The Sibley Peninsula is a and

peninsula A peninsula is a landform that extends from a mainland and is only connected to land on one side. Peninsulas exist on each continent. The largest peninsula in the world is the Arabian Peninsula. Etymology The word ''peninsula'' derives , . T ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, on

Lake Superior Lake Superior is the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface areaThe Caspian Sea is the largest lake, but is saline, not freshwater. Lake Michigan–Huron has a larger combined surface area than Superior, but is normally considered tw ...

. It projects into the lake from Superior's north shore, and separates

Thunder Bay Thunder Bay is a city in and the seat of Thunder Bay District, Ontario, Canada. It is the most populous municipality in Northwestern Ontario and the second most populous (after Greater Sudbury) municipality in Northern Ontario. Its population i ...

to the west from Black Bay to the east.''Sleeping Giant Background Information'', 3.2 Earth Science, Topography, pp. 11.

Sleeping Giant Provincial Park Sleeping Giant Provincial Park, established in 1944 as Sibley Provincial Park and renamed in 1988, is a park located on the Sibley Peninsula in Northwestern Ontario, east of Thunder Bay. The nearest communities are Pass Lake, in the township o ...

occupies most of the peninsula, while the actual Sleeping Giant rock formation, which resembles a human figure lying on its back, forms the southernmost extension of the peninsula. Twenty native fish species are known from lakes within the park. Also on the peninsula are the Thunder Cape Bird Observatory, at its southern tip, and the small town of Silver Islet. Highway 587 runs along the peninsula from Highway 17 to Silver Islet. The peninsula was named after Alexander H. Sibley, president of the Silver Islet Mining Company that developed a mine there.

Geology

The peninsula can be separated into two physiographic areas—

highlands Highland is a broad term for areas of higher elevation, such as a mountain range or mountainous plateau. Highland, Highlands, or The Highlands, may also refer to: Places Africa * Highlands, Johannesburg, South Africa * Highlands, Harare, Zimbab ...

and

lowland Upland and lowland are conditional descriptions of a plain based on elevation above sea level. In studies of the ecology of freshwater rivers, habitats are classified as upland or lowland. Definitions Upland and lowland are portions of a ...

s. The highlands dominate the western half of the peninsula, and rise to above the surface of Lake Superior. The lowlands of the eastern portion of the peninsula rise to only , over an area wide. With the exception of

diabase Diabase (), also called dolerite () or microgabbro, is a mafic, holocrystalline, subvolcanic rock equivalent to volcanic basalt or plutonic gabbro. Diabase dikes and sills are typically shallow intrusive bodies and often exhibit fine-gra ...

dikes Dyke or dike may refer to: General uses * Dyke (slang), a slang word meaning "lesbian" * Dike (geology), formations of magma or sediment that cut through and across the layering of adjacent rocks * Dike (mythology), ''Dikē'', the Greek goddess ...

and the large diabase sill that forms the upper portion of the Sleeping Giant, the peninsula is underlain by

sedimentary rocks Sedimentary rocks are types of rock formed by the cementation of sediments—i.e. particles made of minerals (geological detritus) or organic matter (biological detritus)—that have been accumulated or deposited at Earth's surface. Sedim ...

, which strike northeast and slope towards the southwest, forming a

cuesta A cuesta () is a hill or ridge with a gentle slope on one side, and a steep slope on the other. In geology, the term is more specifically applied to a ridge where a harder sedimentary rock overlies a softer layer, the whole being tilted somew ...

History

Sibley Peninsula (pronounced Syb-Lee) has archaeological sites from

Paleoindian Paleo-Indians were the first peoples who entered and subsequently inhabited the Americas towards the end of the Late Pleistocene period. The prefix ''paleo-'' comes from . The term ''Paleo-Indians'' applies specifically to the lithic period in ...

, arachaic, and

woodland A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with woody plants (trees and shrubs), or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the '' plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunli ...

settlements. In 1868 silver was discovered, and from 1870 to 1884 the mine at Silver Islet was the richest silver mine in the world.

References

External links

''Lake Superior'' magazine article that includes some history of the area
*Ontario Parks '' ttps://web.archive.org/web/20071107021908/http://www.ontarioparks.com/english/planning_pdf/sleeping_giant_bg_info.pdf Sleeping Giant Background Information' (2003) Queen's Printer for Ontario. . Retrieved on 26 September 2007. {{coord, 48, 20, 14, N, 88, 54, 16, W, display=title Peninsulas of Ontario Landforms of Thunder Bay District

Geology

History

See also

References

External links