Michigan

Michigan is a state in the United States.

It's known as the birthplace of the automotive industry. However, it also has a large tourist industry. Destinations like Traverse City, Mackinac Island, and the entire Upper Penninsula draw sportsmen and nature lovers from all over the U.S. and Canada. Michigan has the longest coastline of any state except Alaska and more recreational boats than any other state.

Once a thriving lumber capital and supplier of iron and copper minerals, Michigan's declining natural resources gave way at the turn of the twentieth century. The birth of the automotive industry with Henry Ford's first plant in the Highland Park suburb of Detroit, marked the beginning of a new era in personal transportation that permanently changed the socio-economic climate of America. Many automotive manufacturing plants remain, however, Detroit lost its grandeur after World War II, as automotive companies abandoned huge industrial parks in the area for the cheaper labor found in Southern U.S. and offshore plants.

• • Post Office Abreviation: MI
  • /Quick Trivia

• Geography
  • Physical geography
    • Michigan consists of two peninsulas--the Lower Peninsula and the Upper Peninsula connected only by the Mackinac Bridge. The two peninsulas are surrounded by an extensive Great Lakes shoreline. Other than Alaska, Michigan has the longest shoreline of any state. The lakes which touch the two peninsulas of Michigan are Lake Erie, Lake Huron, Lake Michigan and Lake Superior. This unique geography has been credited (or blamed) for the especially dramatic weather of the state.
  • National parks, etc.
  • Bordering States:
    • Indiana (S), Ohio (S), Illinois (S), Minnesota and Wisconsin (SW of Upper Penninsula)
  • Cities:
    • Capital: Lansing
    • Largest City: Detroit (Motor City, Motown)
    • Complete List of /Cities
  • Complete List of /Counties
  • Complete List of /Islands
  • Major Highways of Michigan

• Demography
  • Michigan Resident Population (2000 Census): 9,938,444
  • racial/ethnic makeup of state
  • religious makeup of state

• Economy
  • State income
  • Major industries/products
    • Automobiles (General Motors, Ford, Daimler-Chrysler), Amway, Cereal (Kellogs), Copper, Furniture (Steelecase, Herman Miller), Iron
  • state taxes

• Law/Government of state [Note that all the U.S. states have similar legal and political systems, so maybe we only need to mention anything that makes the state distinct]
  • governor -- current, previous governors
    • Current: John Engler
    • /Previous Governors of Michigan
  • legislature -- bicameral
    • House of Representatives
    • Senate
  • structure of state judicary
  • state constitution [[1]]
  • does it have referenda?

• History
  • history prior to joining the United States
    • 1622 Etienne Brule and his companion Grenoble, French explorers, were probably the first white men to see Lake Superior.
    • 1701 Antoine de Lamothe Cadillac, with his lieutenant Alphonse de Tonty, established a trading post on the Detroit River which they named Fort Pontchartrain; present site of Detroit.
  • history after becoming a territory but before becoming a state
    • 1805 Michigan Territory was created, with Detroit designated as the seat of government. William Hull appointed as governor. Detroit was destroyed by fire.
    • 1828 Territorial Capitol was built at Detroit at a cost of $24,500.
    • 1835 First Constitutional Convention. Stevens T. Mason inaugurated as the first Governor. Stevens T. Mason started a war with Ohio over the city of Toledo, (now Toledo, Ohio) known as the Toledo War the same year: Ohio won Toledo but Michigan was given Michigan's upper peninsula which was part of the Territory of Wisconsin at the time.
  • Admitted into the union in 1837 as the 26th state, its slave state twin is Arkansas
  • major historical events that occured in state
    • 1847 A law was passed by the State Legislature to locate the State Capital "in the township of Lansing, in the county of Ingham."
    • 1879 New State Capitol dedicated in Lansing. The structure cost $1,510,130.
    • 1957 Five-mile long Mackinac Bridge opened November 1.
    • 1974 Gerald R. Ford of Grand Rapids became the 38th President of the United States of America.
    • 1976 Throw away bottles banned by referendum vote.
    • 1987 Michigan celebrated 150 years of statehood.

• Important Websites
  • State Website: http://www.michigan.gov/

• State colleges include: University of Michigan, Michigan State University, Eastern Michigan University, Western Michigan University, Michigan Technical University, Central Michigan University, Northern Michigan University

• Sport teams Include: Detroit Tigers, Detroit Lions, Detroit Redwings

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/Talk
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