Also see Specific Destinations, Travel and Location Humor.

Quotes

• Detroit After Dark
• Great Things to See and Do
• I Wish I Was in Michigan
• Michigan Moon
• Michigan Morning
• Moon Over Michigan

Quotes

• California is beautiful to look at, but you can't be a part of it like you can in Michigan. (Jennifer Granholm)
• I am so proud of Michigan's citizens for the kindness and generosity they have shown in assisting in this endeavor. It is truly heartwarming to see the compassion shown for those in need. (Jennifer Granholm)
• Its streets end in a darkness of spruce and hemlock or in an emptiness of water. In winter, it is locked in white silence. (Walter Havinghurst talking about Sault Sainte Marie)
• Mackinac village was just as perfect as I remembered it, a strong of white Victorian buildings along a sloping Main Street, snug cottages climbing up the steep hill to old Fort Mackinac, built in 1780 to defend the strait, still standing guard over the town. (Bill Bryson)
• Michigan is two radically different places--the North and the South which makes for good drama and contrast. (Jim Harrison)
• People who argue that pretty towns and Commercial Products cannot live together should look at Harbor Beach. (William Least Heat Moon)
• There is a gentleness in Michigan that you just can't replicate. (Jennifer Granholm)

Michigan Symbols

• Nicknames: The Wolverine State; Lady of the Lake; The Great Lake State; The Auto State; Water Wonderland
• Slogan: Great Things to See and Do
• Motto: If you seek a pleasant peninsula, look about you.
• Song: My Michigan
• Unofficial Song: Michigan, My Michigan (words by Douglas M. Malloch)
• Game Animal: White Tailed Deer
• Fish: Brook Trout
• Reptile: Painted Turtle
• Bird: American Robin
• Flower: Apple Blossom
• Wildflower: Dwarf Lake Iris
• Tree: Eastern White Pine
• Fossil: Mastodon
• Gemstone: Isle Royal Greenstone
• Rock: Petoskey Stone (found along the shores of Lake Michigan)
• Pro Sports Teams: Detroit Lions(football), Detroit Pistons(basketball), Detroit Tigers(baseball), Detroit Red Wings(hockey)

Facts About Michigan

• Capital: Lansing
• Residents: Michiganians, Michiganders, Michiganites
• State Name Origin: from an Indian word meaning "clearing" or from the Chippewa word "michigana" meaning "large lake"
• Admitted to Statehood: 26 Jan 1837
• Order of Admission: 26th state
• Coastline/Shoreline: 0/3,288 miles (longest freshwater shoreline in the world)
• Length: 490 miles
• Width: 240 miles
• Area: 96,716 square miles (38,575 of that is Great Lakes water area)
• Size Rank: 11
• Number of Counties: 83
• Lakes: more than 11,000 inland lakes
• MI is the only state that touches four of the five Great Lakes. No point in the state is more than 85 miles from a Great Lake
• Streams and Rivers: 51,438 miles
• Geographic Center: 5 miles NNW of Cadillac in Wexford Co.
• Mean Elevation: 900 feet
• Highest Point: Mt. Arvon, 1,980 feet
• Lowest Point: Shore of Lake Erie, 572 feet
• Agricultural Products: cherries, apples, beans, pears, grapes, potatoes, sugar beets, milk, corn, blueberries
• Commercial Products: motor vehicles and parts, minerals (iron, copper, iodine, gypsum, bromine, salt, lime, gravel, cement, peat), industrial machinery, office furniture, plastic products, chemicals, natural gas
• Average Annual Rainfall: 32.2 inches
• Average Winter High Temperature: 10-20 degrees
• Record Low Temperature: -51 degrees (9 Feb 1934 Vanderbilt)
• Average Summer High Temperature: 60-72 degrees
• Record High Temperature: 112 degrees (13 Jul 1936 Mio)
• Official Language: English
• More information about Michigan

Items of Interest

• Detroit is known as the car capital of the world.
• Alpena is the home of the world's largest cement plant.
• Rogers City has the world's largest limestone quarry.
• Elsie is the home of the world's largest registered Holstein dairy herd.
• Michigan ranks first in state boat registrations.
• The Packard Motor Car Company in Detroit manufactured the first air-conditioned car in 1939.
• The Mackinac Bridge, which connects the Upper and Lower Peninsulas of Michigan, is one of the world's longest suspension bridges.
• In 1817 the University of Michigan was the first university established by any state. The name was changed in 1821 and it moved to Ann Arbor in 1841.
• Michigan State University was founded in 1855 as the nation's first land-grant university. It was the first institution of higher learning in the nation to teach scientific agriculture.
• The Kellogg Company has made Battle Creek the Cereal Capital of the World. The Kellogg brothers accidentally discovered the process for producing flaked cereal products and sparked the beginning of the dry cereal industry.
• In 1862, pharmacist, James Vernor of Detroit was trying to create a new beverage when he was called to serve in the Civil War. When he returned, four years later, the drink he had stored in an oak case had acquired a delicious gingery flavor. Vernors ginger ale became the first soda pop made in the U.S.
• The Detroit Zoo was the first zoo in America to feature cage-less, open exhibits that allowed the animals more freedom to roam.
• Michigan is the only place in the world with a floating post office. The J.W. Westcott II is the only boat in the world that delivers mail to ships while they are still underway. They have been operating for 125 years.
• Indian River is the home of the largest crucifix in the world. It is called the Cross in the Woods.
• Michigan was the first state to provide in its Constitution for the establishment of public libraries.
• Michigan was the first state to guarantee every child the right to tax-paid high school education.
• The Upper Michigan Copper Country is the largest commercial deposit of native copper in the world.
• The first auto traffic tunnel built between two nations was the mile-long Detroit-Windsor tunnel under the Detroit River.
• The world's first international submarine railway tunnel was opened between Port Huron, Michigan and Sarnia, Ontario, Canada in 1891.
• The nation's first regularly scheduled air passage service began operation between Grand Rapids and Detroit in 1926.
• In 1879 Detroit telephone customers were first in the nation to be assigned phone numbers to facilitate handling calls.
• In 1929, the Michigan State Police established the first state police radio system in the world.
• Grand Rapids is home to the 24-foot Leonardo da Vinci horse, it is the largest equestrian bronze sculpture in the Western Hemisphere.

Notable Natives

Some of these were born here, others just lived a while in the state.

• Nelson Algren - author (Detroit)
• Gillian Anderson - actress
• Melvin Bissell - inventor
• Ralph J. Bunche - diplomat (Detroit)
• Ellen Burstyn - actress (Detroit)
• Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac (1658-1730) - founded Detroit in 1701
• Lewis Cass (1782-1866), MI territorial governor, U.S. senator, U.S. cabinet officer, presidential candidate in 1848
• Bruce Catton - historian (Petoskey)
• Roger B. Chaffee - astronaut (Grand Rapids)
• Francis Ford Coppola - film director (Detroit)
• Walter P. Chrysler (1875-1940) - industrialist, established Chrysler Corporation
• Ty Cobb (1886-1961) - baseball player, played 22 seasons (1905 to 1926) for the Detroit Tigers
• George A. Custer (1839-1876) - commander of Michigan's cavalry in the Civil War, killed in the Battle of the Little Bighorn.
• Thomas E. Dewey - lawyer, politician (Owosso)
• Edna Ferber - author (Kalamazoo)
• Gerald R. Ford - 38th U.S. president, served in WWII, represented MI in Congress for 24 years, Eagle Scout (grew up in Grand Rapids)
• Henry Ford - industrialist, founded Ford Motor Company (Dearborn)
• Al Green - singer
• Julie Harris - actress (Grosse Pointe Park)
• Adam Herz - actor
• William R. Hewlett - inventor (Ann Arbor)
• Derek Jeter - baseball player with the Yankees, also works with under-privileged children (Kalamazoo)
• Earvin "Magic" Johnson - basketball player, businessman (Lancing)
• William Kellogg - businessman
• Julie Krone - jockey (Benton Harbor)
• Ring Lardner - author (Niles)
• Charles A. Lindbergh - aviator (Detroit)
• Joe Louis (1914-1981) - world heavyweight boxing champion from 1937 to 1949
• Madonna - singer (Bay City)
• Dick Martin - comedian (Detroit)
• Fred Meijer - grocery store merchant
• John N. Mitchell - U.S. attorney general (Detroit)
• Ted Nugent - singer (Detroit)
• Gilda Radner - comedienne (Detroit)
• Della Reese - singer (Detroit)
• Walter Reuther (1907-1970) - labor leader
• Jason Robards - actor
• Diana Ross - singer (Detroit)
• Thomas Schippers - conductor (Kalamazoo)
• Steven Seagal - actor (Lansing)
• Glenn T. Seaborg - chemist
• Bob Seager - singer (Detroit)
• Tom Selleck - actor (Detroit)
• Potter Stewart - supreme court justice (Jackson)
• Danny Thomas - entertainer (Deerfield)
• Lily Tomlin - actress (Detroit)
• Margaret Whiting - singer (Detroit)
• Stevie Wonder - singer (Saginaw)

The Michigan State Flag
The flag has the MI coat of arms on a blue background. The scene on the shield is a sun rising over a lake. A man with raised hand and holding a gun represents peace and the ability to defend his rights. An elk and moose represent MI. An eagle represents the US. There are three mottoes on the flag: "E Pluribus Unum" (From many, one), "Tuebor" (I will defend) and "Si Quaeris Peninsulam Amoenam Circumspice" (If you seek a pleasant peninsula, look about you).

You Might be From Michigan If...

• "Down South" refers to Toledo.
• "Up North" means north of Clare.
• at least 50 percent of your relatives work for the auto Commercial Products.
• either your mother or father disowns you for the week of the Michigan-Michigan State game.
• half of the change in your pocket is Canadian.
• half the people you know say they are from Detroit, yet you don't personally know anyone who actually lives in Detroit.
• If you refer to Ann Arbor as A2.
• octopus and hockey go together as naturally as hot dogs and baseball.
• owning a Japanese car was a hanging offense in your hometown.
• Paradise and Climax are not states but towns to you.
• snow tires come standard on all your cars.
• someone asks you if you've been to Europe and you answer, "No, but I've been to Ann Arbor".
• the "Big Three" can mean either Ford, Chrysler and GM or Domino's, Little Ceasers's and Hungry Howie's.
• the Big Mac is something you drive across.
• the trees in your backyard have spigots.
• the word "Thumb" brings to mind a geographical rather than an anatomical definition.
• traveling coast-to-coast means going from Port Huron to Muskegon.
• you bake with soda and drink pop.
• you call Lake Michigan the West Coast.
• you can identify an Ohio accent.
• you can't understand why the government feels threatened by the Freemen.
• you define summer as three months of bad sledding.
• you don't have a coughing fit from one sip of Vernor's.
• you don't understand what the big deal about Chicago is.
• you drive 75 on the highway and always pass on the right.
• you expect Vernor's when you order Ginger Ale.
• you find yourself incapable of throwing cans and bottles away when you are in another state.
• you get excited about turning 19.
• you have a favorite hockey team.
• you have any idea who Bob Ufer was.
• you have no problem spelling Mackinac Island.
• you knew how to drive a boat before you learned to ride a bicycle.
• you know how to play Euchre.
• you know how to pronounce Euchre.
• you know how to pronounce Sault Ste. Marie.
• you know Mackinac rhymes with Mackinaw.
• you know someone from Porch Yeurn.
• you know that a place called Kalamazoo really exists.
• you know that Kalamazoo not only actually exists, but isn't too far from Hell.
• you know the words to any song by Da Yoopers.
• you know what a millage is.
• you know what a panczki is.
• you know what a pastie is.
• you know what a Yooper is.
• you met your spouse in a bowling alley.
• you occasionally cheer "Go Lions--and take the Tigers with you."
• you point to the palm of your right hand when explaining to people where you grew up.
• you refer to your relatives in southern Michigan as trolls or lopers.
• you see nothing wrong with watching fireworks in Detroit on July 2nd.
• you think "going up north" would be a great vacation...in January.
• you think Alkaline batteries were named for a Tiger outfielder.
• you use the term "party store" to describe a store where you buy snacks, beer and liquor.
• your car rusts out before you need the brakes done.
• your child has watched Sesame Street in French.
• your definition of a small town is one that doesn't have a lake.
• your family breaks into violence during a UM-MSU game.
• your favorite holidays are Christmas, Thanksgiving, and the first day of deer season.
• your idea of a seven-course meal is a six pack of Strohs and a bucket of smelt.
• your kid's baseball and softball games have ever been snowed out.
• your snowmobile and fishing boat have big block Chevy engines.
• your year has two seasons--winter and construction.
• you've ever experienced frostbite and sunburn in the same week.
• you've ever told someone that your move to Alpena was a move to "a big city".
• you've totaled more than three cars bagging a deer.

Driving Rules When in Detroit...

• You must learn to pronounce the city name. It's Di-troit--NOT DEE- troit. If you pronounce it DEE-Troit then we will assume you are from Toledo and here for the country music hoe-down.
• Forget the traffic rules you learned elsewhere. Detroit has its own version of traffic rules...Hold on and pray! There is no such thing as a dangerous high-speed chase in Detroit. Everyone drives like that.
• When asking for directions, all directions start with: "What do I look like--#!#*!!# Triple A?"
• The Chamber of Commerce calls getting through rush hour traffic on Jefferson a "Scenic Drive."
• The morning rush hour is from 6:00am to 10:00am. The evening rush hour is from 3:00pm to 7:00pm. Friday's rush hour starts Thursday morning. Weekends are open game.
• If you actually stop at a yellow light, you will be rear-ended, cussed out and possibly shot. If you're first off the starting line when the light turns green, count to five before going. This will avoid getting in the way of cross-traffic who just ran their yellow light and then, again, getting shot.
• Schoenherr can ONLY be properly pronounced by a native of the Detroit metro area. That goes for Gratiot too. ( SHANE-er /GRASH- ot).
• Construction and renovation on I-94, I-96, I-75 and 275 is a way of life and a permanent form of entertainment.
• All unexplained and unpleasant sights are simplified by the phrase, "I guess we're not in Kansas anymore!"
• If someone actually has their turn signal on, it is probably a factory defect or they are out-of-towners.
• All old men with blue/white hair wearing a hat have total right-of-way.
• The minimum acceptable speed on 696 is 85 regardless of the posted speeds. Anything less is considered downright SISSY.
• The wrought iron on windows in Detroit is NOT ornamental. DON'T get out of your car.
• Never stare at the driver of the car with the bumper sticker that says, "Keep honking, I'm reloading."
• If you are in the left lane, and only going 70 in a 60 MPH zone, people are not waving 'because they are so friendly in Detroit.' I would suggest you duck.
• I-275/I-696 is our daily version of NASCAR.
• You must go a quarter of a mile out of your way to make a left hand turn. If you want to turn left, go past your turn, get to the left, then make a left, then make a right. NOW you have gone left.
• It's not 10, it's "the Lodge."
• That's not a lake, it's a pothole. Lakes are much smaller than potholes.
• If someone tells you it's on Outer Drive, get a map.

Songs about Michigan

• I Wish I Was in Michigan - Banjo Orchestra (1914)
• I Want to Go Back to Michigan - Marty Kohn (2009)
• Michigan Moon - The Raisin Pickers (1998)
• Michigan, My Michigan - Jeff Daniels (2004)
• Michigan Wind - The Raisin Pickers (2006)
• Moon Over Michigan - Dave Crossland (1992)

Songs about Michigan Cities

• 65 Miles From Kalamazoo - R.J. Miller (2008)
• Kid From Kalamazoo - Alex Hanon's Sin City Swing Orchestra (2009)
• I've Got a Gal in Kalamazoo - Glenn Miller Orchestra (1942)
• Rose City Chimes - Bobby Garrett (1958)
• Saginaw, Michigan - Lefty Frizzell (1963)

Songs about Detroit

• Born in Detroit - The Rockets (1982)
• Detroit - Whiteout (1994)
• Detroit After Dark - Steve Farmer (2000)
• Detroit City - Tom Jones (1967)
• Detroit City Blues - Fats Domino (1950)
• Detroit Polka - Frankie Yankovic (1947)
• Fancy Filly From Detroit City - The Zip Codes (1964)
• Fastest Thing in Detroit - The Rockets (1977)
• Worse Than Detroit - Robert Plant (1982)