Lake St. Clair

Lake St. Clair
false-color imagery from Sentinel-2, showing Lake St. Clair in April 2023
Location of the lake in Michigan.
Location of the lake in Michigan.
Lake St. Clair
Location(Great Lakes)
Coordinates42°28′N 82°40′W / 42.467°N 82.667°W / 42.467; -82.667
TypeFreshwater lake
Primary inflowsSt. Clair River, Thames River, Sydenham River, Clinton River, Pine River
Primary outflowsDetroit River
Basin countriesCanada, United States
Max. length26 mi (42 km)[1]
Max. width24 mi (39 km)[1]
Surface area430 sq mi (1,114 km2)[1][2]
Average depth11 ft (3.4 m)[1]
Max. depth27 ft (8.2 m)
Water volume0.82 cu mi (3.4 km3)[1]
Residence time7 days
Shore length1130 mi (210 km) plus 127 mi (204 km) for islands[3]
Surface elevation574 ft (175 m)
IslandsGull Island, Harsens Island, Strawberry Island Fantasy Island and Peche Island
SettlementsDetroit
1 Shore length is not a well-defined measure.

Lake St. Clair (French: Lac Sainte-Claire) is a freshwater lake that lies between the Canadian province of Ontario and the U.S. state of Michigan. It was named in 1679 by French Catholic explorers after Saint Clare of Assisi, on whose feast day they first saw the lake.

It is part of the Great Lakes system (although not considered one of the five Great Lakes), and along with the St. Clair River and Detroit River, Lake St. Clair connects Lake Huron (to the north) with Lake Erie (to the south). It has a total surface area of about 430 square miles (1,100 km2) and an average depth of just 11 feet (3.4 m); to ensure an uninterrupted waterway, government agencies in both countries have maintained a 30-foot-deep (9.1 m) shipping channel through the shallow lake for more than a century.

  1. ^ a b c d e Cite error: The named reference LakeStClair was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference U.S.Army was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ "Shorelines of the Great Lakes". Michigan Department of Environmental Quality. Archived from the original on April 5, 2015.