Marvelous Michigan Trivia Quiz

Answer: peninsula

Michigan is unique in that it consists of two disconnected land masses, both of which are peninsulas. These are known as the Upper Peninsula and the Lower Peninsula (known as "The Mitten" because of its shape). The two peninsulas were connected only by ferry until 1957, when the Mackinac Bridge was finally completed.

At the time it was known as the world's longest suspension bridge between anchorages.

Answer: Pontiac

Chief Pontiac won an important victory over the British in the 1763 Battle of Bloody Run, but he later withdrew from the area. The war which bears his name, Pontiac's Rebellion, lasted from 1763 until 1766, when he made peace with the British. The city of Pontiac, Michigan was named after him, as well as the General Motors car called the Pontiac.

Answer: There was a dispute with Ohio over a strip of land near Toledo.

Congress finally resolved the dispute by giving Ohio the Toledo Strip, and giving Michigan the Upper Peninsula. Most Michiganders were not happy with this compromise at the time, as the rich farmland of the Toledo Strip was considered much more valuable than the Upper Peninsula. Over time, however, the UP has proven to be valuable for its logging, mining, and tourism industries.

Answer: Grand Rapids

Grand Rapids is home to five of the world's leading office furniture companies. The furniture industry got its start in Grand Rapids in the second half of the nineteenth century, thanks to the nearby source of lumber. At one time Grand Rapids was recognized as a worldwide leader in the production of quality home furniture, but due to market changes the focus turned to office furniture.

Answer: Anatomy of a Murder

"Anatomy of a Murder" was a bestselling novel of 1958 written by Michigan Supreme Court Justice John D. Voelker under the pen name Robert Traver. It was made into a movie the following year, and soon became known as one of the best trial movies ever made.

The Upper Peninsula setting figures prominently in the film, including the hobby of fishing which is shared by Voelker and the small-town lawyer played by Jimmy Stewart in the film.

Answer: highbush blueberries

Maine is the top producer of the lowbush blueberry, while Michigan leads in highbush blueberry production. The leaders for the other fruits listed are Washington (apples), California (strawberries), and Hawaii (pineapples).

Answer: Henry Ford

Greenfield Village, also known as the Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village, was opened in 1929 on a twelve-acre site in a suburb of Detroit. Its purpose is to show how Americans have lived and worked since the country's beginning.

The other choices are famous Michigan entrepreneurs in the fields of cereal (Kellogg), department stores (Kresge), and music (Gordy).

Answer: Arthur Vandenberg

Vandenberg served as a Republican Senator from Michigan from 1928 until his death in 1951. While he opposed many of President Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal domestic policies during the 1930s, he gradually evolved to the point that he cooperated with Roosevelt (and later Truman) on foreign policy.

As Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, he forged bipartisan support in the late 1940s for the Truman Doctrine on fighting Communism, the Marshall Plan to rebuild Europe, and the U.S. support of NATO.

His famous statement that "politics stops at the water's edge" is still repeated frequently by members of Congress today.

Answer: Gerald R. Ford

The Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library & Museum is located just across the Grand River from downtown Grand Rapids. Ford grew up in Grand Rapids, and represented the area in the U.S. House of Representatives for 25 years, before being appointed Vice-President and then succeeding to the presidency upon the resignation of Richard Nixon in 1974.

The Coolidge Museum is in Northampton, Massachusetts, the Hoover Museum is in West Branch, Iowa, and Ike's museum is in Abilene, Kansas.

Answer: Ann Arbor

The University of Michigan stadium in Ann Arbor, known as "The Big House", was built in 1927 and is the third largest stadium in the world. It housed more than 114,000 people for a game against Notre Dame in 2011. The Michigan Wolverines have one of the most successful college football programs in the U.S., winning eleven national championships in the twentieth century.