Michigan is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly 97,000 sq mi (250,000 km2), Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the largest by area east of the Mississippi River.
Its capital is Lansing, and its largest city is Detroit. Metro Detroit is among the nation’s most populous and largest metropolitan economies.
Michigan consists of two peninsulas. The Lower Peninsula resembles the shape of a mitten, and comprises a majority of the state’s land area. The Upper Peninsula is separated from the Lower Peninsula by the Straits of Mackinac, a five-mile channel that joins Lake Huron to Lake Michigan.
The Mackinac Bridge connects the peninsulas. Michigan has the longest freshwater coastline of any political subdivision in the United States, being bordered by four of the five Great Lakes and Lake St. Clair.
It also has 64,980 inland lakes and ponds. Michigan has the second-most water of any state, behind only Alaska
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The name Michigan probably comes from Mishigamaa, which is an Ojibwe word meaning “large water” or “large lake”.
Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population and the 11th-largest by area
Michigan has a population of nearly 10.12 million
Michigan capital is Lansing
Michigan largest city is Detroit.
Michigan has the longest freshwater coastline in the United States
The state is bordered by four of the five Great Lakes and Lake St. Clair.
The state also has 64,980 inland lakes and ponds
Michigan Territory was formed in 1805, but some of the northern border with Canada was not agreed upon until after the War of 1812.
Michigan was admitted into the Union in 1837 as the 26th state
Michgans Nicknames : “The Great Lake State”, “The Wolverine State”, “The Mitten State”, “Water (Winter) Wonderland”
Michgans Motto(s): Si quaeris peninsulam amoenam circumspice, (English: “If you seek a pleasant peninsula, look about you”)
Michgans Anthem is “My Michigan”
The first statewide meeting of the Republican Party took place on July 6, 1854, in Jackson, Michigan
Alpena is the home of the world’s largest cement plant.
Michigan is first in the United States production of peat and magnesium compounds and second in gypsum and iron ore.
Michigan is the only state in the nation that is made up of two peninsulas, the Lower and Upper Peninsula,also called Lower Michigan and Upper Michigan
The state is also home to the headquarters of three major automobile manufacturing companies (General Motors Corp., Chrysler, and Ford) in the world.
The first factory to assemble cars on a moving assembly line, the Highland Park Ford plant is in Michigan.
Michigan and Oregon are the only two states in the U.S. that offer 10 cents back for recycling a can.
Michigan has one of the world’s longest suspension bridges – the Mackinac Bridge. It is five miles long.
The state is also home to Kellogg Company, the world’s leading ready-to-eat cereal producer.
Colon is home to the world’s largest manufacture of magic supplies.
Detroit, Michigan is nicknamed “the car capital of the world,” or “Motor City.”
Michigan has the world’s largest limestone quarry located near Rogers City.
Michigan is the third largest apple producing state in the U.S.
Traverse City, a city in Michigan, is known as “the cherry capital of the world.”
The nation’s first regularly scheduled air passage service began operation between Grand Rapids and Detroit in 1926.
Detroit Zoo is home to more than 2,000 animals of 230 species.
Michigan has one national park, the Isle Royale National Park
Mount Arvon is the state’s highest point at 603 meters above sea level.
The first auto traffic tunnel built between two nations was the mile-long Detroit-Windsor tunnel under the Detroit River.
Baby food was first manufactured by Daniel Frank Gerber of Fremont in 1927.
The lowest temperature to ever be recorded in Michigan was -51°F (-46°C) in 1934 in Vanderbilt,
The highest temperature to ever be recorded in Michigan was 112°F (44°C) in 1936 in Stanwood.
The world’s first concrete-paved road was completed in Detroit in 1908. It stretched for one mile.
The death penalty was abolished in 1846 by the state of Michigan for all crimes other than treason, becoming the first state in the world to do so.
In 2013, Detroit declared bankruptcy.
Holland is the home of the Tulip Time Festival, the largest tulip festival in the U.S.
Manistee is home to the world’s largest salt plant, owned by Morton Salt.
Michigan’s major-league sports teams include: Detroit Tigers baseball team, Detroit Lions football team, Detroit Red Wings ice hockey team, and the Detroit Pistons men’s basketball team
| Insignia facts | |
|---|---|
| Bird | American robin |
| Fish | Brook trout |
| Flower | Apple blossom Wildflower: Dwarf lake iris |
| Mammal | Unofficial: Wolverine Game animal: White-tailed deer |
| Reptile | Painted turtle |
| Tree | Eastern white pine |
| Fossil | Mastodon |
| Gemstone | Isle Royale greenstone |
| Rock | Petoskey stone |
| Soil | Kalkaska sand |
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