Facts About Michigan

A Learning Website for Middle School Students

State Facts

Two Peninsulas

• Michigan is made up of two peninsulas - the Upper Peninsula and the Lower Peninsula.  
  

• These two peninsulas are separated by water.  
  

• The lower peninsula is shaped like a mitten and it's 277 miles long from north to south and 195 miles from east to west.  
  

• The upper peninsula is as big as Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island combined.

The Mackinac Bridge

• The Mackinac Bridge is currently the third longest suspension bridge in the world.  It connects the upper and lower peninsulas of Michigan.  
  

• It's 5 miles long and rises 552 feet above the Straits of Mackinac, where Lake Michigan meets Lake Huron.  
  

• It's sometimes called the "Mighty Mac"  or "The Big Mac".   
  

• It took 3 years to complete and was opened to traffic in 1957. 
  

• Some people are so impressed with the Mackinac Bridge that they think of it as the "8th Wonder of the World". 
  

• Click here to see a picture of the Mackinac Bridge.

The Great Lakes State

• The word, Michigan, comes from two Indian words, michi-gama.  Michi-gama means great lake.
  

• Michigan is sometimes called The Great Lakes State because four of the five Great Lakes border Michigan.  
  

• Lake Huron, Lake Michigan, Lake Erie and Lake Superior border Michigan.  Lake Ontario, the fifth Great Lake, does not border Michigan. 

• Lake Superior is the largest of the Great Lakes.  Lake Huron is the second largest and has the longest shoreline. Lake Michigan is the third largest. Lake Erie ranks fourth in size to the other Great Lakes.  Lake Ontario is the smallest of the Great Lakes.

• Lake Superior is the second largest natural lake in the world.

• The Great Lakes contain one-fifth of the world's fresh surface water or 6 quadrillion gallons of fresh water.

The Water Wonderland State

• Michigan has more than 11,000 inland lakes and more than 36,000 miles of streams. 
  

• In Michigan, you are never more than 6 miles from an inland lake or more than 85 miles from a Great Lake.
  

• Michigan has more miles of beach than the Caribbean and more public beaches than any other state.
  

• Michigan has more fresh water coastline than any other state.  
  

• 25% of the world's fresh water fills the Great Lakes, four of which border Michigan. 

Michigan's 150 Waterfalls

• Michigan has over a 150 waterfalls.  
  

• You can find them in state and national parks, public forests, along lakeshores, beside highways, and down moss-covered trails. 

Michigan's 116 Lighthouses

• Michigan has 116 lighthouses. 
  

• The first lighthouses in Michigan were built between 1818 and 1822.  
  

• They were built to project light at night and to serve as a land mark during the day to safely guide the freighters traveling the Great Lakes.

Michigan's Shoreline

• Michigan's 3,288 mile shoreline is longer than that of any other state except Alaska. 

• Michigan has the longest shoreline of any state - 2,242 miles and another 879 miles if islands are included. This equals the length of the Atlantic Coast, from Maine to Florida.

• The Great Lakes shoreline is equal to almost 44 percent of the circumference of the earth.

Michigan's Sand Dunes

• Michigan has 275,000 acres of sand dunes more than any other Great Lakes state.

• The world's largest freshwater sand dunes line the shores of Lake Michigan.

• Many of Michigan's sand dunes are on the endangered list.  They cannot be replaced once they are destroyed.

• The Great Lakes sand dunes can be seen from outer space.

• The Sleeping Bear Dunes on the western side of the state are 460 feet above Lake Michigan.

Michigan's Wildflowers & Wild Plants

• More than 1200 types of wild plants are native to Michigan.

• Michigan wildflowers are found on the shores of the Great Lakes.  They also grow in marshes, swamps, wet meadows, prairies and in bogs.  Wildflowers also cover the floors of Michigan forests.

• Endangered and threatened wildflowers like Houghton's Goldenrod, Pitchers Thistle, Dwarf Lake Iris and Lake Huron Tansy are found nowhere on Earth except in the upper Great Lakes region. 
  Houghton’s Goldenrod
  Pitchers Thistle
  Dwarf Lake Iris
  Lake Huron Tansy 

• Wildflowers, like Houghton's Goldenrod and the Lake Huron Tansy, help hold blowing shoreline sands in place so erosion does not happen.

• Michigan wildflowers add color to the environment, help control erosion and contribute to the habitats of non-game wildlife.

Michigan's Fish & Rare Animals

• An estimated 180 species of fish are native to the Great Lakes, including small and large mouth bass, northern pike, whitefish, walleye and lake trout. 

• Bald eagles, loons, peregrine falcons, gray wolves, wolverines, mountain lions, and lynx are some of the hundreds of rare animals that are found in Michigan.  

The Forest State

• Michigan has ninety state parks, six state forests, three national forests and three national parks.  

• Forests cover over 50% of  the state of Michigan.  

• Michigan has 19 million acres of forested lands.

• Michigan has the greatest variety of trees in the United States. 

• Each year, lumber, furniture, pulp and paper products contribute billions of dollars to Michigan's economy.  Maples, aspen, oak, evergreen, and elms are cut in Michigan and shipped throughout the United States.

• One in six Christmas trees used each year by Americans is produced in Michigan.  Michigan is ranked second among the states in plantation grown Christmas trees. 

The Wolverine State

• Michigan is sometimes called The Wolverine State because the early fur traders brought valuable wolverine pelts to trading posts in the region.   

• Click here to see a picture of a wolverine!  

• Click here to read more information about The Wolverine State.

A Fruit Producing State 

• Michigan farmers grow 125 types of fruits and vegetables - more than any other state except California. 

• In the year 2000, Michigan produced an estimated 200 million pounds of red tart cherries.  That is 75% of the national crop.  There are enough tart cherries grown in Michigan each year to make approximately 100 million cherry pies.

• Michigan is the nation's top producer of blueberries.  Michigan produces nearly 45% of the blueberries eaten in the United States.

• More than 850 million pounds of Michigan apples were picked in the year 2000, ranking the state number three in apple production in the nation.  Michigan apple growers have created more than 15 different varieties of apples including Red Delicious, Golden Delicious, Jonathon, and McIntosh.

• Michigan is the nation's top producer of potted geraniums, hanging flowers and Easter lilies.

The Car State

• Michigan leads the world in the manufacture of automobiles.  Michigan is The Car State.  

• Michigan produces 85% of cars, trucks, and other automotive vehicles made in the United States.

• Detroit is called the Automobile Capital of the World and Motor City USA.  

A Four Seasons State

• Tourists enjoy Michigan year round because Michigan is a Four Seasons State. 25 million travelers visit Michigan each year.  

• In spring and summer, the lakes, rivers and streams, attract swimmers, water skiers, fishermen, and boaters while the forests appeal to the hikers, campers and hunters.  

• In fall, many people enjoy picnicking, hiking, biking or taking in a Color Tour to see the changing colors of the trees.  

• In winter, many people travel to Michigan for skiing, skating, snowmobiling, tobogganing, iceboat racing, and ice fishing. 

• There are over 800 public golf courses in Michigan - more than any other state in the United States. The playing season runs from April to October.  Courses are scenic and challenging. 

Some Famous People

• Henry Ford was born in Dearborn, Michigan.  He hand-built his first gasoline-powered car in 1896.  Ford founded the Ford Motor Company in 1903.  The first Model T (The Tin Lizzie) was built in 1908.  It sold for $950.  In 1913, Ford invented the world's first moving assembly line, which allowed the same number of workers to build many more cars.  As a result, cars became less expensive to buy. Click here to see a 1926 Coupe.
  

• Thomas Edison grew up in Port Huron, Michigan.  In 1879, he invented a light bulb that ran on electricity. He also invented machines that could generate electricity so that his light bulbs could work. He invented an electric power system. He received 1,097 United States patents during his lifetime, 356 of these patents dealt with electric lighting and the generation and distribution of electricity.  Edison also invented the phonograph and the motion picture camera. He once said: "Genius is 1 percent inspiration and 99 percent perspiration".

Motown

• Detroit is the home town of Motown Music.   Berry Gordy, Jr. founded Motown Record Corporation in 1959.  It became the largest independently owned record company in the world.

• This company has promoted the music and the songs of The Temptations, Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, Marvin Gaye, Diana Ross & the Supremes, The Four Tops, and many others. 

Vernors Ginger Ale Is Detroit's Drink!  

• Vernors was created in Detroit and it was the first soda pop made in the United States.  

• In 1862, a pharmacist named James Vernor tried to create a new beverage.  But before he could do so, he was called away to serve in the Civil War.  He returned 4 years later, opened the oak case where he had stored his experimental drink, and found to his surprise, the drink he had been attempting to create - a ginger ale. 

The Cereal Bowl of America

• Battle Creek, Michigan is called the Cereal Bowl of America.  Battle Creek produces more breakfast cereal than any other city in the world.  

• In 1897, C.W. Post based his cereal business, Postum Cereal Company, in Battle Creek.  He introduced Grape-Nuts cereal, one of the first ready-to-eat cold cereals.  

• In 1898, William. H. Danforth created Ralston Hot Cereal and founded the Ralston Purina Company in Battle Creek. 

• In 1906, William Keith Kellogg began commercial production of Toasted Corn Flakes cereal at his Battle Creek Toasted Corn Flakes Company.   

• Hundreds of others joined in this cereal venture in the late 1800's and early 1900's.  Plants began cropping up all over the area making Battle Creek the "Cereal City"

An Educational Leader

• Michigan was the first state in the nation to guarantee every child the right to a free (tax paid) high school education.

• The Maize & Blue Wolverines: Established in 1817, the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor is the oldest state university in the United States.  

• The Green & White Spartans:  Established in 1855, Michigan State University was the first land grant college in the United States and the first agricultural college in the world.  

The Soo Locks

• The Soo ocks at Sault Ste. Marie handles the most ship traffic in the western hemisphere, except for the Panama Canal. 

• It's amazing!  The St. Mary's Canal, at the Lake Superior end, has a 21 foot waterfall which is a natural barrier between Lake Superior and Lake Huron.  The Soo Locks were built to adjust water levels so that freighters can safely travel around the St. Mary's Waterfall and go from one lake to the other.  

The Michigan-Canadian Connectors

• The Ambassador Bridge:  The Ambassador Bridge connects Michigan to Canada.  At the time of its completion in November of 1929, the Ambassador Bridge was the longest suspension bridge in the world.   Approval for the Ambassador Bridge was granted by acts of both the Congress of the United States and Canada's Parliament.  

• The Detroit-Windsor Tunnel:  The Detroit-Windsor Tunnel connects Michigan to Canada.  This tunnel located under the Detroit River was the first auto traffic tunnel ever built between two nations.  It's one mile long. The Detroit-Windsor Tunnel was formally dedicated on November 1, 1930.  The Tunnel is owned by Windsor and Detroit.

• The International Bridge:  The International Bridge is located in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan.  It connects Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario with Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan.

• The Blue Water Bridge:  The Blue Water Bridge was built over the Saint Clair River. It connects Port Huron, Michigan with Point Edward and Sarnia, Ontario.

Counter Set December 2006

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