Lake Erie

Lore & Background

At the time of European contact, the Erie tribe lived along the southern edge of the lake, and the Neutrals (also known as Attawandaron) lived along the northern shore. The name Erie is derived from the Iroquoian word erielhonan, meaning 'long tail.' Lake Erie appeared on maps as Lac du Chat as early as 1650, and René de Bréhant de Galinée recorded the name Lac Érié around 1670. The lake has 31 islands (13 in Canada, 18 in the U.S.), located generally in the western side of the lake. The largest of these is Pelee Island. Point Pelee National Park, the southernmost point of the Canadian mainland, is located on a peninsula extending into the lake. Near Port Stanley, there is an Indigenous village dating from the 16th century known as the Southwold Earthworks where as many as 800 Neutral Indigenous peoples once lived; the archaeological remains include double earth walls winding around the grass-covered perimeter. Both the Erie and Neutrals were colonized and assimilated by the Iroquois Confederacy between 1651 and 1657 during the Beaver Wars. In 1669, Frenchman Louis Jolliet was the first documented European to sight Lake Erie, although there is speculation that Étienne Brûlé may have come across it in 1615. Lake Erie was the last of the Great Lakes to be explored by Europeans, since the Iroquois...

Reader's Guide

Lake Erie's primary inlet is the Detroit River, and its main natural outflow is via the Niagara River, which provides hydroelectric power to Canada and the U.S. as it spins huge turbines near Niagara Falls at Lewiston, New York, and Queenston, Ontario. Some outflow occurs via the Welland Canal, part of the Saint Lawrence Seaway, which diverts water for ship passages from Port Colborne, Ontario, on Lake Erie, to St. Catharines on Lake Ontario, an elevation difference of 326 ft (99 m). Because Erie is the shallowest, it is also the warmest of the Great Lakes, and in 1999 this almost became a problem for two nuclear power plants which require cool lake water to keep their reactors cool. The warm summer of 1999 caused lake temperatures to come close to the 85 °F (29 °C) limit necessary to keep the plants cool. Also because of its shallowness, it is the first to freeze in the winter. The shallowest section of Lake Erie is the western basin where depths average only 25 to 30 feet (7.6 to 9.1 m); as a result, 'the slightest breeze can kick up lively waves', also known as seiches. The 'waves build very quickly', according to other accounts. The region around the lake is known as the 'thunderstorm capital of Canada' with 'breathtaking' lightning displays. Sometimes fierce waves springing up unexpectedly have led to dramatic rescues; in one instance, a Cleveland resident was trapped by churning surf with six foot waves near his dock, but was rescued by a fire department diver from Avon Lake, Ohio: 'In a tug of war against the waves, the two were finally hauled out by rope. After being trapped for an hour-and-a-half, Baker was back on dry land, exhausted and battered but alive.' Lake Erie's environmental health has been an ongoing concern for decades, with issues such as overfishing, pollution, algae blooms, aquatic invasive species, and eutrophication generating headlines. Lake Erie was carved out by glacier ice and went through many phases before its current form which is less than 4,000 years old. The lake basin is divided into distinct eastern, central basin, and western basin sub-basins, with especially shallow conditions in the western basin, which averages only 25 feet (7.6 m) deep and is rich in nutrients and fish.

Did You Know?

• Lake Erie is the only Great Lake whose deepest point (210 feet) is above sea level.
• The lake's name comes from the Iroquoian word erielhonan, meaning 'long tail'.
• In 1999, lake temperatures came close to the 85 °F limit needed to keep two nuclear power plants cool.
• The region around Lake Erie is known as the 'thunderstorm capital of Canada' with 'breathtaking' lightning displays.
• Lake Erie has 31 islands, with Pelee Island being the largest.