Michigan is a Midwestern state of the
United States, located in the east
north central portion of the
country. It was named after
Lake Michigan, whose
name was a French adaptation of the Ojibwe term mishigami, meaning "large
water" or "large
Lake". Bounded by
four of the five
Great Lakes, plus
Lake Saint Clair,
Michigan has the longest freshwater
shoreline in the
United States, the ninth longest
total shoreline (including
island shorelines),[4] and more recreational boats than any other state in the
union. A person in Michigan is never more than 85
miles (137 km) from
open Great
Lakes water and is never more than 6 miles (10 km) from a natural water source.
Michigan is the only bi-peninsular state. The Lower
Peninsula of Michigan, to which the
name Michigan was originally applied, is sometimes dubbed "the mitten," owing to its
shape. When asked where in Michigan
one comes from, a resident of the Lower Peninsula
may often
point to the corresponding part of his or her hand. The Upper Peninsula (U.P.) is separated from the Lower Peninsula by the Straits of Mackinac, a five-mile channel that joins
Lake Huron to
Lake Michigan. The Upper Peninsula (whose residents are often called "Yoopers") is economically important for tourism and its natural resources. The Upper and Lower Peninsulas are
connected by the five-mile-long
Mackinac Bridge, which is the third longest suspension
Bridge between anchorages in
the world. This is
the source of the
name "trolls" for residents of the Lower
Peninsula, for they
live "under" (
south of)
the bridge. The
Great Lakes that border
Michigan are
Lake Erie,
Lake Huron,
Lake Michigan and
Lake Superior. Michigan also abuts
Lake Saint Clair, which is between
lake Erie and Lake
Huron.
Comment By:
SnakeDoctor
Date: 2008-12-19 10:04:05
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Megloman
Date: 2008-10-01 12:12:23
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Enterprise
Date: 2008-08-10 14:28:46
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Date: 2007-12-02 15:24:56
