Mariners' Church of Detroit

     Perhaps one of the most widely known churches by any maritime enthusiast, Mariners' Church of Detroit in based in Detroit, Michigan.  It is a "Free and Independent" church which is known best for the commemoration started by its own Reverend Ingalls on November 11, 1975.  One day after the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald, Reverend Ingalls sat quietly in prayer for the twenty-nine men lost in the sinking.  After praying, the Reverend rang the church bell twenty-nine times, one for each crew man.  This memorial was recognized by the media and by songwriter Gordon Lightfoot almost immediately, and before long, everyone who knew about the Fitz knew about Reverend Ingalls and the Mariners' Church of Detroit.  The Mariners' Church memorial service takes place each year on the Sunday closest to November 10th on the calendar.

In a musty old hall in Detroit they prayed,
in the "Maritime Sailors' Cathedral."
The church bell chimed 'til it rang twenty-nine times
for each man on the Edmund Fitzgerald.