Thanksgiving 2020 Quiz

Nov 26, 2020 | Quiz

My Thanksgiving is very different this year. My sister typically visits from West Virginia and we fill the weekend with games and puzzles and general fun together. This year, my sister stayed home but I have challenged her to a trivia quiz. In case your weekend is as unusually quiet as mine this year, below are some trivia questions I came up with for my sister. (I tried to make them tricky, but some may be easier for us Michiganders!) Answers will be posted here on Friday at 5 PM.

Update Friday Nov 27th 5:00pm – As promised, at the very bottom of this post are the answers to my trivia quiz! Below the answers are some links to interesting articles that inspired the questions.

1. Which one of the following is NOT a county in Michigan? (Pick one)
A). Ontonagon
B). Isabella
C). Middlesex
D). Oceana
E). Gogebic
F). Benzie

2. Under the Washington Treaty in 1836, the Anishinaabek collective of Native American tribes in Michigan granted __________ to the U.S.
A). the whole upper peninsula of Michigan
B). Mackinaw State Forest
C). Copper mining rights
D). 13,000,000 acres
E). Lake Huron

3. Forests cover ____ of the state of Michigan.
A). 19%
B). 83%
C). 37%
D). 21%
E). 53%

4. The historic blast furnaces at Fayette operated from 1867 to 1891 in the upper peninsula of Michigan, manufacturing charcoal pig iron. The process of smelting mined ore into pig iron required what two locally available resources?
A). fresh water and lake sand
B). hardwood and limestone
C). Heavy clay and copper
D). Flint and peat moss
E). Skilled blacksmiths and arable land

5. Stand anywhere in Michigan and you are within 85 miles of a Great Lake.
TRUE or FALSE

6. Michigan is the top producer (of any state in the U.S.) for several specific agricultural goods. Identify the one agricultural product below that Michigan does NOT lead the nation in growing.
A). Asparagus
B). Blueberries
C). Pickling cucumbers
D). Chestnuts
E). Potato chip potatoes

7. Michigan is the largest producing region in the world for which kind of cherries?
A). Montmorency
B). Bing
C). Black
D). Morello
E). Maraschino

8. Which two crops cover the largest number of acres in Michigan?
A). Blueberries and cherries
B). Celery and potatoes
C). Apples and peaches
D). Corn and soybeans
E). Pineapples and pomegranates

9. The largest edible fruit native to the U.S. grows in Michigan. It is a(n):
A) Watermelon
B) Pawpaw
C) Plum
D) Apple
E) Tomato

10. The architect Elijah E. Meyer won a national contest in 1871 to design the Michigan State capitol in Lansing. Acclaim for our capitol boosted Meyer’s career and led to his work on other state capitols. What other two state capitols are designed by Elijah E. Meyer?
A). Nebraska and Iowa
B). South Dakota and Wyoming
C). Colorado and Texas
D). Nevada and Idaho
E). Montana and Oregon

11. When was the Michigan state constitution last updated and adopted?
A). 1835
B). 1850
C) 1907
D). 1963
E). 1981

12. The Soo Locks were built in 1855 to connect Lake Superior to Lake Huron via the St. Mary’s River System. These locks allow boats to safely traverse a 21 foot drop. The current travel time for a freighter to move from Lake Superior to Lake Huron through the Soo Locks is:
A). 45 minutes
B). 90 minutes
C). Four hours
D). Nine hours
E). Twelve hours

13. Of all the iron ore mined in the U.S., 100% travels through the Soo Locks.
TRUE or FALSE

14. Michigan has a total of more than ____ waterfalls, all but two of them in the Upper Peninsula.
A). 25
B). 50
C). 150
D). 400
E). 1,000

15. Michigan has been the “first” state in the nation in many situations. Find the one statement below that is NOT true about Michigan:
A). First state to abolish the death penalty
B). First public recreational canoe liveries (Ann Arbor)
C). First state to overturn prohibition, ratifying the 21st amendment
D). First outdoor pedestrian mall (Kalamazoo)
E). First zoo to feature cageless exhibits (Detroit Zoo)

16. How many representatives does Michigan have in the U.S. House of Representatives?
A). Eight
B). Twelve
C). Fourteen
D). Sixteen
E). Nineteen

17. How many U.S. states border the state of Michigan (including those that border across shared waterways)?
A). Two
B). Three
C). Four
D). Five
E). Six

18. The most extensive stand of old growth northern hardwood forest in North America west of the Adirondack Mountains is located in Michigan. This area of 31,000 acres is called the
A). Au Sable State Forest
B). Porcupine Mountains
C). Hartwick Pines State Park
D). Warren Woods National Natural Landmark
E). Mackinaw State Forest

19. Which one of these celebrities was NOT born in Michigan?
A) Christie Brinkley
B) Burt Reynolds
C) Sonny Bono
D) Aretha Franklin
E) Francis Ford Coppola

20. Michigan has one National Park: an island on Lake Superior called Isle Royale. What are the current estimated populations of wolves and moose on Isle Royale?
A). 50 wolves; 664 moose
B) 30 wolves; 540 moose
C). 24 wolves; 811 moose
D). 14 wolves; 2060 moose
E). 9 wolves; 1050 moose

21. The state of Michigan has ________ miles of shoreline on the Great Lakes
A). 1,567
B). 2,045
C). 3,288
D). 4,390
E). 5,129

22.Which of these Michigan governors was born in Canada?
A). George Romney
B). Rick Snyder
C). William G. Milliken
D). Gretchen Whitmer
E). Jennifer Granholm

23. The city of Detroit is across the Detroit River from Windsor, Canada. You can travel from Detroit to Windsor by way of
A) a tunnel going south
B) a drawbridge going north
C) a ferry boat going west
D) A train going east
E) From Detroit you can only get to Windsor directly via helicopter

24. Lake Michigan is home to many lovely rocks, including the Petoskey Stone and the Charlevoix Stone, both fossilized coral rock. Another remarkable stone can be found in Leland, Michigan. This beautiful rock is actually discarded slag, a byproduct of the iron ore smelting industry. What color is the slag rock found in Leland?
A). Reflective copper
B). Shiny yellow
C). Turquoise blue
D). Iridescent white
E). Speckled orange

25. All of Michigan is in the Eastern Standard Time zone.
TRUE or FALSE

26. This city in Michigan has the most diverse Arab population (and largest Arab population, proportionally) in the whole of the U.S.
A). Hamtramck
B). Novi
C). Dearborn
D). Monroe
E). Livonia

27. This city in Michigan elected the first Muslim-majority City Council in the United States.
A) Hamtramck
B) Novi
C). Dearborn
D) Monroe
E). Livonia

28. The Mackinaw Suspension Bridge connecting the lower peninsula to the upper peninsula is _______ long.
A). a half mile
B). One mile
C). Three miles
D). Four miles
E). Five miles

29. What is the Toledo Strip?
A) a dance to celebrate UM beating Ohio State
B) a popular cut of meat once served in Detroit restaurants
C) a narrow strip of land, the subject of a war between Michigan and Ohio
D). the Lake Erie shoreline between Toledo and Michigan
E). A street of Ohio-themed shopping in downtown Grand Rapids

30. Michigan’s shoreline is the second longest of any U.S. state. The state with the longest shoreline is:
A). California
B). Maine
C). Florida
D). Alaska
E). Hawaii