GREAT LAKES 



2597 



GREAT LAKES 



MAP OP THE GREAT LAKES 



The largest cities on the lakes, and smaller towns with important steamer lines, are shown. For 

 locations of the international boundary, see maps with the articles on the individual lakes. 



Ontario, the smallest, is not quite as large as 

 New Jersey. The elevation of the lakes varies 

 from about 600 feet in Lake Superior to 247 

 feet in Lake Ontario, the most decided drop 

 being between Lakes Erie and Ontario, where 

 there is a descent of 326 feet. The accompany- 

 ing maps show their relative positions, their 

 areas, their depths and their heights above 

 sea level. In addition, each of these lakes is 

 described in these volumes under its title. 



A Journey on the Lakes. The traveler on a 

 steamer making the trip between Duluth, at 

 the head of Lake Superior, and the Canadian 

 city of Kingston, Ontario, at the foot of Lake 

 Ontario, will enjoy a most interesting journey 

 of 1,245 miles. When the boat reaches the 

 eastern end of Lake Superior to make the 

 passage into Lake Huron, it will encounter 

 the dashing rapids of the Saint Mary's River, 

 the stream connecting the two lakes. From 

 the upper, lake to the river there is a drop of 

 about, twenty feet. Navigation there would 

 be impossible were it not for the magnificent 

 system of canal locks constructed around the 

 rapids by the American and Canadian govern- 

 ments (see SAULT SAINTE MARIE CANAL). On 

 the Canadian side there is one lock, and on 

 the American side three, the third of which 



was opened to navigation in October, 1914. A 

 fourth is now under construction. 



Through the locks the boat steams out on 

 the quiet waters of the Saint Mary's River, 

 passing by its jjreen and wooded banks for a 

 distance of fifty miles until Lake Huron is 

 reached. Numerous vessels are seen along 

 the course; of these there are none more inter- 

 esting than the enormous steel boats whose 

 long, boxlike holds are filled with vast quanti- 

 ties of grain and ore from the northwest. The 

 largest of these carry 10,000 tons. They offer 

 a decided contrast in appearance and use to 

 the magnificent passenger steamers, hotels on 

 the water, which give thousands of tourists 

 every summer a taste of life on the sea. 



From Lake Huron the boat passes through 

 the Saint Clair River, Lake Saint Clair and 

 the Detroit River, into Lake Eric. The uroatert 

 descent of the entire trip is reached at the 

 eastern end of Lake Erie, for the drop from 

 that body of water into Lake Ontario is more 

 than fifteen times as great as that at the rap- 

 ids of the Saint Mary's. Here are located the 

 famous falls of the Niagara River (see NIAGARA 

 FALLS AND RIVER), and to overcome this 

 obstruction to navigation the Canadian gov- 

 ernment has built, several miles west of the 



