 At the invitation of the state legislature, C. E. Fowler of New York City put forth a plan for a long series of causeways and bridges across the straits from Cheboygan, southeast of Mackinaw City, to St. Ignace, using Bois Blanc, Round, and Mackinac islands as intermediate steps.In 1923, the state legislature ordered the State Highway Department to establish ferry service across the strait.More and more people used ferries to cross the straits each year, and as they did, the movement to build a bridge increased.