If you’ve visited both Big Sable Point Lighthouse and Little Sable Point Lighthouse, you’ve probably noticed one of their biggest differences. Big Sable stands tall with its distinctive black-and-white spiral stripes, while Little Sable’s warm red brick exterior looks much simpler.
It’s one of the questions we hear most often:
Why are lighthouses painted different colors?
The answer has less to do with style than with safety.
The Purpose of Lighthouse Daymarks
Long before GPS, radar, and electronic navigation, mariners relied on visual clues to determine their location. While a lighthouse’s beacon guided ships at night, sailors also needed a way to recognize landmarks during daylight hours.
That’s where lighthouse daymarks came in.
A daymark is the unique color, pattern, or shape of a lighthouse that makes it instantly recognizable during the day. Each distinctive paint scheme helped mariners identify which lighthouse they were seeing and, in turn, determine their position along the shoreline.
Think of it as each lighthouse having its own signature.
Why Does Big Sable Have Black-and-White Stripes?
The towering black-and-white stripes of Big Sable Point Lighthouse weren’t chosen simply because they look impressive—they were designed to stand out.
Surrounded by miles of sandy dunes, forests, and Lake Michigan shoreline, the lighthouse’s bold spiral pattern makes it easy to spot from many miles offshore. The contrasting stripes create a memorable silhouette that sailors could recognize even in hazy conditions.
Today, those famous stripes have become one of Michigan’s most recognizable lighthouse features, but they originally served a practical purpose: helping ships know exactly which point along the coast they were approaching.
Why Is Little Sable Left as Red Brick?
Little Sable Point Lighthouse tells a different story.
Originally, Little Sable was painted white. The tower remained white until 1977, when the Coast Guard decided that repainting it every few years was no longer warranted. In the early 1900s, however, the paint began to deteriorate, and maintaining the entire tower proved costly. Rather than repainting it, the protective coating was removed. Since then, the tower’s beautiful brick color has been revealed and is visible today, revealing the beautiful Cream City brick beneath.
The exposed brick became its own distinctive daymark.
Instead of relying on bold stripes, Little Sable could be identified by its natural reddish-brown color and elegant shape. Against the surrounding dunes and trees, it remained easy for mariners to distinguish from neighboring lighthouses.
More Than Just Paint
Not every lighthouse uses stripes.
Across the Great Lakes and around the world, lighthouse daymarks come in many forms:
- Solid white towers
- Red brick exteriors
- Black-and-white horizontal or spiral stripes
- Red-and-white bands
- Unique tower shapes and lantern designs
Some lighthouses are recognizable by their color alone, while others rely on distinctive architecture or even the surrounding buildings.
At night, mariners depended on each lighthouse’s unique light characteristic—the pattern of flashes produced by the beacon. During the day, however, the daymark did the work.
Helping Sailors Before Modern Technology
Imagine navigating Lake Michigan without a chartplotter or smartphone.
As a captain sailed along the shoreline, spotting a striped lighthouse rather than a plain brick one, they could immediately confirm their location. That information helped them avoid hazards, enter harbors safely, and stay on course.
Every lighthouse had a role to play, and its appearance was carefully considered to prevent confusion with nearby lights.
A Legacy That Lives On
Although today’s mariners have sophisticated navigation systems, lighthouse daymarks remain an important part of maritime history. And one of the reasons every lighthouse has its own personality.
At Lakeshore Keepers, we’re proud to preserve both Big Sable Point Lighthouse and Little Sable Point Lighthouse, each with its own unique appearance and story.
The next time you see Big Sable’s iconic black-and-white stripes or admire Little Sable’s historic brick exterior, you’ll know you’re looking at more than beautiful architecture. You’re seeing a centuries-old navigation system that helped countless sailors safely find their way home.
After all, sometimes the color of a lighthouse could make all the difference.
