The Ultimate List of Upper Peninsula facts
We keep a running list of Upper Peninsula facts that we continually add to. This is the best place to get a summary of the Upper Peninsula. Have a fact to share? Share it with us on Twitter or our Facebook Page and we’ll get it on the list.
| There are 8.8 million acres of forest in the Upper Peninsula, out of a total of 10.5 million, making 84% of the Upper Peninsula covered by forest. |
| The least snowfall in the Keweenaw in one year was 81 inches, which fell in the winter of 1930-1931. |
| The most snowfall in the Keweenaw in one year was 356 inches, which fell in the winter of 1978-1979. |
| Copper Harbor is the farthest town from an Interstate Highway (251 miles) in the continental United States. |
| It is 629 highway miles from Ironwood, MI to Lambertville, MI, the two furthest corners you can drive to in Michigan. |
| Every Upper Peninsula zip code starts with 49--- |
| Tahquamenon Falls is the third most voluminous waterfall east of the Mississippi River, after Niagara Falls and Cohoes Falls |
| The word Yooper was first published in 1979 |
| There are three public universities: Lake Superior State University founded in 1946, Northern Michigan University founded in 1899, and Michigan Technological University founded in 1885 |
| Tom Izzo grew up in Iron Mountain and went to NMU where he was a Division II All-American basketball player |
| The four bordering counties of Wisconsin (Gogebic, Iron, Dickinson, Menominee) are in Central Time while the remaining 11 counties are Eastern Time |
| The maximum north-south distance is nearly 125 miles |
| The maximum east-west distance is nearly 320 miles |
| There are 1,700 miles of Great Lakes shoreline |
| Lake Gogebic is the largest inland lake, with over 13,000 acres of surfaces area |
| In the winter of 1978-79 there were 391 inches of snowfall recored in Delaware, that's 32 feet and 7 inches |
| Over 30 sunken ships can be located in Bay de Noc |
| Construction for the Soo Locks began in 1837 and it opened in 1855 |
| There are over 3,000 miles of groomed snowmobile trails, that's the equivalent of snowmobiling from Orlando to Seattle |
| There are nearly 400 species of birds in the Upper Peninsula |
| Mount Arvon is the highest peak in the Upper Peninsula and Michigan |
| The Upper Peninsula is home to about 301,361 Yoopers (2010 Census) |
| Lake Superior has 917 miles of shoreline along the Upper Peninsula |
| There are 15 counties in the Upper Peninsula |
| 906 is the one and only area code |
| Marquette is the largest city with about 19,600 people |
| Marquette County has the largest population with about 67,077 people (2010 Census) |
| Keweenaw County has the smallest population with about 2,156 people (2010 Census) |
| The Upper Peninsula is 3.16% of the Michigan population |
| There are 89 known species of fish in Lake Superior |
| Lake Michigan is the size of West Virginia |
| Lake Superior is the size of South Carolina |
| The Seney Stretch is the longest curveless section of highway in Michigan, and one of the longest straight stretches of curveless highway east of the Mississippi River |
| 906 is the 6th largest area code east of the Mississippi River |
| In 1910, Houghton County was home to more than 88,000 people. That is the record for the highest population of any county in the Upper Peninsula |