The Edmund Fitzgerald was carrying approximately 26,000 to 26,500 tons of taconite pellets when she sank on November 10, 1975. The ship commonly loaded iron ore concentrate (taconite) for delivery to steel mills in the Detroit and Toledo areas, which is the cargo most often cited in historical accounts of the loss. Some sources note a typical load in the mid-20,000s tons range, with figures around 26,000 tons being widely repeated in reports about the wreck and the ship’s final voyage. If you’d like, I can pull the exact figures from specific sources or summarize how cargo loading and weight limits were assessed for this vessel.