Edmund Fitzgerald memorial service at Split Rock sells out for first time

For the first time the annual Edmund Fitzgerald memorial ceremony at Split Rock Lighthouse has reached ceiling in reservations A record-breaking in-person tickets have been purchased for the Edmund Fitzgerald Memorial Beacon Lighting and commemoration ceremony at Split Rock Lighthouse according to a Monday news release from the Minnesota Historical Society Due to the high demand the event is now sold out Nick Jungheim communications coordinator for the historical society explained in an email to the Duluth News Tribune that this is the first time the event has needed an attendance cap in the past the site has been able to accommodate the demand According to folks at the site this is by far the bulk we ve done in presales for this event This is a vital year marking years since the Fitzgerald foundered in a Lake Superior storm Although Split Rock Lighthouse ceased operations six years before the loss of the Fitzgerald and had no direct connection to the ship s sinking near Whitefish Bay as a Lake Superior landmark the lighthouse remains associated with the Great Lakes best-known shipwreck The lighthouse first paid tribute to the Fitzgerald in after then-keeper Lee Radzak was inspired by Gordon Lightfoot s The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald to honor the men lost with the ship The Split Rock memorial is now one of the best-known annual events honoring the Fitzgerald crew alongside similar ceremonies at venues including the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum custodian of the Fitzgerald s bell on Whitefish Point and the Mariners Church of Detroit Each Nov ceremony is among the rare occasions on which the Split Rock beacon is lit While the event is sold out it will be livestreamed for remote viewing Related Articles Amid halt in federal food aid Gov Tim Walz announces M to MN food shelves Lakeville center opts out of same-day driver s license pilot venture Minnesota Dream Hunt offers heartwarming experiences Letters Without a push from home more money might not help schools Letters A papal exhibit What about the sisters