Why are Green Gates on the Ship Canal piers? | Duluth, Minnesota tour 4K

This Duluth video tour provides the sad story as to why those green gates are installed on the Duluth ship canal piers.

April 30, 1967, winds were blowing up to 45 mph and Lake Superior's water temperature was just 36 degrees.

It was about 7:45 p.m. when witnesses saw brothers Eric, Arthur and Nathan Halverson - two 16-year-old twins and a 17-year-old - running on a pier in Duluth, Minn. The boys had driven to the pier after a church gathering, their parents later said. One of the boys was swept into the lake by a wave while the others fantastically tried to help.

Volunteers went out to rescue the boys, including three Coast Guard members: Boatswain's Mate First Class Edgar Culbertson, 31, of Ferndale; Boatswain's Mate 2nd Class Richard Callahan, 21, of Cicero, Ill., and Fireman Ronald C. Prei, 21, of St. Francis, Wis.

"The crew tethered themselves together using a rope, with 25-foot spacing and set out searching the pier with only a hand lantern to light the way," according to a Coast Guard account of the rescue attempt. "The rope would help ensure their safety if one of the men was swept off the pier the others could pull him to safety, they thought.

"The men shuffled their way out to the lighthouse without incident, but also without finding the missing boys.

"On their way back, Culbertson was knocked off the pier by a large wave causing him to fall below onto the rocks along the shores of the lake. Fellow coast guard member and rescuer, BM2 Richard Callahan suffered a severely broken wrist as he tried to hold on to the rope along with a third man; Coast Guard Fireman Ronald Prei.

"Despite their best efforts, BM1 Edgar Culbertson perished to the storm of the mighty Lake Superior."

The three young brothers also died in the storm.

Culbertson's body was later found on the beach. A memorial plaque on the pier nearby was placed as a testament to his bravery.

A short time after their deaths, all three men were awarded the Coast Guard Medal - the highest peace time medal awarded for heroism, the military said.

The Green Pier fencing later was installed as a safety measure.

#duluth #history #tour #storm #tragedy