It started with a news program. An historian has written about World War 2 and the Great Lakes, talking about the role the Soo Locks played in the war. What? I don’t remember any battles at the Soo Locks!

Then Dad started talking about the Soo (Sault Ste. Marie) during the war, what it was like. There were troops there, zeppelins in the air, and concern about the ships loaded with iron ore getting to the plants to be used to make ships a s aircraft carriers.

Dad said that zeppelins were in the air in a big circle around the locks. One of the zeppelins was across the street from the house he and his brothers grew up in with Grandma and Grandpa. Every morning they’d watch that zeppelin be raised high to protect the locks.

The historian said that if the locks were closed even one day, the entire iron ore supply would be disrupted. So the Soo Locks were an important target to protect. And a part of our family history.

The book is called “Target Great Lakes” by Fred Stonehouse. You can watch the news clip here. And yes, I ordered a copy. I’m looking forward to learning more about the role the Great Lakes played in World War 2. And it might uncover some more memories.