GENERAL VIEW OF LOCKS AND CANAL, SAULT STE. MARIE
Milwaukee has a situation in many ways resembling that of Chicago, its harbor being the mouth of Milwaukee River. Like Chicago, it owes its importance to its lake-trade. Detroit (with Windsor, Ont.) owes its growth partly to its strategic position on the strait connecting Lake Huron and Lake Erie, and partly for its position between the lakes. It is an important collecting and distributing point for lake-freights, and the chief centre of commerce with Canada. Several east-and-west trunk lines and local lines of railway have freight terminals in the city; it is also the centre of the most complete system of interurban electric railways in the world. Port Huron (with Sarnia, Ont.) has a geographic position similar to that of Detroit, and is also an important lake-port. The St. Clair River is tunnelled at this point. Cleveland, Toledo, Sandusky, and Erie contribute very largely to the lake-trade. Grand Rapids is the business centre of furniture manufacture of the United States.
The great iron-ore ranges about Lake Superior have had much to do with the growth of the local lake-trade. This has resulted in the establishment of a large number of shipping-ports near the head of the lakes, and also a number of receiving ports on the south shores of Lake Erie and Lake Michigan. Some of the latter have become also great manufacturing centres of structural iron and steel.
Various centres of industry at a considerable distance from the Great Lakes are contributors to their trade. Thus, on account of the low rate for grain between Chicago and New York City—about 5¼ cents per bushel—there are yearly very heavy shipments of the grain designed for Liverpool. St. Paul and Minneapolis are also collecting and distributing centres of lake-freights. A considerable part of the business of the lake-region is carried on by the Canadians, who have improved their resources for production and transportation to the utmost.
Copyright, Detroit Photographic Co.
AURORA IRON MINES, IRONWOOD, MICHIGAN