Canada occupies such an amazingly large swath of upper North American that, understandably, one can overlook exactly how far south the country actually extends. The Province of Ontario contains its most southerly extremes: on the mainland at Point Pelee; on solid land at the edge of Middle Island; and on open water at an international boundary upon Lake Erie just south of Middle Island. I may have more to say about Point Pelee and Middle Island someday in the future, but for now I’d like to focus on that line of latitude that happens to nick Canada’s absolute southernmost reach, that portion of the boundary running through Lake Erie.
The Southernmost Point
It’s an easy enough line to draw. I’ve simply extended the endpoints straight along the latitude corresponding to the furthest dip in the international boundary. It’s not particularly remarkable in its own right and you’re probably not too impressed at the moment either. It’s not even a round number, rather it correlates to 41° 40′ 35.47″ (or 41.676519 in decimal notation) according to the International Boundary Commission. However, let’s fly up towards the inner fringes of space and take another look.
Now this is impressive. What this tells me is that there are places in Canada that are further south than territory associated with twenty six twenty seven of fifty United States. Let that sink in: you can remain on the Canadian side of the border and locate yourself at a lower latitude than at least some points in more than half of the states forming the USA. Wow. I had no idea.
Additional Observations
Assuming I’ve drawn the line correctly, and with my lack of map-making skills that’s always a possibility, then this is how it breaks down:
- The southernmost point in Canada is completely south of Alaska (duh!); Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine.
- It is south of substantial portions of Wyoming, Nebraska, Iowa, New York, Rhode Island and Connecticut
- It is south of (generally small) slices of California, Nevada, Utah, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and Pennsylvania.
Hey, readers in Chicago, did you know that Canada extends further south than your city? Same for you, Providence and Hartford. Steve, my blogger friend (he would say “bliend”) from Connecticut Museum Quest — Canada extends further south than your home too. Crescent City, California… California! for crying out loud, readers there live further north than a portion of Canada.
How’s that for messing with a few paradigms?
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