GreatAmericanLakes
The Chain

Lighthouses · America's Only Great Lake

Lake Michigan Lighthouses

97 lights on the Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois and Indiana shore, the earliest on record established in 1836. 63 are on the National Register of Historic Places, and Grosse Point Light is a National Historic Landmark.

Lighthouses

97

On the National Register

63

Earliest on record

1836

Deactivated

32

Chart of Lake Michigan with 97 lighthouses marked68th Street Crib LightChicago Harbor LightChicago Harbor Southeast Guidewall LightFour Mile Crib LightGrosse Point LightWaukegan Harbor LightWilliam E. Dever Crib LightWilson Avenue Crib LightIndiana Harbor East Breakwater LightMichigan City Breakwater LightMichigan City East LightOld Michigan City LightBeaver Island Harbor LightBeaver Island Head LightBig Sable Point LightCharlevoix South Pier Light StationFrankfort LightGrand Haven North Pierhead LightGrand Haven South Pierhead Entrance LightGrand Haven South Pierhead Inner LightGrand Traverse LightGrays Reef Light StationHolland Harbor LightIle Aux GaletsLansing Shoals Light StationLittle Sable Point LightLittle Traverse LightLudington LightManistee Pierhead LightsManistique East Breakwater LightManning Memorial LightMcGulpin Point LightMenominee Pier LightMinneapolis Shoal Light StationMission Point LightMuskegon Breakwater LightMuskegon South Pierhead LightNorth Manitou Island LightNorth Manitou Shoal Light StationPeninsula Point LighthousePentwater LightPentwater North Pierhead LightPentwater South Pierhead LightPoint Betsie LightPoverty Island Light StationSand Point LightSaugatuck Harbour LighthouseSeul Choix LightSouth Fox Island LightSouth Haven LightSouth Manitou Island LighthouseSquaw Island LightSt. Helena Island LightSt. Joseph North Pier Inner LightSt. Joseph North Pier Outer LightSt. Martin Island LightWaugoshance LightWhite River LightWhite Shoal LightAlgoma Pierhead LightBaileys Harbor Directional LightBaileys Harbor LightBaileys Harbor Range Front LightBaileys Harbor Range Rear LightCana Island LightChambers Island LightEagle Bluff LightGrassy Island Range LightsGreen Bay Harbor Entrance LightGreen Island Light (Marinette County)Kenosha LightKenosha North Pier LightKevich LightKewaunee Pierhead LighthouseLong Tail Point LightManitowoc Breakwater LightMilwaukee Breakwater LightMilwaukee Pierhead LightNorth Point LightPeshtigo Reef LightPilot Island LightPlum Island Range Front LightPlum Island Range Rear LightPort Washington Breakwater LightPort Washington LightPottawatomie LightRacine Harbor Lighthouse and Life Saving StationRacine North Breakwater LightRacine Reef LightRawley Point LightSheboygan Breakwater LightSheboygan LighthouseSherwood Point LightSturgeon Bay Canal LightSturgeon Bay Canal North Pierhead LightTwo Rivers LightWind Point Light
Michigan · 47Wisconsin · 38Illinois · 8Indiana · 4

The long watch

Earliest established on Michigan

By the founding date on record. Most stations were rebuilt at least once; the tower you see may be younger.

Est. 1836 · WI

Pottawatomie Light

39-foot tower · National Register

Est. 1837 · Racine, WI

Racine Harbor Lighthouse and Life Saving Station

Dark since 1903 · National Register

Est. 1839 · Grand Haven, MI

Grand Haven South Pierhead Entrance Light

36-foot tower

Est. 1840 · MI

South Manitou Island Lighthouse

66-foot tower · dark since 1958 · National Register

Est. 1849 · Port Washington, WI

Port Washington Light

36-foot tower · dark since 1903 · National Register

Est. 1850 · MI

Waugoshance Light

62-foot tower · dark since 1912 · National Register

Lake Michigan lighthouses in Michigan 47

Allegan County 1

Benzie County 2

Berrien County 2

Charlevoix County 4

County not listed 4

Delta County 5

Emmet County 6

Grand Traverse County 1

Leelanau County 3

Mackinac County 2

Manistee County 1

Mason County 2

Menominee County 1

Muskegon County 3

Oceana County 4

Ottawa County 3

Schoolcraft County 2

Van Buren County 1

Michigan Great Lakes lighthouses

Lake Michigan lighthouses in Wisconsin 38

Brown County 2

County not listed 3

Door County 14

Kenosha County 2

Kewaunee County 2

Manitowoc County 3

Marinette County 2

Milwaukee County 3

Ozaukee County 3

Racine County 3

Sheboygan County 1

Wisconsin Great Lakes lighthouses

Lake Michigan lighthouses in Illinois 8

Cook County 7

Lake County 1

Illinois Great Lakes lighthouses

Lake Michigan lighthouses in Indiana 4

Lake County 1

LaPorte County 3

Indiana Great Lakes lighthouses

Beyond the lights

More on Lake Michigan

Lake Michigan field guide143 Michigan boat launchesLighthouses worth the detourHow to read a light
How many lighthouses are on Lake Michigan?

This directory lists 97 lighthouses on the U.S. shore of Lake Michigan, in Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois and Indiana. That counts towers, pierhead and breakwater lights and range lights that have their own public record; it leaves out unrecorded minor aids.

What is the oldest lighthouse on Lake Michigan?

By the earliest established date on record: Pottawatomie Light (1836), Racine Harbor Lighthouse and Life Saving Station (1837), Grand Haven South Pierhead Entrance Light (1839). Many stations were rebuilt, so the tower standing today is often younger than the station's founding date.

What is the tallest lighthouse on Lake Michigan?

Among lights with a recorded tower height: White Shoal Light at about 121 feet, Big Sable Point Light at about 112 feet, Rawley Point Light at about 108 feet. Not every light has a height on record, so this is the tallest we can document, not a full survey.

Can you go inside Lake Michigan lighthouses?

Some, not all. Many are run by parks, museums or volunteer societies that open the tower in season; pierhead and offshore lights are usually closed or reachable only by boat. Each lighthouse page links to its fuller history and, where one exists, the operator. Check with them before you go.

Data from Wikidata (CC0), retrieved 2026-10-09; National Register references link to NPS NPGallery. Shoreline from Natural Earth (public domain). Charts are not for navigation. Corrections to contact@greatamericanlakes.com.