Original subtitles

inland lake in the state.

that will change. but they're hoping

michigan wine country also lures detroiters

and other city dwellers seeking a summer escape.

no rush to get back home. and when they do, there's

in michigan, summer holidays are so treasured

written into law. they've even been

the name "michigan" is a native american word

meaning "big lake."

to the four great lakes but that doesn't just refer

that border the state.

more than 11,000 inland lakes, it also refers to michigan's

like this one.

these are the turquoise waters of the longest and deepest

for now, most winemakers here only sell locally,

torch lake has been called one of the most beautiful

in the world.

spend their summers it's one reason michiganders

right here at home.

they paraglide over the shore bluffs of benzie county

and ride the dunes of silver lake state park.

summer holidays are so important in this state

that the michigan legislature weighed in and made it official.

schools are not allowed to start classes before labor day.

and just before school begins,

tens of thousands leave their holidays behind

and gather for an annual labor day weekend ritual...

the opening game

the corn for kellogg's corn flakes

and then using heavy rollers to flatten it into flakes.

tired of their old porridge,

his patients loved it,

was born. and kellogg's corn flakes

will went on to found the kellogg company.

most recognized brands, today, it's one of the world's

in battle creek, and it's still headquartered

which is also known as cereal city.

local legend has it that when the building's architects

surveyed kellogg executives,

most said they wanted a corner office,

which is how the kellogg headquarters

got its unique shape.

wolverines football team. of the university of michigan's

no longer comes from michigan.

and these days, michigan farmers are experimenting

with a new kind of crop,

one that dr. kellogg would most certainly disapprove of.

this is michigan wine country.

there are now 14,600 acres of vineyards in the state.

most grow juice grapes,

but some 100 vineyards now produce michigan wine.

vintners here on the old mission peninsula like to point out

that their vineyards lie on the 45th parallel--

the same latitude as such celebrated french wine regions

as alsace, bordeaux and burgundy.

the campus was alive with gatherings

google co-founder larry page, actor james earl jones,

the late dr. jack kevorkian, or even madonna,

all former students at the u of m.

the only history-maker but football hasn't been

on this campus.

in the beginning of the 1960s,

a much smaller group of michigan students

gathered on these steps of the student union

to hear presidential candidate john f. kennedy

during a midnight campaign stop.

he urged them to contribute part of their lives to america,

a plan that later became the peace corps.

during the vietnam war years,

past attendees could have included

and protests for peace.

michigan faculty led the country's first "teach-in"

in 1965.

two years later,

hundreds of students occupied the administration building,

in opposition to the university's defense contracts.

the students were taking a cue from michigan's autoworkers,

whose own sit-down strike 31 years earlier

biggest industrial corporations had brought one the world's

to its knees.

it happened in the automotive manufacturing center of flint,

about 57 miles northwest of detroit.

this now-abandoned building was once part

what makes this stadium so unique for its size

no university, and not even any team in the nfl,

can beat michigan's big house--

the largest football stadium in the country.

for years, the big house and penn state's beaver stadium

battled for that title.

but in 2010, the university of michigan spent $226 million

to make their stadium even bigger,

and successfully beat out penn state's by 3,329 seats.

official seating capacity is 109,901,

but attendance at most games tops 110,000.

today, all seats for this game against western michigan

are sold out,

which is why tickets were being scalped for up to $4,000.

by first steaming it,

is its understated design--

or retractable roof. there's no giant dome

the big house was built in the 1920s

on land that contained an underground spring.

during construction,

the moist, unstable earth swallowed a crane,

which, according to legend,

still remains buried beneath the field.

in the footsteps today's players are following

of football legends tom brady, tom harmon, desmond howard,

and even president gerald ford,

who played center for the wolverines in the 1930s.

a billionaire trucking magnate. the bridge's owner is

secretaries were hired to hide it in their purses.

others stowed it in false trunks.

one man was even caught with a shipment of eggs,

each of which had been emptied and filled with scotch whiskey.

the techniques of smuggling liquor in the 1920s

are similar to those used by today's drug couriers.

proximity to canada and detroit's

still makes it a hub of illegal trade.

the ambassador bridge is now the busiest international crossing

in the u.s. for goods.

surprisingly, this vital link

biggest trading partner to the united states'

is the only privately owned border crossing in the country.

smuggling alcohol got a whole lot easier.

is one of the reasons detroit's proximity to canada

the state capital. that it's no longer

after michigan received its statehood in 1837,

legislators wanted a more protected site

for their capital city.

so they moved it from detroit to a little-known inland spot

called the township of lansing,

which was so small at the time,

some simply called it "a hole in the woods."

the story goes that legislators joked

when they reached their decision.

they had chosen this tiny town they couldn't quite believe that

of fewer than 20 people to be the capital of their new state.

macarthur bridge. crossed belle isle's

to plan a new public park on belle isle.

architect albert kahn was commissioned to design

this elaborate conservatory,

which was inspired by president thomas jefferson's

virginia estate, monticello.

in the 1950s,

the conservatory was given a collection of 600 orchids,

which still remains the highlight

of its botanical gardens today.

but in prohibition days,

this popular island offered the perfect cover

for rum smugglers from canada to meet their buyers from detroit.

but not all of canada's booze

but their moral beliefs couldn't have been clearer.

vast quantities of rum, vodka and whiskey

were smuggled in boats or pulled across the river on cables.

when the detroit river froze, smugglers walked across,

with bottles stowed in their high boots,

thus, the term "bootleggers."

there was so much illegal liquor flowing through detroit,

it was the second biggest industry in the city at the time

after automobiles.

the detroit river carried 75% of all liquor

smuggled into the united states during prohibition.

when the nearby ambassador bridge opened in 1929

and cars could drive across the borders,

for the seventh day adventist church here in battle creek.

one reason frankenmuth is so popular

is because more than two million michiganders

claim german heritage.

the crops that germans and other early settlers

farmed in michigan

have given the state

one of the most diverse crop systems in the world.

beans, cherries, sugar beets, blueberries, and wheat

are only a few of the more than 200 commodities grown here.

at the turn of the 20th century, a local michigan doctor used

most plentiful crops one of the state's

to develop a food empire.

in 1876, dr. john harvey kellogg ran this vast sanitarium

and locally brewed german beer.

patients filled its rooms hoping to benefit

of healthy living. from dr. kellogg's principles

"eat what the monkey eats," he prescribed,

"simple food and not much of it."

included abstinence, dr. kellogg's prescribed regimen

a vegetarian diet, colonics, and corn flakes.

many famous patients came for kellogg's cure,

including president william howard taft,

thomas edison and amelia earhart.

several years earlier, dr. kellogg and his brother will

had developed a method of producing flakes

from wheat and corn

many were shocked by the conditions here.

the first act of the legislature

was to abolish the death penalty,

making michigan the first english-speaking territory

in the world to outlaw capital punishment.

tolerance has been a core part of michigan's history

ever since.

in the 19th century, it was a haven for runaway slaves

fleeing the south on the underground railroad.

and it helps explain why michigan is home

to a town popularly known as little bavaria.

in the 19th century, german lutheran missionaries

called to their brethren back home to join them

in converting chippewa indians to christianity.

body plant number one, of general motors' fisher

one wrote home saying that,

"the most miserable village in germany

has palaces by comparison."

but slowly the little town, frankenmuth, grew

and now looks more german than american.

look this way. but it didn't always

frankenmuth was a pretty typical midwestern community

until the 1950s,

when enterprising townspeople renovated it

into little bavaria.

now, three million visitors a year come here

to soak up the old world atmosphere

in the mid-1980s.

was originally spearheaded by henry ford's son

to help pull detroit up after its devastating 1967 riots.

but by the time michael moore arrived,

was itself facing hard times, michigan's auto industry

or at least its workers were.

things were particularly bad in moore's hometown, flint,

where gm was born.

flint had lost 40,000 auto jobs

as carmakers moved their work overseas,

while gm itself was recording record profits.

on top of this giant slab of concrete

was once the buick assembly line.

it housed 28,000 workers during peak production

the renaissance center, gm's headquarters, known as

now, the only evidence of this plant is the green lawn

that greeted executives as they arrived for work.

moore never got the meeting he wanted with roger,

but he did succeed in highlighting the corporate greed

that led to the layoffs,

and turned once-thriving factories like this one

into toxic cleanup sites.

place in michigan to suffer. and flint hasn't been the only

with the decline of the auto industry,

detroit has lost nearly a million residents

in the last 60 years.

and the exodus continues.

between 2000 and 2010,

just outside of town.

african american neighborhoods between the city's poorer

suburban ones. and it's richer, whiter

many know 8 mile today as the title of a 2002 film

starring the detroit hip-hop artist eminem.

born marshall mathers,

eminem lived just north of 8 mile as a teenager,

but crossed this boundary

freestyle rap battles. to take part in detroit's

"music," eminem sings, "is the only way that i know

how to escape from this 8 mile road."

to break free from 8 mile. eminem's success did enable him

but he didn't go far.

he now lives in this 29-room home near rochester hills

michigan was the only state in america to lose population.

famous michigan artist eminem hasn't been the only

ugly truths. to explore his state's

in the 1980s, a scrappy michigan filmmaker arrived in detroit

and turned his exploration of corporate greed

into a cult classic.

in 1988, documentary filmmaker michael moore,

armed with a camera, knocked on the ground floor entrance

of this 39-story tower--

the headquarters of general motors.

he was hoping to have a meeting with gm's chairman, roger smith.

but instead, he was escorted out again and again,

which became the story roger and me.

new vehicles are put to the test every year.

one of the largest free jazz gatherings in the country.

is still step in step today, michigan's economy

with the revenues of its automobile industry.

and these days,

those fortunes depend increasingly on sales overseas,

in europe, china and other emerging markets.

but production at home continues.

dearborn truck plant, every day, at ford's

up to 800 f-150s are loaded onto trains

and shipped across the u.s.

the f-150 remains the best-selling vehicle in america,

34 years running.

out on the proving grounds,

and there are those who live for the city's annual jazz fest,

their quality and performance may have a big impact

for years to come. on michigan's future

more to the wolverine state but there's always been much

than the automobile...

the towering dunes that line its coast,

the pristine waters of its inland lakes...

the brilliance of its skies.

transformed this ancient land and michigan's people, who

with the simple tools of water, timber, steel,

still alive today, and a spirit that's

high above its mackinac straits,

celebrating the land that is...

michigan.

no matter how hard times get...

the vast facilities of the automakers are disappearing

or being reborn.

the packard plant is now a giant canvas

best-known graffiti artists. for some of the world's

after one, known as banksy, tagged here,

a local gallery owner cut out his work

from the packard plant's wall,

so he could show it in his gallery.

entire city blocks have been vacated.

and eminem has featured detroit's ruins

in his music videos and movie.

but, despite the decay,

there are many who would never leave detroit

it's also the boundary

...like diehard fans of the detroit tigers,

who play here at comerica park.

for years, this park also had the reputation

nightmare. of being a right-handed hitter's

players and fans alike complained

about the farther-than-usual left field wall.

so in 2002, the team moved the wall

25 feet closer to home plate,

and that year, the tigers hit 77 more home runs.

but the next year, they had an impressive losing streak,

one of the worst in american league history.

tiger fans from coming. but that doesn't seem to stop

and sold 60 million cars in one decade alone.

both b-24s and b-17s, like this one,

front-line bombers in europe. served as america's

five years earlier,

leader walter reuther the united auto workers'

had argued that america's battles "can be won

on the assembly lines of detroit."

and world war ii proved that he was right.

detroit quickly adopted the nickname,

"the arsenal of democracy."

in the 1950s, business boomed again,

at least for the big three automakers.

ford, general motors and chrysler flooded the market

with stylish, cheaper models,

willow run had turned out more than 8,000 planes.

struggled. but detroit's smaller carmakers

this vast industrial complex

was one of the most advanced factories in the world

when it was built in 1903.

not only did it produce some of america's most luxurious

and sought-after cars of the 1930s,

but it also introduced the world to an architect

who would transform detroit's skyline--albert kahn.

kahn, a german immigrant,

employed the revolutionary building technique

of reinforced concrete,

instead of strengthening its structure with wood alone.

the resulting factory was sturdy, spacious and efficient.

but within three years, many of america's unionized autoworkers

where workers assembled gm's cars.

and it was here on the evening of december 30, 1936,

that those workers locked themselves in and sat down.

day after day, they refused to work or to leave,

demanding better pay and union recognition.

strikes spread quickly throughout other gm factories,

and assembly line workers and police battled.

44 days later,

after its assembly lines had stopped altogether, gm gave in.

the company signed an agreement

recognizing the united auto workers

as the sole bargaining agent for its employees,

ushering in a new era for labor and industry.

the legendary packard brothers

but machines of war. weren't making cars,

in 1940, president roosevelt ordered automakers

to retool their assembly lines for trucks, tanks and bombers.

at the time, this plane, the b-17,

most advanced aircraft. was one of america's

to handle production of a new, longer-range b-24,

henry ford built a revolutionary assembly plant--willow run.

factory at the time, it was the world's largest

turning out one b-24 every hour, at its peak.

each new plane took its first flight from here,

the willow run airfield in ypsilanti.

by the war's end,

businesses were looted, buildings burned,

newcomers looking for work faced housing shortages.

white police abuse in african american neighborhoods

fueled existing racial tensions.

by 1967, it had all reached a fever pitch.

and then, on a hot july night, the city exploded.

it started here at this intersection

at clairmount avenue and 12th street,

just blocks from the motown studio.

dozens of people had gathered at a small bar

for an after-hours party to celebrate two vietnam vets.

but the police raided the gathering

and violence broke out.

a riot began.

by the end of the 1960s, unemployment was on the rise.

and the violence quickly spread.

even the national guard was unable to bring order.

by the time the famous detroit riots subsided five days later,

43 people were dead and thousands injured.

since the riots, it's been more than 40 years

but detroit still struggles with uneasy race relations,

poverty, and crime--

problems that are symbolized by one famous city street--

8 mile.

this long, straight road is a literal dividing line

that marks the boundary between the city of detroit

and its northern suburbs.

where round-the-clock recording sessions

stopped producing their luxury cars here in 1956,

unable to stay competitive with the big three.

their nearly mile-long plant has become

one of the most visible symbols of detroit's decline.

but while detroit companies like packard were starting to falter,

music began to thrive.

motor city was reborn as motown.

in 1959, a young composer and entrepreneur named berry gordy

bought this unassuming house on detroit's grand avenue.

he turned it into the headquarters

of his new motown records.

soon, history was being made in "studio a,"

a converted basement

the designer of new york's central park,

produced the distinctive motown sound.

a stunning array of local talent sang and socialized here--

smokey robinson, diana ross and the supremes,

the temptations, and stevie wonder.

the "hit factory," gordy's studio, also called

produced more than 100 top ten singles.

today, these historic studios

have been turned into the motown museum,

and the motown label is now headquartered in new york.

gordy sold it to mca records in 1988.

the popular soulful tunes of motown

echoed across an ever-changing detroit.

today, dearborn is home to the largest mosque

to disembark here.

three presidents did, too--

roosevelt, hoover and truman.

the last train left michigan station more than 20 years ago.

its platforms stand empty--

platforms that were once the last stop

for thousands of workers seeking jobs

on detroit's assembly lines.

and they came from all over the world.

as the demand for cars rose across the country,

automakers needed labor to build them.

tens of thousands flocked to michigan looking for work,

many from as far away as the middle east.

the only famous passenger charlie chaplin wasn't

in the united states.

of all dearborn residents that's because one third

claim arab-american heritage.

of immigrants from lebanon dearborn's population

and syria and other countries in the middle east

grew rapidly in the early 20th century.

most were christian, but later,

increasing numbers of muslim arabs arrived.

and in 1963, the community built this mosque,

the islamic center of america.

along with labor,

the big automakers also needed something else

to keep their assembly lines moving...

by the 1970s, the fox had fallen into disrepair,

at first, real gold covered its tower,

but that was removed during world war ii

for fear that the fisher building would become the target

of enemy bombers.

the 1920s, its culture thrived. as detroit's skyline expanded in

the fox theatre opened its doors in 1928.

funded by movie pioneer william fox,

it was the first in the world

to have built-in equipment for sound.

later, it became a venue for live shows.

sinatra, elvis,

and native detroiters the temptations and eminem

have all performed here.

raw materials.

but a $12.5 million renovation has recently restored

this art deco landmark.

great architecture not all of detroit's

from its heyday in the 1920s has been so lucky.

this is michigan central station--

or what's left of it.

when it opened in 1913,

it was the tallest railway station in the world.

roman baths inspired the design

of its grand station on the lower floors.

during the heyday of rail travel,

up to 200 trains arrived and departed from here every day.

and a giant wall of sand towering above lake michigan.

called the wisconsin glacier.

after that ice melted roughly 14,000 years ago,

paleo indians arrived.

they hunted mastodons and mammoths, caribou and beaver.

more recently, descendants of these early tribes

in dugout canoes, explored the area's waterways

fishing the many inlets

that still line michigan's coast today.

from the air, this is as varied a shoreline

as any in north america.

endless beaches,

remote pine forests that reach right down to the water,

miles of marsh,

once this area was covered by a great sheet of ice

national lakeshore... it's called sleeping bear dunes

...and is often ranked among the nation's tallest sand dunes.

but that's not quite accurate.

this isn't a typical dune.

the sand on its surface actually rests atop a bluff

of rock and gravel left by a glacier,

a perched dune. which is why it's called

but scientists say that it may not be perched here for long.

westerly winds off lake michigan are moving sleeping bear dune

inland at an average rate of two feet per year.

from top to bottom. it's 450 feet high

climbing back up can be hard work.

pulitzer prize-winning author carl sandburg

and will be used to build roads.

and the most important of these was steel.

to ensure his factories had a steady supply,

ford built this plant.

first fired up nearly a century ago,

this facility once supplied the steel for model ts.

now it's being upgraded

to turn out lightweight, rust-resistant body panels

for new models of cars.

it's owned by severstal,

steel companies. one of russia's largest

steel in michigan remains a burning hot business.

this fiery liquid, called slag,

is a byproduct of turning iron ore into steel

a "cathedral to commerce."

the automotive industry has driven michigan's economy

for more than a century.

but out beyond its assembly lines and towers of industry,

michigan is a very different land,

a land defined since its earliest beginnings by water.

in the state it's said that every resident

is less than 85 miles

from one of four of america's great lakes--

erie in the southeast,

huron to its east,

superior to the north,

or michigan on its west coast.

this horseless carriage was the first lightweight,

except for one truck.

a proving ground-- this is what's called

a place where america's automakers

put their latest vehicles through tough tests

before rolling them out across the country.

it was the automobile that transformed michigan

into one of the greatest manufacturing centers

in the world.

and much of that credit belongs to one car known as the model t.

it all started here in dearborn,

just a few miles east of detroit.

in 1908, the first model t

assembly line. rolled off henry ford's

but all of its lanes are empty, it's a weekday morning,

reliable, and most importantly, inexpensive car ever made.

to help convince ordinary families to buy his $850 cars,

ford famously offered to double many of his own workers' wages

so they, too, could afford the cars they built.

the model t was an unimaginable success.

over the next 19 years,

15 million americans across the country bought model ts,

with the automobile was born. and america's love affair

this may be the best place to imagine

what life was like back in the days

when the first automobiles rolled out

onto america's streets.

as greenfield village. it's a place known

headed out to entertain the world.

michigan.

a land of blue waters,

brilliant skies

and giant industry.

it was here where timber and steel helped create

one of the greatest manufacturing centers

in the world...

for invention where one man's passion

love affair with cars, gave birth to america's

and where icons of that industry still stand tall.

it was from michigan

that bootleggers once supplied america with illegal rum,

and musical superstars from stevie wonder to madonna

obsessed with cars, henry ford wasn't just

aerial michigan tells the story of the workers

industrial corporation who brought america's largest

to its knees

and helped win battles of world war ii,

where a hometown team reigns supreme

in one of the biggest rivalries in american sports.

thanks to its unique shape,

locals often call their state "the mitten."

but the rest of the world knows this midwestern powerhouse

as...

michigan.

american highway. this isn't your average

oldsmobile, and other early automakers.

was that it had its own hydroelectric power station.

ford had designed it

with help from his good friend, thomas edison.

built on this stretch of the rouge river

that ran through his property,

ford installed two generators that powered the entire estate

as well as the homes of 2,000 residents of west dearborn.

a 300-foot-long underground tunnel carried steam,

electricity and water from the plant to his residence.

oddly enough, the man most responsible for a world of cars

lived in a home that was practically carbon neutral.

meanwhile, gas-powered vehicles of all shapes and sizes

were rolling off the assembly lines of ford, general motors,

what made the estate unique

this new industry transformed michigan,

to see that transformation and there's no better place

than downtown detroit.

in 1927, the seven fisher brothers,

who owned the company

that first mass-produced the automobile body,

commissioned this skyscraper for their new headquarters.

great architect albert kahn they gave michigan's

a blank check to design a tower

that would grace the city like none had before.

when it was completed in 1928,

many called it the most beautiful building in the world,

the bus in which civil rights activist rosa parks

he was fascinated with all kinds of inventions,

and created an entire village just to celebrate them.

at the heart of greenfield village

invention factory. lies thomas edison's

it was in this menlo park complex

where edison first demonstrated his incandescent light bulb.

ford moved the surviving buildings from new jersey

and recreated the rest.

next door lies the henry ford museum.

it houses one of the most diverse automobile collections

in the world.

inside this vast complex is the limousine

in which president kennedy was assassinated,

has said that these dunes "are to the midwest

refused to give up her seat,

the first ford mustang, and the last model t ever made.

by 1914, 1,000 model ts

assembly lines every day, rolled off ford's

which made him a very wealthy man.

he bought 1,300 acres of land and commissioned a new home--

fair lane estate.

he warned his architects that he only wanted to spend $250,000

on this 56-room house.

but after hundreds of masons, carpenters and other artisans

worked around the clock for two straight years,

the final bill came in at nearly two million.

quietly, in the dark, they pulled a cannon up the hill

that can still seem lost in time.

surrounded by waters rich in fish

and positioned at the mouth of the straits,

mackinac island was first inhabited by native americans,

then french fur traders, and later, the british,

who established this fort here in 1780.

the u.s. government took control of the island in 1796,

but then lost it.

on the night of july 17, 1812,

the 30 american troops stationed here were asleep

when 300 british soldiers and native american allies,

who had sailed from canada,

landed on the backside of the island.

but just a few miles to the east lies an island

and aimed it at fort mackinac.

when the americans awoke to discover

that they were staring down the barrel of a cannon

and were outnumbered ten-to-one,

they surrendered without a fight.

it was the first land engagement of the war of 1812.

but two years later, after britain lost that war,

fort mackinac was safely returned to u.s. hands.

isolation is also its charm. the island's rich history and

the story goes that someone once brought a car to the island,

but after it scared the horses here, it was banned.

horse carriages and bicycles are now the only vehicles

allowed on mackinac's streets.

was "destined to remain forever a wilderness."

in the 1830s, the population of the michigan territory

reached 60,000,

which meant it could now apply for u.s. statehood.

but at the time, michigan and ohio were in a nasty battle

over a piece of land sandwiched between them,

which would have given each state

potentially lucrative shipping routes to the mississippi river.

this piece of land is now known as the toledo strip.

the federal government finally awarded

the 468-square-mile toledo strip to ohio,

and in compensation gave 9,000 square miles

in the upper peninsula to michigan.

at the time, many here thought that the u.p.

perched high above the straits is the grand hotel.

little did anyone know, their new land held buried treasure.

just five years after michigan received statehood,

vast deposits of copper and other precious ore

were discovered in the u.p.

soon, this forested region bustled with miners

who produced more than five million tons of copper

by the mid-20th century.

those days are now gone.

the last copper mines closed here in 1995.

and the forests of the u.p. are quiet again.

the mighty mac bridge finally connected

michigan's two peninsulas,

a few years later, prohibition was in full swing,

in 1902, henry leland founded cadillac automobiles,

which general motors turned into

best known luxury cars. one of america's

a major shipping route detroit's location on

and its close proximity to raw materials

like ore and timber

helped it grow into an important industrial and financial center,

one that rivaled san francisco, chicago and new york city.

but during the 1920s,

detroit had something very important

that these cities didn't.

in 1919, the u.s. government banned the sale and consumption

of alcohol across the country.

and he might be surprised that most americans know his name.

and detroit was just a stone's throw from canada

across the river, where alcohol was still legal.

soon the city crawled with liquor smugglers and the mafia.

detroit had no bridges to canada at the time,

only the macarthur bridge, which led to belle isle

in the middle of the detroit river,

right on the canadian border.

what made belle isle a perfect hub

for the buying and selling of liquor

was that it was already a popular meeting place

and recreation center for detroiters.

in the late 1800s, detroit had hired frederick law olmstead,

named antoine de la mothe cadillac,

summer since it opened in 1887. it's been full nearly every

mark twain used to offer lectures to the hotel's guests

for $1 each.

the grand 660-foot-long porch is the longest in the world.

once it was the gathering place

for just about everyone on this tiny island.

and it was on this porch

where actors christopher reeve and jane seymour

filmed the romantic cult classic somewhere in time.

but this island also played a small role

in a much more epic tale--

great city, detroit. the creation of michigan's

in 1701, a french commander

to be part of michigan.

who was in charge of mackinac island,

headed south and arrived on the banks of this river,

which links lake erie with lake huron.

cadillac had been given permission

from the french government to build a fort here.

he wanted to keep this vital waterway out of british hands

and reap personal profits by controlling trade,

especially trade in rum to native americans.

he claimed his new fort would be "the paradise of north america."

it was named detroit after the french word "le detroit,"

or "the strait."

cadillac would have a hard time recognizing the place today.

in the old days, cargo had to be carried around nearby rapids.

he had documented more than 2,000 miles of shoreline.

he also founded a jesuit mission

the canadian border on what's now

in the northernmost part of the state.

that settlement became the city of sault sainte marie,

which is among the oldest cities in the united states

and home to the soo locks.

all freighters sailing from new york, chicago or detroit

to lake superior

have to travel through these locks.

the reason the locks are necessary

is because the water level in lake superior is 21 feet higher

than that in lake huron.

but by the time the expedition was done five months later,

but in 1853,

the state of michigan commissioned these locks

so a single vessel could travel throughout all the great lakes

without having to transfer its cargo.

this bulk carrier, indiana harbor,

is on its way south.

it arrived in the lock at the level of lake superior.

now water from the lock is being released,

lowering the ship 21 feet to the same water level as lake huron.

from here, this 1,000-foot-long vessel

will carry its cargo of iron ore down to steel plants in michigan

and other midwestern states.

to lower a ship this size, it takes just 12 minutes.

today, this one on big sable point

what the grand canyon is to arizona

and the yosemite to california--

a signature of time and eternity."

once, natural landmarks like this one on michigan's coast

helped guide the native americans and european explorers

who first navigated the great lakes,

do for ship captains today. just as michigan's lighthouses

there are more than 120 lighthouses

on michigan's shores.

state, including maine. that's more than in any other

efforts are under way to save these historic structures

since many of these beacons are no longer in service,

at least for ships.

and workers here know that there's no time to waste.

is being used to pop the question.

one reason there are so many lighthouses in michigan

is because this state has a very long coast--

more than 3,200 miles,

making it the longest freshwater coast of any state.

not the easiest shoreline to map in a canoe!

priest tried to do in the 1670s. but that's what a french jesuit

hoping to find a passage to china

and convert a few native americans along the way,

father jacques marquette set off with a party in two canoes

to explore and map the shores of the great lakes.

he never found his passage,

but is home to only 3% of michigan's population.

its two main cables are suspended from towers

that soar over 500 feet into the air.

g. mennen williams,

the michigan governor who oversaw the project,

announced that the bridge "ranks with the pyramids,

the great hydroelectric dams, the skyscrapers of manhattan,

and the panama and suez canals."

but not everyone up here is so happy about the mighty mac.

on the northern end of this constructed marvel

natural one, is michigan's beloved

the upper peninsula,

also known as the u.p.

the u.p. makes up almost a third of the state,

in the western hemisphere.

u.p. residents, who can often be identified

by distinctive accents,

refer to themselves as "yoopers."

some of them wish the bridge had never been built

and have even called those who live below it "trolls."

some yoopers have even launched movements for the u.p.

to secede and to establish its own 51st american state,

to be called "superior," after their own great lake.

it might sound far-fetched, but actually,

the idea of an independent upper peninsula

may not be such a crazy one.

the fact is, most of the u.p. was not originally intended

"mighty mac" bridge. of michigan's

10,000 vessels pass through the soo locks every year,

making it the busiest locks in the world.

the soo locks lie on michigan's upper peninsula,

a place that used to be completely separated

from the michigan mainland,

until a remarkable feat of engineering

brought the two michigans together.

in northern michigan. it's not a typical morning

high above the straits of mackinac,

tens of thousands of people are on the move.

in a mass protest but they're not taking part

or making a morning commute.

this is the annual labor day crossing

it has the longest freshwater coast in america...

every year, thousands come from across the state

to celebrate the role of this bridge

upper and lower peninsulas. in linking michigan's

once, this divided state was part of a single landmass

until it was severed by retreating glacial ice.

as surrounding waters flowed in,

they formed the straits of mackinac

that now divide michigan into two very different pieces.

the only way to cross the straits was by air or water,

but in 1957, the mackinac bridge was completed.

its span measures in at 26,372 feet,

making it the longest suspension bridge