{"id":11640,"date":"2020-01-22T07:02:00","date_gmt":"2020-01-22T07:02:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lakehomes.com\/info\/?p=11640"},"modified":"2024-07-30T14:16:48","modified_gmt":"2024-07-30T19:16:48","slug":"states-with-the-most-and-fewest-lakes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lakehomes.com\/info\/lifestyles\/states-with-the-most-and-fewest-lakes","title":{"rendered":"States with the Most and Fewest Lakes"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Reflection Lake, Alaska, is living up to its name. <\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Chances are, you\u2019ve probably spent a fair amount of time in and around a lake. After all, these large bodies of water are ubiquitous; everyone\u2019s at least <\/span>seen <\/span><\/i>a lake before, and there are lakes to be found everywhere in the United States\u2014 right? Not quite. Let\u2019s learn more about the U.S. states with the fewest and most natural lakes.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

States with the Fewest Lakes<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Believe it or not, there\u2019s one state without a single naturally occurring body of water large enough to be classified as a lake \u2014  Maryland<\/a>. Though the Old Line State boasts thousands of ponds, its only lakes are man-made<\/a>, including Lake Habeeb in Allegany County and Deep Creek Lake<\/a> in Garrett County (Maryland\u2019s largest inland body of water). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Deep Creek Lake is Maryland’s largest inland body of water. Photo courtesy of Maryland Office of Tourism<\/a>.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

That isn\u2019t to say there were never any natural lakes in Maryland. There is documented evidence that a body of water now known as Buckel\u2019s Bog<\/a> existed in Maryland during the late Pleistocene Epoch<\/a>, but it has since dried up. One cause for the lack of lakes in Maryland is the fact that glaciers never passed through the region; 74% of all lakes originated as pools gouged out by glaciers, but in Maryland, they were never given the chance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maryland isn\u2019t the only low-scoring state when it comes to natural lakes. Its neighbor, Delaware, features only one natural lake\u2014 the serenely brackish <\/span>Silver Lake<\/span><\/a> in Milford. Similar to Maryland, Delaware was an area of relatively low glacial action during the Ice Age.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Like Delaware, Texas has only one natural lake, Caddo Lake. And Caddo isn\u2019t even entirely Texan\u2014it <\/span>occupies the border<\/span><\/a> between Texas and Louisiana. Unlike the glacial lakes mentioned above, Caddo was formed after a natural logjam called the <\/span>Great Raft<\/span><\/a> dammed the Red River. A few lakes were created as a result of the Raft, which includes Caddo, Cross, Wallace, Bistineau, and Black Bayou lakes.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

States with the Most Lakes<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The states with the most lakes in America are the states that featured the most active glacial movement, so it\u2019s no surprise that they\u2019re all located in the northern United States. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

You might think that the big winner is Minnesota\u2014after all, it is the \u201cLand of 10,000 Lakes\u201d\u2014but you\u2019d be mistaken. In fact, Alaska is the state with the most lakes, with an estimated <\/span>3 million<\/span><\/a>, although most of them don\u2019t have names. Alaska\u2019s size is also a considerable advantage; though it has the most lakes from a numerical standpoint, it may not boast the most lakes per capita.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Lake
Lake Superior is Minnesota\u2019s largest lake. Photo courtesy of the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation<\/a>.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The state with the most named lakes is undoubtedly Minnesota, which boasts 11,842 lakes greater than 10 acres in size (the state\u2019s grand total is 15,291). In total, Minnesota has about <\/span>2.6 million acres<\/span><\/a> of lakes. <\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Close at Minnesota\u2019s heels is Wisconsin, which has 15,074 lakes, spread over about 1 million acres<\/a> of space. (Only 6,044<\/a> are named.)<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whether in a state with lots of lakes or almost none, Lake Homes Realty has you covered for top-of-the-line lake home properties. Lake Homes has thousands of properties for sale in <\/span>Minnesota and Wisconsin<\/span><\/a>. (Alaska is still in the works). And even though there\u2019s not a single natural lake in Maryland, Lake Homes features <\/span>over a hundred properties<\/span><\/a> in the state\u2014all located near beautiful man-made bodies of water.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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