Ely Minnesota’s “Canoe King” Dead at 90

Bill Rom, once dubbed the “Canoe King of Ely,”died in his home on Sunday, January 20, 2008. He was 90-years-old. Born William Nicholas Rom in Ely, Minnesota on December 5, 1917. Rom was a graduate of Ely High School, Ely Junior College, and the University of Minnesota. He served for five years in the Navy during World War II.

“Above all else, Bill loved his family and the Quetico Superior canoe country wilderness,” his daughter Becky Rom said after his death.

After Bill Rom returned to Ely following his Navy service, he and his wife Barbara founded Canoe Country Outfitters, which they operated for 30 years. Through Canoe Country Outfitters, Bill introduced thousands of people to the lakes and woods of the Quetico Superior region. Rom was a pilot from 1939 until the mid 90’s; he flew his floatplane to his fishing camps in Canada and on longer expeditions to the Arctic. Rom, a long-time proponent of wilderness protection in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness and who was instrumental in the enactment of a can and bottle ban in the wilderness in 1971, had penned an e-mail to the Superior National Forest Superintendant, the last day of his life, that read:

“I recently read where a considerable sum has been set aside for lake and stream improvement. May I suggest that the waterfronts of the BWCA campsites be cleaned of old litter, cans and bottles that accumulated in the fifty some years before the can and bottles ban came into effect. Before the ban, people just dumped their debris in the lake in front of their campsites, usually a fine sand beach or strategic ledge. Please bring this suggestion to the Supervisor. I might mention that I first got the outfitters to agree to recommend the ban to the ranger, then Dean Buchanan, and he took us up on it. Scuba diving equipment will need to be provided for the cleanup crew.”

The Quetico Superior Foundation recently published THIS profile of Rom in it’s Wilderness News magazine.

The Minneapolis Star-Tribune published THIS obituary; the St. Paul Pioneer Press published its obituary of Rom HERE.

Rom is survived by his wife of 63 years, Barbara Jean; his children, Bill, Jr. (Holly), Becky (Reid Carron), Larry (Susie Hario), and Roger; his grandchildren, Nicole, Will, Ben, Meredith, Katie, Lauren, and Emily; and his sister Dorothy Boal. He was preceded in death by his parents and eight brothers and sisters.

Family and friends will gather at Camp Widjiwagan on the shores of Burntside Lake near Ely on August 8, to celebrate Rom’s life. Memorials may be sent to the Bill Rom Memorial Fund, Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness, 401 North Third Street, Suite 290, Minneapolis, MN 55401.

Photo courtesy of the Rom family.