What Actually Constitutes “Northern” Michigan?
For years people have debated what northern Michigan actually means and at what point do you cross into northern territory. Even clothing lines have made thousands of dollars off this with t-shirts and hoodies that say “Up North” (though you find most of this apparel in the area of Traverse City rather than in the Upper Peninsula).
And of course there is Northern Michigan University. There is no denying that NMU, located in Marquette, is clearly across the border of Michigan’s northern territory. But some other things may shock you…
Clare County’s official slogan is “Where the North Begins”. It’s also interesting to see the Northern Michigan entry on Wikipedia. Particularly the map (below) that is listed on the page, as it does not even represent the Upper Peninsula. However, in the first sentence in the article someone was kind enough to insert “or more properly Northern Lower Michigan”.
So we did some research…
Thanks to the handy position finder tool on Google maps to find the approximate (though pretty darn accurate) latitudinal points in Michigan.
Northern most land point in the Upper Peninsula: 47.479779
Southern most land point in the Lower Peninsula: 41.696671
A difference of: 5.783108 degrees
According to these numbers the geographic north/south center of the state is a latitude of 44.588225.
However, the latitude of Clare (”Where the North Begins”) is 43.822927, which is nearly a full degree south of the geographic center.* That may not sound like much, but that tiny difference in degree means Clare is about 52 miles (there are 69 miles in one degree of latitude) south of the geographic center.
Interesting! Technically, if you split the state in to halves, estimated the latitudes, ignored the border being north of Isle Royale, then yes, perhaps Clare could be where southern and northern Michigan are divided in two if you throw a dart at the map. But depending which way you’re headed, it could just as well be “Where the South Begins”, correct?
So where is the geographic center?
According to our measurements it is at the intersection of highway US-127 and Interest 75 (about 5 miles south of Grayling). However, there are still some questions at hand, and some interesting points to make.
Menominee is the southern most point of land in the Upper Peninsula. Latitude: 45.095782
This means there is approximately 50 miles of distance shared between the Upper and Lower Peninsulas of Michigan stretching from their most southern (Menominee) and most northern (Mackinaw City) points respectively.
With all this said, we want to provide a map of the State of Michigan that is divided into Northern, Central, and Southern Michigan as a way for people to know exactly which third of the state they are located in.
We also made a larger version without notes if you would like to see that
According to this map, if any county in the lower peninsula can bare the slogan “Where the North Begins” it would have to be Emmet County, the northern most county in the Lower Peninsula. Everything else is central.
Some other facts, points, and arguments…
- Just south of Gaylord is the 45th parallel, exactly half way between the equator and the North Pole
- For all of those who love “going up north” it looks like Traverse City doesn’t even make the cut. T.C. is much closer to the exact center line than the northern third of the state
- The coordinates we used above mean that all three areas combine for 399 miles at 5.783108 degrees.
- Each third is 133 miles
- If anything Clare should be considered Southern Michigan
- Central Michigan University is just about exactly on the central/southern border, hardly making it “central”
- With this map, yes, Menominee county is technically not part of Northern Michigan. However, with the extra 200 miles it takes driving there from the Lower Peninsula we’re giving it a free waiver to officially be part of Northern Michigan
- In our example we only went to the northern tip of the Upper Peninsula, if we included the actual state borders of Michigan (beyond Isle Royale), the Lower Peninsula probably wouldn’t reach the northern third of the map.
Naturally, at Yooper Steez we’re a little biased about what actually constitutes “Northern” Michigan. We hope that this can shed some light on the issue for all of you as well.
Another side note comes from Kid Rock’s latest hit song All Summer Long
in which the lyrics say “It was summertime in Northern Michigan”. We don’t know Kid Rock personally, but if you do please let him know that we would love to know where he was talking about when he wrote those lyrics.
We would love to hear your thoughts, let us know what you think.
Some questions from us to you
- What is “Northern” Michigan?
- Is it as simple as Upper and Lower Peninsula?
- Is Traverse City really “going up north”?
- What slogan would you give Clare County?
- How does Central Michigan University fit into the picture?
*As a reminder, this is not the northern most point in Michigan, but the nothern most point of the mainland in the Upper Peninsula. If we were to take the true northern most part of the border it would push the north/south center of the state even further north.
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“Is Traverse City really “going up north”?”
Technically if you coming from South of it- Yes, it would be…lol
I was just about to say that . . . heh.
Personally, I’m sorta annoyed by the use of the phrase “going up north” cause when a lot of people I know use it, it simply means going an hour or two to the north to go to a lake or something. To me, the phrase sounds much more pronounced, like they should be going much further, like to the U.P. But us Southerners apparently say “going up north” when we’re going to the north of the L.P., and actually say we’re going to the faraway land called the U.P. when we’re going to cross the bridge . . . and go to Mackinac Island.
Great research on what’s UP North. I always conceeded that Gaylord might be up north for most folks, since it is half way to the north pole. I think Clare took the phrase because that is where the first large blocks of public land (state & federal) starts so people can recreate in large areas.
It’s like Newberry claims to be the moose capitol of MI. But actually, the most moose are in northern Iron Co. and southern Baraga Co. Newberry got to the politicians first.
I love the article, a great read. I visit downstate quite a bit and people get very confused about this ‘up north’ thing. The biggest thing that bugs me though: Houghton is -not- Houghton Lakes!
I am from the UP and I will say “north” is over the bridge, in the upper peninsula. It’s not about longitude/latitude, its about lifestyle.
I also go to central michigan university- and will say, its not central if you consider the whole state. its only central of the lower peninsula. I really think that lower michigan just hates the UP and we should become our own state. =)
But, please, tourists and other uninformed individuals- we have running water/electricity/etc.
But, if ever in escanaba, stop as Saykllys for some candy and gifts and tourist items!
It’s not that we hate the U P, it’s just that we forget about our other peninsula.
Actually, the whole “up north” idea has more to do with population than geography. By far most of the residents of Michigan live south of Clare (with more than a third in greater Metro Detroit), and the UP has (relatively) few people. Also, the phrase “where the North begins” implies something of a directional reference. “North” is thus considered to be a region that may not be where the person reading it is from. Accounting for the fact that most of the visitors to the area north of Clare (and therefore the people who would be traveling long distances by car) would come from Southern Michigan or beyond (such as Ohio, Indiana, or Chicago), they would be reaching the “Northern” part of the state at about Clare, this being the part of the state with a lower population density and a greater variety of recreational opporunities.
Also, as public universities draw people from predominantly across their home stae, their names (Like Eastern, Western, and Central) are meant to designate what would be that part of the state in terms of population, which (as you remember) is concentrated in the South. Thus, Kalamazoo would be considered “Western” to most of the people in Michigan, Ypsilanti is “Eastern”, and Mount Pleasant is “Central”. In fact, substantially more people live south of Mount Pleasant than North of it. However, if you consider population density and distance to be roughly inversely proportional (as people have to go farther where they are fewer), CMU can be generally viewed as “Central” for most of the state’s residents.
The map above (dividing the state into Northern, Central, and Southern) places the southern part of the Western UP (including Menominee in the “Central” region. I’ve never heard of anyone from ANY part of the Upper Penninsula consider Menominee to be “central” in ANY sense, as it distinctly fits in with the geographic, social, and cultural elements that define the UP as Michigan’s “Northern Frontier”.
And finally, if you are going to divide the state into various “regions” on a map “geographically”, without giving any regard to where people LIVE, at least deal with it in terms of land area. Looking only at one measurement (latitude) to determine regions that are supposedly equivalent is short-sighted and misleading.
Mr. Sailor,
I’m a proud Yooper from Iron Mountain. I was born and raised here. I attended Michigan State University for the past 6 years, and this topic has always been of great interest to me. I really enjoyed the article and your map, which divides Michigan (excluding Isle Royale) into geographical thirds by latitude. Although I understand what Mr. Treadwell has written, I like the Yooper Steez take on “Northern” Michigan. As a Yooper and a Michigan geography enthusiast, I was frequently irritated while attending MSU in East Lansing, part of “Mid-Michigan.” My friends and acquaintances alike would always speak of “up north” Michigan. Many people would say they went “up north,” to places like Houghton Lake, Big Rapids, or Traverse City. That didn’t bother me too much, but I still got a little agitated.
What really bothers me is when fellow Michiganians/Michiganders totally neglect the entire Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Americans in general do this too. I see this on poorly created maps of the U.S.A., showing the U.P. as part of Canada or part of a “larger” Lake Superior/Michigan. I like your map and points Bugsy and friends, showing all those interested where the true Northern, Central, and Southern regions of Michigan lie, as far as latitudes go. If you’re reading this, please give the U.P. the respect and credit it deserves; and be glad we have our entire, beautiful peninsula instead of the small strip of land that includes Toledo, Ohio. And to any of you who aren’t interested in the U.P., don’t come, you wouldn’t like it here…
- Chris
The U.P. Forever
um who cares? why does it matter. from what ive heard, there’s northern michigan and the UP. thats how its always been. but who really cares.
I think there is a logical explanation for the original division of Michigan’s land area as show in the first map above (of just the lower peninsula). The Mackinac Straits once served as a geographic barrier between the upper and lower peninsulas (Mighty Mac wasn’t completed until 1957). Sure, there were ferries to haul people across the 5 mile stretch, but it can be reasonably assumed that for residents of the lower peninsula, the U.P. was much less considered a part of the state than it is now.
So for a large chunk of MI history, the northern part of the L.P. was understandably considered Northern Michigan. This label could have been applied both geographically and culturally, as the area was much less populated and ‘wild’ at that time. So if you look at that first map of the L.P. and consider that the U.P. didn’t exist (which is how most trolls would have viewed it 60 yrs ago), the boundaries seem to make sense.
The opening of the Mackinac Bridge has allowed much easier travel between the peninsulas. The U.P. has gradually become accepted by the L.P. as part of Michigan, although the geographic/cultural landmarks dividing the state have not shifted. I think the label ‘Northern Michigan’ has lost its original meaning to most people (defining something far North or wild) and now simply defines a geographic area which everyone will recognize in conversation. So although these labels are long outdated, I feel it is okay to continue using them so long as nobody confuses Northern Michigan and the U.P.
Personally, when someone refers to Northern Michigan I immediately think of the northern L.P. since this is the area referred to as such. Never do I consider that someone is speaking of the U.P. unless they specifically label it so. I, for one, do not wish for the U.P. to be called anything but ‘Da U.P.’ I say we let the trolls keep Northern Michigan to themselves.
But if we are to divide the state up geographically, I would agree, Bugsy, with the map you invented. Where people live makes absolutely no difference in this case. And it makes much more sense to split the state into thirds based on latitude than by land area…
So to answer the questions…
I say Northern Michigan ends South of the bridge. I’d rather be called Da U.P.
I think it is as simple as Upper Peninsula, but not as simple as Lower Peninsula.
Traverse City is going up North for anyone who lives at least 50 (or so) miles South.
Clare County - “Where Norther Michigan Begins - But Not The Ash Trees.”
CMU can stay right where they are…
Well… if you’re coming up from Detroit, then yes, Traverse City is going “up north”.
However, being from Traverse City, I considered going “up North” to be going anywhere north of the bridge.
It really is a matter of perspective.
I grew up around Clare. The village of Lake to be exact and with all the lakes around I would meet people who would call that “up north”. It always buged me because up north is across the bridge for me. When going towards the north and you hit around Clare, its true that you are farther north than you were but you are still only in Central Michigan. I currently attend CMU and students from farther down state say that they attend school up north. Which makes absolutely no sense. Its called Central Michigan for a reason. True it is located in Central Lower Michigan but still its not up north.
I was raised in ‘downriver’ Detroit and moved to ‘Northern Michigan’ 17 yrs. ago. I am in Gaylord, just north of the 45th parallel. Having lived in both of these places, I consider ‘up north’ anything beyond the Zilwaukee Bridge, but yes, the U.P. has always been called the U.P. as Nils mentioned. I always give a sigh of relief once I’m north of Flint, though, actually. Northern Michigan is more about a’laid-back’ lifestyle and it’s about long, harsh winter endurance. I think we relate better to the Yoopers in these regards than do the ‘Flatlanders’. Proud to be a Troll : )
I grew up in the ‘burbs (they suck) but went to school at Hillsdale, which probably constitutes the southernmost 4-year institute of higher learning in the state of Michigan (I haven’t done my research on this, though, so it could be Adrian College…either way, it’s one of the two). Anyway, the point is, at least for us anyway, when you’re all the way the hell down here (and all of an hour and a half from both Ann Arbor and K-Zoo, and an hour from even JACKSON, for chrissakes), pretty much everything past Lansing is “Far North” to us.
So look at it this way: from the Hillsdale to Mt. Pleasant, it’s (roughly) a three hour drive. Then, from Mt. Pleasant to Sault Ste. Marie it’s another three hours. That’s going almost exactly north (I think they’re even on the same longitude).
Basically, Mt. Pleasant is (again roughly) halfway between the two. Thus, I see no problem with dubbing the institute of higher learning in Mt. Pleasant “Central” Michigan University. For MOST OF THE STATE, it’s fairly centrally located. Sure, maybe someone in Ironwood or Houghton might have problems getting there, but, not everything’s perfect. A lot of us trolls have problems if we really had out hearts set on going to Michigan Tech. I mean, I’m still amazed at how high the travel costs in the GLIAC must be…especially with all those Pennsylvania teams in the mix. (Even more amazing is why Hillsdale is in D-II, but that’s another problem altogether.)
Maybe the greater point should be: Michigan is a big f***ing state. And that makes it the sweetest state in the union. Kickass.
how can you forget about “the other Peninsula” if you ask me, the UP is the greatest part of Michigan…..i live in Marquette and love it. your not up north until you cross over “the bridge”. damn straight…trolls!!
Since your article is primary based on accuracy, I thought I’d mention that the first paragraph after the map that splits the state into thirds… says “country” when it should read “county”.
Meg, thanks for letting me know! It’s been fixed. :-)
I live in Clare, MI and we have always been the “gateway to the north.” You talk to any old time resident of the state, and they will tell you that “north of Clare” was the common phrase for what was considered “up north.” This isn’t just latitude, it was geography and ecosystem. Just north of the city of Clare is James hill, and it is the beginning of hilly northern country. South of Clare is Flat farm land. North of Clare is the beginning of coniferous trees. People who suffered from allergies would be told they needed to get “north of Clare” because that was where the plant species changed.
The U.P. is the U.P. that is the true “Up North” but it is true that for most southern michigan residents, It might as well not exist.. and Thats just fine as far as I’m considered, because one of the best things about the U.P. is the lack of people.
-E