Lake Michigan Facts for Kids

A Map of Lake Michigan
  • Lake Name: Lake Michigan
  • Average Depth: 279 feet
  • Maximum Depth: 925 feet
  • Elevation: 577 feet
  • Surface Area: 22,3002
  • Water Volume: 1,1803

23 Lake Michigan Facts for Kids

  1. Lake Michigan is one of the five freshwater Great Lakes of North America.
  2. Lake Michigan is one of the largest freshwater bodies of water in the world.
  3. The shoreline of Lake Michigan borders the U.S. states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin.
  4. Lake Michigan is the only one of the Great Lakes entirely located in the United States of America.
  5. The most populated city along Lake Michigan is Chicago, Illinois, USA.
  6. There is an estimated 12 million people living along the shore of Lake Michigan.
  7. Lake Michigan contains about 1,180 cubic miles of water.
  8. Lake Michigan is the second largest of the five Great Lakes by water volume.
  9. Lake Michigan is the seventh largest lake in the world by water volume.
  10. The surface of Lake Michigan covers 22,300 square miles.
  11. Lake Michigan is the third largest of the five Great Lakes by surface area.
  12. Lake Michigan is the fifth largest lake in the world by surface area.
  13. The average depth of Lake Michigan is 279 feet and the deepest part is 925 feet.
  14. Lake Michigan is the second deepest of the five Great Lakes.
  15. Lake Michigan is at an average elevation of 279 feet above sea level.
  16. The largest island on Lake Michigan is Beaver Island with a surface area of 55.8 mi2.
  17. Lake Michigan is home to a wide variety of fish species, including lake trout, yellow perch and lake whitefish.
  18. Navy Pier is a very popular tourist attraction located on Lake Michigan in Chicago, Illinois.
  19. Lake Michigan is plagued by water pollution from steel mills and oil refineries located along its shoreline.
  20. BP is a multinational company that is allegedly the largest polluter of Lake Michigan.
  21. Water pollution is a problem in Lake Michigan because it’s a source of freshwater for millions of people.
  22. You can sail out from the southernmost part of Lake Michigan and reach the Northern Atlantic Ocean.
  23. American limnologist Jeffrey Val Klump was the first person to reach the bottom of Lake Michigan in 1985.

Additional Resources on Lake Michigan

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