Michigan geography
Divided into two separate land areas, and bordered by four of the five Great Lakes, Michigan has the longest coastline in the continental US – nearly 3,300 miles.
Michigan’s Upper Peninsula is hilly and rugged in the west, especially in the heavily forested Porcupine Mountains. Further east in the Huron Mountains the state’s highest point, Mt. Arvon, reaches 1,979 feet. Moving east, the land of the Upper Peninsula is much flatter with some inland swamps.
The Lower Peninsula of Michigan is fairly flat, especially along the eastern and southeastern coastlines. Gentle, rolling terrain is found central and south, while further north, to the east and southeast of Traverse City, the landscape becomes quite rolling.
- Allcitycodes: Provides map of area codes in Michigan by county and city.
- Ask4beauty: Introduction to the state of Michigan, addressing geography, history, politics, economy and population.
- Toppharmacyschools: Lists all educational institutes in Michigan, including psychology, biological science, clinical psychology, computer science, economics, fine arts, etc.
Michigan has numerous islands, including Bois Blanc, Drummond, Grand, Isle Royale, Mackinac, Sugar; Spirit Islands and the Beaver Island Archipelago.
Mackinac Island is placed on the eastern edge of the Mackinac Straits. Forested Isle Royale, located in the far northwest corner of Lake Superior, is the only (island) National Park in the United States.
The surrounding Great Lakes are Michigan’s most striking landform. In addition, the state is covered by over 11,000 (mostly small) fresh water lakes.
Lake Clair St. is a vital commercial waterway as it connects to Lake Erie via the Detroit River, and to Lake Huron via the St. Clair River.
Other notable rivers include the Ford, Escanaba and Menominee on the Upper Peninsula and the Au Sable, Great, Kalamazoo, Manistee and Muskegan on the Lower Peninsula.
Michigan Famous Natives
People listed are almost always native to the state. We do (on occasion) include those who have either lived within the state for most of their adult lives or have made significant contributions to the state in their personal endeavors.
A
- Written by Verna Aardema
- James “Jim” Abbott baseball player
- Spencer Abraham politician
- Talbert Abrams photographer, “father of aerial photography”
- Anthony Adams football player
- Pepper Adams musician
- Joseph Alessi musician
- Nelson Algren writer
- Jerry Allen pianist, producer
- Ron Allen playwright
- Tim Allen actor (born in CO)
- Matthias Alten artist
- Women’s rights advocate Irene Osgood Andrews
- Written by Katherine Alice “KA”. Applegate
- Curtis Armstrong actor
- Robert Armstrong actor
- Dorothy Ashby harpist, composer
- Billy Manuela Ashley baseball player
- Robert Ashley composer
- Written by Robert Asprin
- Paul Assenmacher baseball player
- Steve Avery baseball player
B
- Jason Babin footballer
- Jason Bakashihua hockey player
- Chemist Werner Emmanuel Bachmann
- James Circus showman Anthony Bailey, co-founder of the ringling brothers, barnum and bailey circus
- Liberty horticulturist Haida Bailey, botanist
- Ray Stannard Baker journalist, author
- Jim Becker televangelist
- Major General Frank Dwight Baldwin US Infantry, Medal of Honor recipient (2)
- Neil Ball baseball player
- Jim Ballantine hockey player
- Hank Ballard singer
- Michael Barone political scientist, journalist
- Musician Feodor Baskin
- Florence Knoll Bassett architect, furniture designer
- Shane Batteer basketball player
- Daniel ” Ghoole ” Baswin footballer
- King’s Beach writer, playwright
- Norman Bel Geddes theatrical, designer
- Marcus Belgrave trumpeter
- Actress Kristen Bell
- John Bellairs author
- Johnny Benson auto racer
- Ray Bentley football player
- Baseball player Augusta “Ogie” Bergamo
- Actress Elizabeth Berkley
- Actress Sandra Bernhard
- Jerome, “Bus” Bettis footballer
- Owen Bieber’s labor leader
- Mike Binder screenwirter, director
- George David Bierhoff mathematician
- President Erica Bischoff World Championship Wrestling
- Melvin Bissell inventor
- Andrew Blackbeard Indian Ottawa tribal leader, historian
- Magician Harry Blackstone Jr.
- Earl Blake football coach
- Actress Selma Blair
- Michael Bloomfield astronaut
- Aviation pioneer William Edward Boying
- Sonny Bono singer, actor
- Football player Alfonso Buna
- Michael “Mike” Bordick baseball player
- Dave Borkowski baseball player
- Stephen “Steve” Boros, Jr. baseball player, coach
- Frank Bowerman baseball player
- Robert John Braidwood archaeologist, anthropologist
- J Harlen Bretz geologist
- Don Brewer musician
- Lyman James Briggs engineer, physicist
- Model Christie Brinkley
- “PJ” collier’s basketball player. Brown
- US Secretary of State Jesse Brown Veterans Affairs
- Montek “Monty” Brown football player, wrestler
- Suffragette Olympia Brown
- Politician Prentiss M. Brown
- Politician Wilber Marion Braker
- Jerry Bruckheimer film, television producer
- Robert “Bob” Buhl baseball player
- Ralph J. Bunch US diplomat, Nobel laureate
- Walter Berkemo golfer
- Leo Burnett Founder Leo Burnett Worldwide
- Musician Kenny Burrela
- Actress Ellen Burstyn
- David Bertka actor
- Timothy Busfield actor, director
- Dan Bylsma hockey player
- Donald Byrd musician
- Boxer Tracy Bird
