Wind Point Lighthouse

The lighthouse was built in the era when Lake Michigan was a great highway of commerce, its waters thick with schooners and steamers carrying grain, lumber, and passengers between the growing cities of the region. Racine was a thriving port, and the point of land here reached out into the shipping lanes as a genuine danger, one that had claimed vessels before the light was raised.

A tall tower was needed so its beam could be seen far out over the water, which is why Wind Point rose to such an unusual height for a Great Lakes light. Its keepers tended the lamp through storms and long winters, part of a chain of lights that made navigation of the lake safer, and the station stood as a vital link in the commerce that built the lakeshore cities.

This shore of Lake Michigan is part of the ancestral country of the Potawatomi and other tribes of the western Great Lakes, whose long presence along these waters predates the harbors and lighthouses by generations. The lake was a route of travel and a source of life for the peoples who lived along it, and that deep relationship to these waters continues into the present.

The point itself, thrust out into the lake, has always been a place where land and water meet dramatically. The same feature that made it a hazard to ships makes it a fine place to stand and watch the moods of Lake Michigan, from calm blue summer days to the gray gales that gave the point its name and made the light so necessary.

Wind Point is a well-preserved example of a complete light station, not just a tower but a small community of buildings. The keeper's quarters and support structures survive alongside the light, and the whole site is cared for as a village and community landmark, its grounds open for people to walk and enjoy the lake views.

The tower is generally not open for everyday climbing, but on special occasions visitors can climb the winding stairs to the lantern room for a sweeping view of the lake and shore. Even from the ground, though, the station rewards a visit, with its handsome architecture, its lawns above the water, and the ever-changing face of Lake Michigan beyond.

Summer is the finest time to visit, when the grounds are green, the lake is at its most inviting, and the nearby beach and park draw families to the shore. Warm, long days make for pleasant walking around the station and along the water.

Autumn brings crisp air, dramatic skies, and thinner crowds, a fine season for photographing the white tower against the changing light of the lake. Winter can be starkly beautiful here, the point swept by cold lake winds and the shore rimmed with ice, though it is a bracing time to visit this exposed stretch of coast.

The closest Boutel™ stays, so you can turn this stop into an overnight. Each is an independently owned, editorially selected place to stay.