Michigan’s Oldest Unfulfilled Promise: Why Sault Ste. Marie Isn’t a Metropolis

When someone thinks of Michigan's largest and most important cities they likely don't get much beyond Detroit, Grand Rapids, Lansing and perhaps Flint. The major population centers of the state are all far to the south.

Northern Michigan has never developed a major metropolis. That fact leaves many surprised that the Sault Ste Marie region never grew larger than it currently is. It is, after all, the oldest city in the state.

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Sault Ste. Marie's Strategic Advantage

Consider the region sits at a key spot on the St Marys River, the only connection between Lake Superior and the rest of the Great Lakes as well as ocean access via the St Lawrence Seaway.

The region is home to the Soo Locks which allow mega-freighters, known as Lakers, to traverse the region bypassing the rapids for which the cities are named.

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Counting generously, the region has a population approaching 100,000 people (13,000 in Soo, Michigan and 76,000 in the Ontario Metro).

So why did the region not explode with population? It's a question that came up recently on the Geography subreddit of Reddit with this argument:

Centre of all the great lakes.

6 hour drive from Detroit. 8 hour drive from Chicago. 9 hours from Toronto. And not THAT far from Minneapolis....

Relatively flat terrain, the Canadian side has rolling valleys but no real harsh mountains

Seems plausible and reasonable given those factors that the Soo should be a larger, more populated region.

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One possible answer to why not is the lack of a deep water port. While ships pass through the region, they don't harbor there.

Parallels with Other Underdeveloped Hubs

While there may not be a direct parallel, the situation with the Soo is a bit reminiscent of the small city at the bottom of the state of Illinois, Cairo. There's a similar question asked often as to why Cairo is not larger than it is (just over 1500 people) despite sitting at the confluence the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers. The reason for that city's lack of population is attributed to both flooding and a history of racial tension and unrest.