Michigan: The Wolverine State

Michigan: The Wolverine State — page 1 — 4 MICHIGAN One fifth of Michigan’s total value in manufacturing comes directly from car manufacturing firms INTRODUCTION The next time you are sitting in an automobile think of Michigan Although Michigan is commonly known by the nickname the Wolverine State many people also associate it with another nickname the Auto State Since the early 1900s Michigan has been the location of incredible automotive breakthroughs In 1903 Henry Ford established the Ford Motor Company in Detroit There he designed the Model T an automobile that was more affordable than others available at the time The Model T debuted in 1908 and was produced through 1927 Demand for the car was high Soon Detroit was manufacturing so many automobiles that it earned the nickname Motor City Michigan is known as the Wolverine State possibly as a reference to wolves since there is no proof that wolverines ever roamed Michigan forests Another popular nickname the Great Lakes State refers to these bordering large bodies of water The economic recession of the 1980s and competition with foreign car makers led to layoffs and fewer sales Still Michigan along with the entire United States auto industry bounced back The three largest automobile manufacturers in the nation DaimlerChrysler General Motors and Ford continue to be among Michigan’s major employers The Renaissance Center was completed in 1977 General Motors purchased it in 1996 making it its global headquarters Michigan was named after Lake Michigan It is believed that the lake’s name was derived from an Ojibwa Chippewa Indian word meaning large lake

Michigan: The Wolverine State — page 2 — The Detroit Metro Airport handles about 32 million passengers per year Detroit is Michigan’s largest city but Lansing is the state capital Gerald R Ford International Airport in Grand Rapids is Michigan’s second busiest airport Detroit is linked to Windsor Ont Can by a tunnel Bridges also connect the two countries at Sault Ste Marie Detroit and Port Huron INTRODUCTION 5 Michigan is one of the Great Lakes states that make up the country’s northern border It is almost completely surrounded by water and is shaped like a mitten Michigan is made up of two peninsulas the Upper and Lower peninsulas Lake Superior forms the northern border of the Upper Peninsula The Saint Marys River makes up the eastern border and Lakes Huron and Michigan and the Straits of Mackinac form the southern boundary Wisconsin serves as the western border The Lower Peninsula shares a border with Ohio and Indiana to the south and Lake Michigan to the west To the north are Lakes Huron and Michigan and the Straits of Mackinac There are about 122,000 miles of highways in the state For air travelers there are some 20 major airports throughout the state Detroit Metro Airport the state’s busiest airport is among the busiest in the country In addition there are several smaller commuter airports and airlines Michigan is also accessible by train with just under 4,500 miles of rail lines WISC U S Michigan Location Map Capital Lansing Interstate highways 0 0 35 70 Mi 113 56 Scale Km Population 9,938,444 Size 96,705 square miles Highest peak Mount Arvon 1,979 feet e n is t e a M Kalamazoo U S N A C T N O

Michigan: The Wolverine State — page 3 — 6 MICHIGAN Whether they are man-made or natural Michigan has some impressive landmarks In the 1970s the Renaissance Center was built to breathe life into Detroit’s downtown core This distinctive-looking complex contains a convention center retail stores office spaces a theater and a towering 72-story hotel Nature in Michigan is impressive as well The Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore stretches 35 miles along Lake Michigan’s eastern coastline It also includes the North and South Manitou Islands The park was established primarily for its outstanding natural features including long beaches and dune formations Tucked away on the southwest corner of South Manitou Island is a grove of white cedar trees One of the fallen trees has 528 growth rings dating its existence to before the arrival of Christopher Columbus A 500-year old cedar is still standing making it the world’s largest white cedar The majestic tree spans 17 feet across and reaches 90 feet in height The Sleeping Bear Dunes rise 460 feet above Lake Michigan Communication took on a new dimension in 1879 Detroit telephone users were the first to be given individual phone numbers Michigan’s official state song is My Michigan Michigan’s House of Representatives passed a resolution in 1937 naming the song which was written in 1933 On March 15 1977 the Renaissance Center officially opened its riverfront office space By 1987 an aerial train linked the center to Greektown and other downtown attractions The Renaissance Center overlooking the Detroit River is the cornerstone of Detroit’s skyline

Michigan: The Wolverine State — page 4 — INTRODUCTION 7 Area Maximum Depth THE GREAT LAKES square miles Lake Superior Lake Huron Lake Michigan Lake Erie Lake Ontario 31,700 23,000 22,300 9,910 7,340 The Great Lakes are a significant natural resource for the United States as well as the entire continent of North America Together the lakes contain about 20 percent of the world’s fresh surface water The Great Lakes also provide an important location for recreation with about 10,500 miles of shoreline feet 1,332 750 925 210 802 In many ways water bodies define Michigan About 40 percent of the state’s total area of 96,705 square miles is composed of the Great Lakes Four of the five Great Lakes border Michigan and residents are never more than 85 miles from the shore of a Great Lake The Great Lakes make up the largest freshwater surface in the world In fact Lake Superior is the largest freshwater lake in the world With 3,288 miles of shoreline Michigan is bordered by more water than the entire Atlantic coastline of the United States only Alaska has a longer shoreline The abundance of water in Michigan makes the state a great place for water sports enthusiasts such as fishers boaters and swimmers Michigan has the longest freshwater shoreline in the world Lake Superior covers 31,700 square miles The distance from Detroit to the most westerly point of the Upper Peninsula is the same length as that from Detroit to New York City Michigan’s state flag has three Latin mottoes Translated they mean One out of many I will defend and If you seek a pleasant peninsula look about you

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