Lake Huron is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. Hydrologically, it comprises
the easterly portion of Lake Michigan–Huron, having the same surface elevation as its westerly
counterpart, to which it is connected by the wide Straits of Mackinac. It is shared on
the east by the Canadian province of Ontario and on the west by the state of Michigan in
the United States. The name of the lake is derived from early French explorers who named
it for the Huron people inhabiting the region. The huronian glaciation was named due to evidence
collected from Lake Huron region. The northern parts of the lake include the North Channel
and Georgian Bay. The main inlet is the St. Marys River and the main outlet is the St.
Clair.
Geography By surface area, Lake Huron is the second-largest
of the Great Lakes, with a surface area of 23,000 square miles making it the third-largest
fresh water lake on Earth. By volume however, Lake Huron is only the third largest of the
Great Lakes, being surpassed by Lake Michigan in this aspect. When measured at the Low Water
Datum, the lake contains a volume of 850 cubic miles and a shoreline length of 3,827 mi.
The surface of Lake Huron is 577 feet above sea level. The lake's average depth is 32
fathoms 3 feet, while the maximum depth is 125 fathoms. It has a length of 206 statute
miles and a greatest breadth of 183 statute miles.
Important cities on Lake Huron include: Goderich, Sarnia, Bay City, Alpena, Rogers City, Cheboygan,
Tobermory, Sauble Beach, Saugeen Shores, St. Ignace, and Port Huron.
A large bay that protrudes northeast from Lake Huron into Ontario, Canada, is called
Georgian Bay. A notable feature of the lake is Manitoulin Island, which separates the
North Channel and Georgian Bay from Lake Huron's main body of water. It is the world's largest
freshwater island. Major centres on Georgian Bay include Owen Sound, Wasaga Beach, Midland,
Penetanguishene, Port Severn and Parry Sound. A smaller bay that protrudes southwest from
Lake Huron into the state of Michigan, U.S.A., is called Saginaw Bay.
Water levels Historic High Water The lake fluctuates from
month to month with the highest lake levels in October and November. The normal high-water
mark is 2.00 feet above datum. In the summer of 1986, Lakes Michigan and Huron reached
their highest level at 5.92 feet above datum. The high-water records began in February 1986
and lasted through the year, ending with January 1987. Water levels ranged from 3.67 to 5.92
feet above Chart Datum. Historic Low Water Lake levels tend to be
the lowest in winter. The normal low-water mark is 1.00 foot below datum. In the winter
of 1964, Lakes Michigan and Huron reached their lowest level at 1.38 feet below datum.
As with the high-water records, monthly low-water records were set each month from February
1964 through January 1965. During this twelve-month period, water levels ranged from 1.38 to
0.71 feet below Chart Datum. Great Lakes Circle Tour
The Great Lakes Circle Tour is a designated scenic road system connecting all the Great
Lakes and the St. Lawrence River. Geology
Lake Huron has the largest shore line length of any of the Great Lakes, counting its 30,000
islands. Lake Huron is separated from Lake Michigan,
which lies at the same level, by the narrow Straits of Mackinac, making them hydrologically
the same body of water. Aggregated, Lake Huron-Michigan, at 45,300 square miles, "is technically the
world's largest freshwater lake." When counted separately, Lake Superior is 22,300 mi² larger
than Huron and higher. Lake Superior drains into the St. Marys River at Sault Ste. Marie
which then flows southward into Lake Huron. The water then flows south to the St. Clair
River, at Port Huron, Michigan, and Sarnia, Ontario.
The Great Lakes Waterway continues thence to Lake St. Clair; the Detroit River and Detroit,
Michigan; into Lake Erie and thence – via Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence River – to
the Atlantic Ocean. Like the other Great Lakes, it was formed
by melting ice as the continental glaciers retreated toward the end of the last ice age.
Before this, Lake Huron was a low-lying depression through which flowed the now-buried Laurentian
and Huronian Rivers; the lake bed was criss-crossed by a large network of tributaries to these
ancient waterways, with many of the old channels still evident on bathymetric maps.
History The French, the first European visitors to
the region, often referred to Lake Huron as La Mer Douce, "the fresh-water sea". In 1656,
a map by French cartographer Nicolas Sanson refers to the lake as Karegnondi, a Wendat
word which has been variously translated as "Freshwater Sea", "Lake of the Hurons", or
simply "lake". The lake was generally labeled "Lac des Hurons" on most early European maps.
Storm of 1913
On November 9, 1913, a great storm in Lake Huron sank ten ships and more than twenty
were driven ashore. The storm, which raged for 16 hours, killed 235 seamen.
The Matoa had passed between Port Huron, Michigan, and Sarnia, Ontario, just after midnight.
On the 9th, just after six in the morning, the Senator pushed upstream. Less than an
hour later, the Manola passed through. Captain Frederick W. Light of the Manola reported
that both the Canadian and the American weather stations had storm flag signals flying from
their weather towers. Following behind at 7:00 a.m. that Sunday, the Regina steamed
out of Sarnia into the northwest gale. The warnings now had been up for four hours. The
Manola passed the Regina off Port Sanilac, 22 statute miles up the lake. Captain Light
determined that if it continued to deteriorate, he would seek shelter at Harbor Beach, Michigan,
another 30 statute miles up the lake. There, he could seek shelter behind the breakwater.
Before he reached Harbor Beach, the winds turned to the northeast and the lake began
to rise. It would be noon before he reached Harbor Beach and ran for shelter. The waves
were so violent that the Manola touched bottom entering the harbor. With help from a tug,
the Manola tied up to the break wall with eight lines. It was about 3:00 p.m. when the
Manola was secured and the crew prepared to drop anchor. As they worked, the cables began
to snap from wind pressure against the hull. To keep from being pushed aground, they kept
their bow into the wind with the engines running half to full in turns, yet the ship still
drifted 800 feet before its movement was arrested. Waves breaking over the ship damaged several
windows and the crew reported seeing portions of the concrete break wall peeling off as
the waves struck it. Meanwhile, fifty miles farther up the lake,
the Matoa and Captain Hugh McLeod had to ride out the storm without a safe harbor. The Matoa
would be found stranded on the Port Austin reef when the winds subsided. It was noon
on Monday before the winds let up and not until 11:00 p.m. that night before Capt. Light
determined it to be safe to continue his journey. Modern history
On October 26, 2010, the Karegnondi Water Authority was formed to build and manage a
pipeline from the Lake to Flint. Shipwrecks
More than a thousand wrecks have been recorded in Lake Huron. These purportedly include the
first European vessel to sail the Great Lakes, Le Griffon, built in 1679 on the eastern shore
of Lake Erie, near Buffalo, New York. Sieur de la Salle navigated across Lake Erie, up
the Detroit River, Lake St. Clair and the St. Clair River out into Lake Huron. Passing
the Straits of Mackinac, La Salle and the Griffon made landfall on Washington Island,
off the tip of the Door Peninsula on the Wisconsin side of Lake Michigan. Here, La Salle filled
the Griffon with pelts and in late November 1679 sent the Griffon back to the site of
modern-day Buffalo, never to be seen again. Two wrecks have been identified as the Griffon,
although neither has gained final verification as the actual wreck. Blown by a fierce storm
after leaving, the Griffon ran aground before the storm. The people of Manitoulin Island
say that the wreck in Mississagi Straits at the western tip of the island is that of the
Griffon. Meanwhile, others near Tobermory, say that the wreck on Russell Island, 150
miles farther east in Georgian Bay is that of the Griffin.
Thunder Bay The 448-square-mile Thunder Bay National Marine
Sanctuary and Underwater Preserve is home to 116 historically significant shipwrecks.
It is the thirteenth National Marine Sanctuary designated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration, established in 2000. Glass-bottom-boat tours depart from Alpena, Michigan, providing
tourists with views of some of the famous shipwrecks in Thunder Bay.
Saginaw Bay 185 of 1,000+ wrecks are within the waters
of Saginaw Bay. Matoa, a propeller freighter weighing 2,311
gross tons, was built in Cleveland in 1890, and was wrecked in 1913 on Port Austin Reef.
Georgian Bay, North Channel Georgian Bay, the largest bay on Lake Huron,
contains 212 of the 1,000 sunken vessels in the lake.
Manola, a propeller freighter of 2,325 gross tons, was built in 1890 by the Globe Shipping
Company of Cleveland, Ohio. It was operated by the Minnesota Steamship Company from 1890–1901,
and by the Pittsburgh Steamship Company from 1901–1918. On January 25, 1918, the Manola
was sold to the U.S. Shipping Board. It was sold again in 1920 to the Canada Steamship
Lines, Ltd., and renamed the Mapledawn. It became stranded on November 20, 1924, on Christian
Island in Georgian Bay. Headed for Port McNichol, Ontario, it was declared a total loss after
two weeks. Salvagers were able to recover approximately 75,000 bushels of barley for
delivery to Midland, Ontario.
Ecology
Lake Huron has a lake retention time of 22 years.
Like all of the Great Lakes, the ecology of Lake Huron has undergone drastic changes in
the last century. The lake originally supported a native deepwater fish community dominated
by lake trout, which fed on a number of deepwater ciscos as well as sculpins and other native
fishes. Several invasive species, including sea lamprey, alewife and rainbow smelt, became
abundant in the lake by the 1930s. The major native top predator, lake trout, were virtually
extirpated from the lake by 1950 due to a combination of overfishing and the effects
of sea lamprey. Several species of deepwater ciscos were also extirpated from the lake
by the 1960s; the only remaining native deepwater cisco is the bloater. Nonnative Pacific salmon
have been stocked in the lake since the 1960s, and lake trout have also been stocked in an
attempt to rehabilitate the species, although little natural reproduction of stocked trout
has been observed. Lake Huron has suffered recently due the introduction
of a variety of new invasive species, including zebra and quagga mussels, the spiny water
flea, and round gobies. The deepwater demersal fish community of the lake was in a state
of collapse by 2006, and a number of drastic changes have been observed in the zooplankton
community of the lake. Chinook salmon catches have also been greatly reduced in recent years,
and lake whitefish have become less abundant and are in poor condition. These recent changes
may be attributable to the new exotic species. See also
Drummond Island Georgian Bay
Hurricane Huron Les Cheneaux Islands
Mackinac Island Mackinac Falls
Michigan lighthouses Saginaw Bay
Sauble Beach Shipwrecks of the 1913 Great Lakes storm and
List of victims of the 1913 Great Lakes storm Thunder Bay
Wasaga Beach Great Lakes in general
Notes
External links NOAA chart #14860
EPA's Great Lakes Atlas Fish Species of Lake Huron
Great Lakes Coast Watch Lake Huron Binational Partnership Action Plan
Lake Huron Data Lake Huron GIS
Michigan DNR map of Lake Huron Bathymetry of Lake Huron
In the Depths of Lake Huron, Secrets of an Ancient Sea
Lighthouses Interactive map of lighthouses, Georgian Bay,
Lake Huron Interactive map of lighthouses in North and
East Lake Huron Interactive map of lighthouses in North and
West Lake Huron