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Lake Huron Facts & Worksheets

Lake Huron is one of North America's five Great Lakes. It consists of the easterly area of Lake Michigan-Huron.

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Lake Huron is one of North America’s five Great Lakes. It consists of the easterly area of Lake Michigan-Huron, which has an identical surface elevation as Lake Michigan and is linked to it through the 5-mile-wide, 20-fathom-deep Straits of Mackinac.

See the fact file below for more information on Lake Huron, or you can download our 28-page Lake Huron worksheet pack to utilize within the classroom or home environment.

Key Facts & Information

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

  • Lake Huron became the first of the Great Lakes that Europeans saw. In 1615, the French explorers Samuel de Champlain and Étienne Brûlé went up the Ottawa and Mattawa rivers to Georgian Bay. In 1618, Brûlé navigated the North Channel to the St. Marys River. 
  • In 1638, a Jesuit mission named Sainte-Marie was constructed between the Huron Indians along the (southeastern corner of Georgian Bay). However, it was destroyed by the Iroquois Indians in 1649. Following that, the focus of French activity shifted northwestward to the settlement of Sault Ste. Marie. On the St. Marys River, Marie.
  • Meanwhile, in 1669, the French-Canadian adventurer Louis Jolliet canoed down Lake Huron before exploring Lake Erie. In 1679, the French adventurer Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle, sailed westward from Niagara and reached Lake Huron.
  • British penetration of the lower lakes increased dramatically in the mid-18th century, culminating in the conquest of Fort-Pontchartrain-du-Détroit (Fort Detroit) in 1760 and Michilimackinac on the Straits of Mackinac in 1761. 
  • The border between the United States and Canada was determined following the Revolutionary War (1775-83) and was fully maintained following the War of 1812. The fort on Mackinac Island (overlooking the Straits of Mackinac) was seized by the British during the latter war, but it was reoccupied by US troops at the end of the war. The French called the lake after the Huron Indians.

GEOGRAPHY

  • Lake Huron is the second-largest of the Great Lakes by surface area, with 23,007 square miles, 9,103 square miles in Michigan and 13,904 square miles in Ontario, making it the third-largest freshwater lake on Earth.
  • By volume, Lake Huron is the third largest of the Great Lakes, trailing only Lake Michigan and Lake Superior. The lake has a volume of 850 cubic miles and a shoreline length (such as islands) of 3,827 mi (6,159 km) when measured at low water.
  • Lake Huron’s elevation is 577 feet (176 meters) above sea level. The lake’s average depth is 32 fathoms, 3 feet (195 ft; 59 m), with a maximum depth of 125 fathoms (750 ft; 229 m). It is 206 statute miles long and 183 statute miles wide at its widest point. 
  • Georgian Harbor is a huge harbor that extends northeast across Lake Huron into Ontario, Canada. Manitoulin Island, which separates the North Channel and Georgian Bay from Lake Huron’s largest body of water, is a significant feature of the lake. 
  • It is also the world’s largest lake island. Saginaw Bay is a tiny bay that protrudes southwest from Lake Huron into Michigan.
  • Over 10,000 people live in Sarnia, the largest city on Lake Huron, Saugeen Shores in Canada, and Bay City, Port Huron, and Alpena within the United States. Owen Sound, Wasaga Beach, Collingwood, Midland, Penetanguishene, Port Severn, and Parry Sound are the major communities on Georgian Bay.

WATER LEVELS

  • Historic high water– The lake changes monthly, with the maximum lake levels occurring in October and November. The usual high water mark is 2.00 feet (0.61 meters) above the datum (577.5 feet or 176.0 meters).
  • Moreover, Lakes Michigan and Huron reached their most significant level in the summer of 1986, at 5.92 feet (1.80 m) above the datum. In 2020, high-water records were broken for several months in a row.
  • Historic low water– Winter is when lake levels are at their lowest. The usual low-water mark is one foot below the datum (577.5 feet or 176.0 meters). Monthly low-water records, like high-water records, were set for every month from February 1964 through January 1965. Water levels fluctuated from 1.38 to 0.71 feet (42-22 cm) below Chart Datum during a year. In January 2013, the historic low-water mark was surpassed.

SHIPWRECKS

  • In Lake Huron, over a thousand wrecks were discovered. There are 185 in Saginaw Bay and 116 in the 448-square-mile Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary and Underwater Preserve, established in 2000. Georgian Bay has 212 sunken ships.
  • Le Griffon, allegedly the first European vessel to cruise the Great Lakes, also became the first ship lost on the Great Lakes. Built-in 1679 on Lake Erie’s eastern shore near Buffalo, New York. 
  • Robert Cavelier, Sieur de la Salle sailed across Lake Erie, up the Detroit River, Lake St. Clair, and the St. Clair River, eventually reaching Lake Huron. Furthermore, after going through the Straits of Mackinac, La Salle arrived on Washington Island, off the point of the Door Peninsula, located on the Wisconsin shoreline of Lake Michigan. La Salle loaded Le Griffon with pelts and returned him to the site of modern-day Buffalo in late November 1679, never to be seen again. Two wrecks have been recognized as Le Griffon, but neither has been confirmed as the authentic wreck. After being blown away by a violent wind, Le Griffon ran aground before the storm. The wreck at Mississagi Strait at the western tip of Manitoulin Island, according to locals, is that of the Le Griffon.

ECOLOGY

  • The lake retention time of Lake Huron is 22 years. Lake Huron’s ecology, like the other Great Lakes, has changed dramatically during the previous century. The lake once maintained a natural deepwater fish ecosystem dominated by lake trout.
  • By the 1930s, the lake had become overrun with exotic species such as sea lamprey, alewife, and rainbow smelt. Lake trout, the lake’s dominant natural top predator, was nearly extinct by 1950 due to an outbreak of overfishing and the spread of sea lamprey. Several cisco species were likewise eradicated from the lake by the 1960s; the bloater is the sole native cisco. 
  • Since the 1960s, non-native Pacific salmon have been supplied in the lake, as have lake trout in an attempt to recover the species, albeit little natural reproduction of stocked trout has been recorded. New invasive species have recently affected Lake Huron, including zebra or quagga mussels, a spiny water flea, and round gobies. The lake’s aquatic fish community had collapsed by 2006, and various serious changes in the lake’s zooplankton ecology were recently discovered. 

CITIES

Lake Huron Worksheets

This fantastic bundle includes everything you need to know about Lake Huron across 28 in-depth pages. These ready-to-use worksheets are perfect for teaching kids about Lake Huron. Lake Huron is one of North America’s five Great Lakes. It consists of the easterly area of Lake Michigan-Huron, which has an identical surface elevation as Lake Michigan and is linked to it through the 5-mile-wide, 20-fathom-deep Straits of Mackinac.

Complete List of Included Worksheets

Below is a list of all the worksheets included in this document.

  1. Lake Huron Facts 
  2. Mapping The Great
  3. Guess That Name
  4. The Predators
  5. Around The Lake
  6. All Over The Years
  7. Like, Comment & Share!
  8. Do You Know Me?
  9. Fact Check!
  10. #LakeUpdate
  11. What Happened in 1913

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Lake Huron located?

Lake Huron is located in North America, bordered by the Canadian province of Ontario to the north and the U.S. state of Michigan to the south.

What is the size of Lake Huron?

Lake Huron is the second-largest of the Great Lakes by surface area, covering approximately 59,600 square kilometers (23,000 square miles).

How deep is Lake Huron?

The average depth of Lake Huron is around 59 meters (195 feet), while its maximum depth reaches 229 meters (750 feet) in some areas.

What are some notable islands in Lake Huron?

Lake Huron is home to several notable islands, including Manitoulin Island, which is the largest freshwater island in the world, and the Georgian Bay Islands National Park, which protects a cluster of beautiful islands in the eastern part of the lake.

What are some popular recreational activities on Lake Huron?

Lake Huron offers a wide range of recreational activities, including boating, fishing, swimming, kayaking, and sailing. It’s sandy beaches and scenic shoreline make it a popular destination for beachgoers and nature enthusiasts.

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Link will appear as Lake Huron Facts & Worksheets: https://kidskonnect.com - KidsKonnect, July 19, 2023

Use With Any Curriculum

These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.

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