Around 1950 the Steamboat Rock Boat Club was created by a group of Steamboat Rock, Iowa residents that had boats and would give rides up and down the Iowa River. These gentlemen came together and organized a club to preserve the river and the land around it. The Boat Club has a small building by the river and began to offer a chicken and sweetcorn dinner 2 times per year. After finding success with that event, they decided to offer a breakfast every Sunday morning beginning the first Sunday following Easter until the 2nd Sunday of November. A Labor Day supper was added to their list of events offering the popular chicken and sweetcorn meal. The Boat Club was able to purchase farmland North of the original building and built a new club house. The club house was completed in the 1960’s. This farmland offered a hill for winter skiing. There a lake was built on the hill which held motorcycle races, among other outdoor events. Throughout the Boat Club era, the Trustees raised funds to support scholarships for high school students, Camp Sunnyside and for Dennis Smith’s summer camp on Native American and nature. The Boat Club was a popular place to go for a good meal and visit with neighbors and make new friends. Many different organizations in Steamboat would hold fundraisers at the lodge at no charge. The lodge was used for weddings, graduations, reunions and receptions. When the Trustees of the Boat Club made the decision to sell the property, they all agreed the funds from the sale would be given to the Ellsworth College Foundation to benefit students pursuing an education and career path in Conservation efforts.