Going to Bartalina

Songs and stories of commercial sailing on the Great Lakes with folksinger Charlie Maguire.

The Arrowhead Library System is pleased to host Going To Bartalina: Songs & Stories of Commercial Sailing on the Great Lakes, a concert by COMPAS songwriter and performer Charlie Maguire.

With unequaled authenticity, Charlie brings a program of songs and stories to mark important maritime anniversaries in 2025. This year marks the 50th Anniversary of the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald and the 120th Anniversary of the Mataafa wreck off Duluth’s Canal Park on Lake Superior.

Charlie Maguire is the only songwriter ever granted passage to write about two working vessels: Nordic Trader and William Clay Ford. Charlie Maguire also served as an embedded crew member on USCG Sundew. From these unprecedented opportunities Charlie Maguire turned experience into songs with insightful narratives behind each one in time for these important anniversaries.

In addition, Maguire’s program includes Gordon Lightfoot’s “The Wreck Of The Edmund Fitzgerald” and Woody Guthrie’s “Merchant Marine” songs to round out a solid hour of deep water adventure.

“If you have ever seen a big ship entering a harbor, or glimpsed one out on the horizon and wondered what it must be like to be onboard, then this program is for you. Charlie’s songs and stories make it as real as the wind in your face, the comradeship of the crew, and the movement of the deck under your feet.”—Davis Helberg Director (Ret.) Seaway Port Authority of Duluth

The program is one hour long, and is appropriate for all audiences.

This free program is being offered at the following local area locations:

•  Monday, May 5, 1:00 p.m. – Babbitt Public Library

•  Tuesday, May 6, 10:00 a.m. – Ely Public Library

•  Tuesday, May 6, 2:00 p.m. – Aurora Public Library

•  Wednesday, May 7, 2:00 p.m. – Virginia Public Library

•  Wednesday, May 7, 5:30 p.m. – Cook Community Center, hosted by the Cook Public Library

•  Thursday, May 8, 2:00 p.m. – Broadview Manor, hosted by the Gilbert Public Library

•  Saturday, May 10, 10:00 a.m. – Eveleth Public Library

This program, sponsored by Arrowhead Library System, was funded in part or in whole with money from Minnesota’s Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund (ACHF).

PHOTO: Charlie Maguire