Shipwreck, Storm, and Legacy: Author John U. Bacon on "The Gales of November” (10-19-25)

In this episode, host Phil Tower welcomes New York Times best-selling author, radio host, frequent national commentator, and public speaker, John U. Bacon.

Tower spoke with John U. Bacon about his new book, “THE GALES OF NOVEMBER: The Untold Story of the Edmund Fitzgerald.”

In The Gales of November, John U. Bacon delivers the definitive account of the disaster. Drawing on more than 100 interviews with families, friends, and former crewmates.

In the book, Bacon also explores Great Lakes shipping’s critical economic role, the sailors’ uncommon lives, the sinking’s likely causes, and the heartbreak left behind—“the wives, the sons, and the daughters,” as Gordon Lightfoot sang. Bacon spent 3 ½ years researching the story, talking with Family members of those lost in the wreck, and hearing firsthand stories that have never been told before. We unpack that in our conversation with him in this segment.

Get John U. Bacon’s New Book: “THE GALES OF NOVEMBER: The Untold Story of the Edmund Fitzgerald.”

John U. Bacon Online

See John U. Bacon speaking at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum in Grand Rapids on November 4th at 6:30 pm.


On November 6th, John U. Bacon will be the featured speaker & author at The National Writers Series in Traverse City, Michigan, at The City Opera House at 7:00 pm.
Get tickets here.