First lit in 1869, the McGulpin Point Lighthouse was a pivotal navigational tool for ships on Lake Michigan. The lighthouse marked the southwestern edge of the Straits of Mackinac entrance and is located on a promontory just west of Mackinaw City in Northern Michigan.

The point of land where the McGulpin Point Lighthouse is located was first inhabited by the Native Americans. John McAlpin and his Native American wife arrived at the point in the 1760s. The 640-acre property was the first one deeded in Emmet County in 1811 and was in the name of Patrick McGulpin, son of the McAlpins. By the early 1850s, it was determined that a lighthouse was needed on this spot in the Straits of Mackinac and Congress authorized it to be built in 1854.