Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse

Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse is the easy history stop in Mackinaw City: a cream-brick lighthouse with castle-style battlements, billed as the “Castle of the Straits,” on the Lake Michigan shore just east of the Mackinac Bridge.

The light first shone in October 1892, and its fog signal was working two years earlier. The station closed in 1957, once the new bridge carried its own navigation lights. After a restoration that began in 1999, the restored lighthouse reopened in 2004.

Inside, three rooms of the keepers’ quarters are set up as they looked around 1910, and the second floor tells the story of a keeper’s family. There are exhibits on lenses and fog signals, and the Straits of Mackinac Shipwreck Museum fills a reconstructed warehouse on the grounds. In season, interpreters run fog whistle demonstrations and walking tours.

Climb the tower if you can: 51 steps up to the Watch Room and a look over the Straits. It is a tight squeeze at the top, so leave bags below. The lighthouse is part of Mackinac State Historic Parks, so it pairs well with Colonial Michilimackinac on the same pass. It is a seasonal site; check the dates before you plan around it.