Great Lakes Lesson 6
Halloween Themed
Shipwrecks
LWBBAT…
-Describe various shipwrecks of the Great Lakes
-Describe and understand why shipwrecks are valuable historical resources
-Describe aspects of the Great Lakes at the turn of the 20th century
Standards:
6-H1.2.1 Explain how historians use a variety of sources to explore the past (e.g.
artifacts, primary and secondary sources including narratives, technology, historical
maps, visual/mathematical quantitative data, radiocarbon dating, DNA analysis).
Materials:
-Powerpoint- “Shipwrecks of the Great Lakes”
-YouTube Video-“Rouse Simmons-Christmas Tree Schooner”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QrnqheC_QQk
-“Underwater Archaeology Kids’ Corner: Exploring Shipwrecks”
Introductory Activity:
Students will journal about what they know about shipwrecks and what they think we can
learn from them.
-What do you know about shipwrecks?
-Why should we study them? What can someone learn from a shipwreck?
Discuss student responses as a group. Explain that since it is Halloween, we will be
looking at shipwrecks of the Great Lakes today.
Learning Activities:
1. Introductory Activity
2. Split students up into groups of 4 to read the article, “Underwater Kids’
Archaeology Corner: Exploring Shipwrecks.” Ask them to answer the following
questions as a group and write the answers on the back of the article or on a piece
of scrap paper.
a. How many shipwrecks are there in the Great Lakes?
b. What is an archaeologist?
c. How come shipwrecks are important to study?
Go over the answers together as a class. Also discuss what other resources you
could use to learn about history and what shipwrecks could tell you about the
Great Lakes (what kinds of ships there were, what kind of materials they shipped
etc….)
-In the beginning of the 20th century and end of the 19th century, the Great
Lakes were heavily used for shipping.
3. Show “Shipwrecks of the Great Lakes Powerpoint.” Ask students to raise their
hands and point out what we can learn from the various images.
4. Go over how not only can we learn about history, but we can learn from our
mistakes with shipwrecks.
Watch Video “Rouse Simmons-Christmas Tree Schooner”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QrnqheC_QQk
5. Ask students to complete an end of class journal answering the same questions:
What do you know about shipwrecks? Why are they important to learn about?
Formative Assessment:
-Having the groups answer questions and discuss them aloud about the reading is a way
to assess that students comprehended the reading. It also allows the instructor to make
sure that students are understanding the main goal of why studying shipwrecks are
important and therefore meeting one of the objectives.
-Having students discuss the slides of the “Shipwrecks of the Great Lakes” powerpoint
will allow the instructor to see how well students are applying the concept of using
shipwrecks to study the past. It is also a way to assess students’ historical knowledge of
the Great Lakes (
-The final journal at the end of class will be a way too see how students’ knowledge and
understanding of the topic has improved during the class.
Notes:
Lesson Idea taken from:
http://www.lessonplanet.com/search?keywords=great+lakes+shipwrecks&media=lesson
According to shipwreck historian Frederick Stonehouse, the southern
shore of Lake Superior between Grand Marais, Michigan, and Whitefish
Point is known as the "Graveyard of the Great Lakes" and more ships have
been lost around the Whitefish Point area than any other part of Lake
Superior.[25] These shipwrecks are now protected by the Whitefish Point
Underwater Preserve. The SS Edmund Fitzgerald was the last major
shipwreck on Lake Superior, sinking 17 miles (27 km) from Whitefish Point
on November 10, 1975.
According to legend, "Lake Superior seldom gives up her dead".[26] This is
because of the unusually low temperature of the water, estimated at under
36 °F (2 °C) on average around 1970.[17] Normally bacteria feeding on a
sunken decaying body will generate gas inside the body, causing it to float
to the surface after a few days. The water in Lake Superior is cold enough
year-round to inhibit bacterial growth, and bodies tend to sink and never
surface.[27] This is alluded to in Gordon Lightfoot's ballad, "The Wreck of
the Edmund Fitzgerald". The Edmund Fitzgerald's 29 crew members all
perished. Edmund Fitzgerald adventurer Joe MacInnis reported that in July
1994, explorer Frederick Shannon's Expedition 94 to the Fitzgerald
discovered and filmed a man's body near the port side of her pilothouse,
not far from the open door, "fully clothed, wearing an orange life jacket,
and lying face down in the sediment."[28] No crew members were ever
recovered. The Fitzgerald was swallowed up so intensely by Lake Superior
that the 729-foot (222 m) ship split in half. Her two pieces are sitting
approximately 170 feet (52 m) apart in a depth of 550 feet (170 m).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Superior
Many theories, books, studies and expeditions have examined the cause
of the sinking. Fitzgerald may have fallen victim to the high waves of the
storm, suffered structural failure, been swamped with water entering
through her cargo hatches or deck, experienced topside damage or
shoaled in a shallow part of Lake Superior. Investigations into the sinking
led to changes in Great Lakes shipping regulations and practices that
included mandatory survival suits, depth finders, positioning systems,
increased freeboard, and more frequent inspection of vessels
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_Edmund_Fitzgerald
Underwater Archaeology Kids' Corner
Exploring Shipwrecks
The Steamer Bluff City, which burned
in 1897. WHi(X3)27162, WHS Archives
The Great Lakes can be very dangerous for the men and women
that work upon these waters. Did you know that there are over
10,000 shipwrecks at the bottom of the Great Lakes, and each
one is a museum waiting to be explored?
What do these shipwrecks tell us about the past? How do
underwater archaeologists investigate these sites (places)? To
find the answers to these questions, put on your mask and
snorkel (underwater breathing gear), and let's dive into more of
Wisconsin's maritime history.
DID YOU KNOW?
Twenty-two percent of Wisconsin
is under water. Beneath the lakes
and rivers lie not just shipwrecks, but
thousands of other archaeological sites
(places). Archaeologists have found the
remains of fur trading posts, lumber mills,
quarries, and other structures. They have
also found objects such as ice harvesting
tools and early Native American fishing
gear. Underwater archaeologists study
these artifacts to learn more about
our past.
Wisconsin has a long and interesting maritime history. From
2,000 year old canoes to giant bulk freighters, many types of
"watercraft" have sailed upon Wisconsin waters. Have you ever
wondered how we know all this information about the past? Much
of it comes from historical documents (documents, written
records), such as journals, newspapers, or letters written by
people who actually lived at the time. But not enough written
documents exist to tell us everything that we want to know about
the past. Shipwrecks are a great source for learning more about
our maritime past, and underwater archaeologists find clues
about our history in shipwrecks.
The schooner crew's clothing and
other personal items are among
the things that can be found on
a shipwreck. Institute for Great Lakes
Research at Bowling Green University
Shipwrecks are time capsules. Their remains tell us what people
did at a very specific time. If a ship sank in 1859, everything on
board came from 1859 or earlier. The clothing, eating utensils,
tools, navigational instruments, cargo, and personal items found
on a shipwreck, and the ship itself, tell us the story of how people
lived and worked at a certain time in the past.
Underwater archaeologists can also interpret (in tur preht,
explain) the sunken artifacts and tell us how the ships were built
and why they sank.
Archaeologists record information
about one of Wisconsin's seven
hundred shipwrecks. Underwater
Archaeology, WHS
Once on the bottom of a lake or river, a shipwreck often remains
protected by the water that hides it. Wisconsin's cold, fresh water
preserves materials much better than if they were in salty ocean
water. This explains why Great Lakes shipwrecks are considered
some of the best in the world. A canoe in Kenosha survived for
nearly 2,000 years before it was discovered! In some special
cases, underwater archaeologists can find nearly everything that
was aboard a ship when it sailed. But before exploring how
archaeologists study shipwrecks, you'll learn some of the reasons
why ships sank.
http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/shipwrecks/kids/exploring.asp