Your questions about Minnesota's lakes, answered

As winter draws to a close, the sun shines a bit brighter and chilly days turn ever warmer, which can mean only one thing for many Minnesotans: Lake season is almost here.

Minnesota's fabled 10,000 lakes are a favorite topic for readers who submit questions to Curious Minnesota, our community-driven reporting project. Here are answers to some of those queries.

Despite the famous moniker, Minnesota actually has 14,444 lakes of 10 acres or more, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

While the state's official nickname is "The North Star State," Minnesota has proudly touted its "10,000 lakes" tagline since 1950, when it first appeared on state license plates.

The earliest references to the phrase "10,000 lakes" comes from a speech delivered by a professor named Ransom F. Humiston at the Minnesota State Fair on Sept. 11, 1874, said Lauren Peck of the Minnesota Historical Society.

The nickname was broadly adopted by tourism publications starting in the 1920s, she said.

What determines the placement of the word "lake" in a Minnesota lake's name?

"There's no hard and fast rule to it, but the generic 'lake' appears in the first position if it's an important, prominent feature, like Lake Superior," said Pete Boulay, climatologist for the Department of Natural Resources.

It's often in the second position for lesser lakes.

However, in the end, it's the preference of local residents, Boulay said.

Naming a lake requires a petition signed by 15 or more registered voters in a county, who must argue their case before their county board. Proposed names should avoid confusion with similarly named geographic features and cannot commemorate a living person.

Harriet Lovejoy, the wife of a 19th-century commanding officer stationed at Fort Snelling, traveled from the Atlantic Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico and up the Mississippi River to arrive in Minnesota, Boulay said.

While it's not completely clear why Lake Harriet was named after Lovejoy, Boulay said she was probably one of the few women living in Fort Snelling when the lake was named in the 1820s. As Col. Henry Leavenworth's wife, she likely would have commanded the men's respect.

At 51.2 million acres, Minnesota is the nation's 14th-largest state, according to Minnesota House of Representatives researchers. About 2.6 million acres, or roughly 5%, is water.

With the Great Lakes, Wisconsin may have a higher percentage of its area covered by water, but Minnesota has more lakes and lake acreage.

henry.erlandson@startribune.com

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