Lake Erie

Lake Erie is the fourth largest lake (by surface area) of the five Great Lakes in North Amerca. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes. It was carved out by the receding glaciers of the Great Ice Age approximately 4,000 years ago. The lake is names after the Erie tribe of Native Americans, who lived along its southern shore. , Great Lakes Profile. , Lake Superior, elevation 601.1 ft., depth 1,330 ft.; St Mary's River; Lake Huron, Lake Michigan, elevation 577.5 ft., depth 750 ft., depth 923 ft.; St Clair River, Lake St. Clair, Detroit River, elevation 572 ft.; Lake Erie, elevation 569.2 ft., depth 210 ft.; Niagara River; Niagara Falls; Lake Ontario, elevation 243.3 ft., depth 802 ft.; St. Lawrence River. , Diagram courtesy of Michigan Sea Grant. , ♦ Lake Erie is the shallowest of the Great Lakes, containing 128 trillion galons of water, and measuring 241 miles long and 57 miles wide. , ♦ Eighty percent of Lake Erie's water flows in via the Detroit River, carrying water from Lakes Superior, Huron, and Michigan. , ♦ The lake provides drinking water for approximately 11 million people. , ♦ The lake's microclimates and formerly more extensive lakebed create a favorable environment for agriculture. The north shore is one of the richest areas of Canada's fruit and vegetable production. The southeastern shore is an important grape growing region, and apple orchards are abundant along the lake from Ohio to New York. , The Lake Erie Drainage Basin. Image Source: Sea Grant, Michigan.