the biggest population.

I know right off the bat I can eliminate my hometown of Clarkston. As much as I love it, I am fully aware that it is not one of the most populated cities in the state. Not the top ten. I'd be shocked if it made the top 25, to be honest. I was going to say top 50 but that might be a little bit of a stretch. It could be on that list.

Now, it's your turn. The only rule of the game is no Google'ing or looking it up before guessing. Take a second and think. See if you can identify the 10 most populated cities in Michigan on your own. For this list, we're going off the data provided by World Population Review for 2023. Take another second. Okay. You think you're ready? Let's get to the list!

Population: 621,193

This shouldn't come as a surprise, let's be honest. We all knew Detroit would take the number one spot. It's obviously the biggest city in the state. However, it's not the capital! That's something worth remembering. Could the capital be on the list? We'll find out!

Population: 195,911

Grand Rapids has earned the silver medal for most populated city in the state of Michigan. It's an amazing city famous for beer. It's even known as "Beer City." It's the home of several delightful beers, including: Founders, New Holland, and more.

Population: 136,153

This was a surprise! I didn't see it coming. However, it makes sense when you think about it. It shares a border with Detroit, which was the most populated city in the state. Lots of opportunity for work, close to other major suburbs, I get it! I get it!

Population: 131,523

I didn't have this on my list, either. I'm not off to a good start, clearly. According to Wikipedia, Sterling Heights is the second largest suburb in Metro-Detroit.

Population: 119,570

I would have guessed Ann Arbor would have taken the bronze at number three. However, it's actually number five on the list. Home of the University of Michigan, there's tons to do in Ann Arbor and it's one of the most beautiful cities in the state...and that's coming from a graduate of Michigan State.

Population: 112,460

Michigan's state capital comes in sixth place. There's the Potter Park Zoo which is a big attraction. Then, just to the East you know what you'll find? That's right, East Lansing. Home of my Michigan State Spartans. If you've never checked out Michigan's capitol building, I highly recommend you go sometime! It's really cool.

Population: 105,988

Dearborn is the seventh largest city in Michigan. It's the home of the Ford Motor Company's World HQ. It also has, in my humble opinion, some of the best restaurants in Metro-Detroit. I can never go to Dearborn without getting a delicious meal.

Population: 92,620

Livonia lands at number 8 on the list. I didn't guess it, but it makes sense. MovingJunction.com says it has been rated the best suburb in Southeast Michigan. Other lists name Flint as the eighth most populated city in the state, but according to World Population Review, Flint is actually 12th.

Population: 86,261

Troy, Michigan is home of Somerset Mall one of the best malls in the state. Troy has the largest population in Oakland County. It's located 22 miles north of Downtown Detroit and is very easy to get to no matter where you're at in Metro-Detroit.

Population: 83,017

Westland rounds out our top ten most populated cities in the state of Michigan. It's considered a safe city and it's also very diverse. It's most known for all of its parks. There are a lot!