Michigan: Fun Facts and Trivia

Think Michigan, and you might picture car manufacturing, dairy farms and a lot of snow. But did you know that Michigan has a lot of shoreline, more than any other state except Alaska? According to 50states.com, the state has the longest freshwater shoreline in the world. Michigan is home to more than 11,000 inland lakes plus more than 36,000 miles of streams. It's also home to 116 lighthouses and navigational lights. As a matter of fact, the state name is a variation of the Indian expression mishigama, which equates to large water or large lake.

History and Government

When it comes to state history, there are a lot of firsts associated with Michigan. Detroit telephone customers became the first in the country to get telephone numbers to make call handling easier in 1879. Fifty years later, the Michigan State Police established the first state police radio system in the world.

Fr. Jacques Marquette founded Sault Ste. Marie in 1668. It's the third-oldest remaining settlement in the United States and the oldest town between the Allegheny Mountains and the Rockies. The city of Novi got its name due to its history as Stagecoach Stop #6, or No. VI. Michigan's heritage claims four influences. French, English, Spanish and U.S. flags have flown over it.

The University of Michigan, founded in 1817 and one of the largest colleges in the U.S., is the first university established by any state. It was originally called Cathelepistemian and was located in Detroit. The name changed in 1821, and the campus moved to Ann Arbor 20 years later.

Michigan State University in East Lansing is one of the largest colleges in the country. It was founded in 1855 as the first land-grant university. It was also the first institution of higher education in the country to teach scientific agriculture.

The official state stone, the Petoskey, can be found along the shores of Lake Michigan. The painted turtle has been designed the state reptile.

Michigan's constitution was the first to provide for establishing public libraries. The state was the first to guarantee the right to a tax-paid high school education to every child.

Finally, while people often refer to Michigan as the Wolverine State, no wolverines remain there.

Geography

Michigan ranks number one in the U.S. for the production of peat and magnesium compounds and second for gypsum and iron ore. The world's largest limestone quarry is located at Rogers City. The state also claims the world's largest deposit of native copper. Elsie is home to the world's largest registered Holstein dairy herd.

The Detroit-Windsor tunnel under the Detroit River was the first auto tunnel built between two countries. At any point in Michigan, an individual is within 85 miles of one of the Great Lakes. The Great Lakes water area attributed to the state is 38,575 square miles. And 40 of the 83 countries adjoin at least one of the Great Lakes. Michigan is the only state to touch four of the five Great Lakes.

The famous Mackinac Bridge, one of the longest suspension structures in the world, connects the upper and lower peninsulas of the state.

Other

The Kellogg brothers, who made Battle Creek the Cereal Capital of the World, accidentally discovered the process for manufacturing flaked cereal. Vernor's ginger ale, created in 1862 by a pharmacist, became the first soda pop made in the U.S. The Packard Motor Car Company made the first air-conditioned car in 1939.

The Detroit Zoo was the first in the U.S. to feature cageless exhibits in which animals were allowed to roam. Michigan has the only floating post office in the world, a boat that has for 125 years delivered mail to ships even while they're underway.

Famous people

Quite a few famous individuals representing many walks of life have called Michigan home. Among those noted for business and philanthropy are William Agee, John Jacob Astor, Walter P. Chrysler, Herbert H. Dow, the Ford Family, Charles W. Post and Alfred P. Sloan, according to michiganbrief.org. Representatives of the arts and letters from Michigan have included Ring Lardner, Ken Burns, Bruce Catton, Edna Ferber, Arthur Miller, and Helen Thomas.

Among famous Michigan entertainers are Tim Allen, Edgar Bergen, Ellen Burstyn, Chad Everett, Lee Majors, Dick Martin, Jeff Daniels, Wally Cox, Julie Harris, Charlton Heston, Tom Selleck, Denise Nicholas, Leigh Taylor-Young, Danny Thomas and Stevie Wonder.

Former President Gerald R. Ford, labor leader Jimmy Hoffa, activist Malcolm X, inventor Thomas Edison, explorer Charles Lindberg, athlete Night Train Lane and boxer Muhammad Ali all resided in Michigan.

Sources:

http://www.50states.com/facts/michigan.htm

http://www.michiganinbrief.org/edition06/text/appendix/append-E.htm