Map of Lakes Province States including:
Western New York
Pennsylvania
Wisconsin
Ohio
Indiana
Michigan
Northern Minnesota
Southern Illinois
OVERVIEW: CHARACTER OF THE LAKES PROVINCE BUILT AND NATURAL ENVIRONMENTS
Lakes Province
In the last 400 years, the landscape of the
Lakes Province has been substantially altered
by development. European settlers cleared
swaths of original forests for farms and timber.
The tallgrass prairie was completely cleared for
farming and grazing.
The landscape of this vast province is generally a
cultivated, altered, and domesticated landscape
rather than a wild one. Even in national forests,
few spots are more than a few miles from a road.
Yet nature is regenerating strongly here. The
northern tier of this province did not readily yield
to the plow. Early settlers found the growing
season too short to raise crops. Much of this
landscape has reverted to pasture or forest and
efforts are underway to restore the prairies.
In this densely settled province, urban populations
rely on national forest lands, which comprise the
largest areas of open space and outdoor
recreation opportunities. People may expect high
levels of development in these recreation facilities.