Which Great Lake has Chicago on its southwestern shore?

Lake Michigan is the Great Lake with Chicago on its southwestern shore. The city’s lakefront stretches along the southwestern end of the lake in Illinois.

Lake Michigan is one of North America’s five Great Lakes and the only one located entirely within the United States. Its shoreline is shared by Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin, and Michigan, while Chicago occupies a major urban section on the western side.

The lake is about 307 miles long and reaches a maximum depth of roughly 923 feet. It connects with Lake Huron through the Straits of Mackinac; because the two basins have the same water level, hydrologists sometimes discuss them as a single system called Lake Michigan–Huron.

Chicago’s relationship with the lake is especially important. The waterfront supports parks, beaches, harbors, shipping, and drinking-water infrastructure, and the city’s lakefront trail follows much of the shoreline. A frequent mistake is choosing Lake Erie because it is also near major cities, but Chicago is firmly associated with Lake Michigan.