Bradley bell ringing memorializes 48th anniversary

by Amanda Polaski Staff Writer— Mayday! Mayday! Mayday! This is the Carl D. Bradley! The distress call went out on November 18, 1958, but before anything could be done, the massive freighter known as the SS Carl D. Bradley broke in two, and sank in the frigid waters of Lake Michigan. Thirty-three men, most of whom were hardworking residents of Rogers City, perished in the tragedy. This past Saturday marked the 48th anniversary of the sinking, and in order to honor the Bradley and her crew, the Great Lakes Lore Maritime Museum hosted a bell ringing ceremony for a standing-room-only crowd.

?I?M SURE every single person in Rogers City knew someone involved with the tragedy of the Bradley,? said Mayor Beach Hall, who opened the ceremony with a prayer. ?It was a traumatic event, and I?m sure even today there are memories.? Lore museum vice president Bill Valentine gave a brief overview of what unfolded 48 years ago. He told how crewmembers heard the signal to abandon ship, and how a mayday call was radioed out to the coast guard. ?All those who heard the radio that day were stunned,? said Valentine. ?Four men jumped in?and climbed aboard a raft, including survivors Frank Mayes and Elmer Fleming.? Valentine described how Mayes and Fleming fought to stay on the raft for almost 15 hours. The other two men attempted to swim, but were lost at sea. Dave Erickson, the president of the Lore Museum, used a model ship to show the audience how it is believed the Bradley broke in two at her eleventh hatch, and sank in 380 feet of Lake Michigan waters. Erickson presented pictures taken from numerous dives, starting with the first picture from the first dive by Mirek Standowicz in 2001. Erickson also explained the upcoming Bradley Project.

IN ORDER to keep the story of the Bradley and her crew alive and well in the minds of many generations to come, the Great Lakes Lore Maritime Museum, in partnership with the Presque Isle District Library, is working on a multi-media project with the Public Broadcasting Service (WCMU). Recently, the Michigan Department of History, Arts, and Libraries announced the Michigan Council for the Arts and Cultural Affairs (MCACA) grant recipients, which included a $10,500 grant toward the cultural and history project on the SS Carl D. Bradley for its 50th anniversary in 2008.

Th

e Bradley Project includes the production of a feature-length broadcast quality video documentary of the SS Carl D. Bradley, as well as the maritime history of northeast Michigan. The project also includes plans for educational components to be used in outreach presentations to local schools. The documentary will include high definition film footage of the Bradley as she sits today in 380 feet of water. Currently, the project has dive footage from three separate dives. Another dive is planned for next year. Erickson said the Bradley was more tragic than the Edmund Fitzgerald, which has received much more attention.

?SHE WAS more famous and more disastrous than the Fitz,? said Erickson. ?Then she (the Bradley) was forgotten. When I took over this museum, I said we were going to change that. We will honor those men every year.? The bell ringing ceremony ended with the reading of the 33 names of those lost. Family members, friends, and audience participants helped remember and honor those men and their ship. A bell ringing ceremony to honor those lost on the Daniel J. Morrell is Saturday at 2 p.m. Lone survivor Dennis Hale will attend to retell his story.