[2] The lake, with a maximum depth of 63 feet (19 m), lies within Independence Township in Oakland County, Michigan.

[5] In 1851, the Detroit, Grand Haven and Milwaukee Railway came through Independence Township and a train depot was built in Clarkston.

[12] The Deer Lake Inn Hotel was a summer resort for vacationers from Detroit and Lansing.

The resort was easily accessed by four trains a day during the summer months from the 1890s to the 1940s and was located on Deer Lake near the Clarkston depot.

[14] U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Deer Lake (Independence Township, Michigan)