By Rachel R. Basinger
FOR THE DAILY COURIER
Friday, December 25, 2009

When George Washington came to this area, one of his actions was to commission the building of several canoes to better navigate the Youghiogheny, Ohio and Allegheny rivers.

With that thought in mind, Frank Romeo thought the idea of opening his canoe selling and rental business in the historic West Overton Villages in East Huntingdon would be more than fitting.

"The history here is so great," he said, adding that Henry Clay Frick himself lived in Worker House B, where Romeo's business Jacobs Creek Outfitters is located.

Romeo's love of canoes and all things outdoors came after a friend took him to Canada on a canoeing trip when he was young.

"I just became passionate about it," he said. "Then I found out that there are a lot of old canoes out there that need fixed."

After years of fixing and selling canoes out of his home on Craig's List or Ebay, he began thinking that he was getting enough support to open a real business.

"I saw a sign here about spaces available and called Chris Kline here at West Overton and they said this space was open," Romeo said.

Along with buying, trading, renting and selling canoes and kayaks, Romeo applied for and received his Pennsylvania guide certificate, his CPR certification, and licensing so he can host guided canoe trips or guided fishing trips.

"I have a canoe that has pontoons on the side so people can stand up and fish off the deck of the canoe," he said.

Other equipment sold at the store includes hand-tied flies for fly fishing, life vests, GPS navigation systems as well as fishing poles and other fishing and boating equipment.

Along with his business, Romeo has opened up the second-floor meeting room for the newly formed Jacobs Creek Paddling Association that meets the first Tuesday of each month at 7 p.m.

"With this club, we'd like to do cleanup projects along Jacobs Creek and other things along with the Jacobs Creek Watershed," Romeo said.

He added that he hopes to offer canoeing classes and maybe fly-tying classes sometime in the future.

"I also want to be available for other outdoor clubs who might like to use the upstairs meeting room free of charge," Romeo said.

While he is willing to do guided tours in the winter for more experienced boaters, he expects business will begin to pick up this spring.

"We're only eight minutes from lakes in Mt. Pleasant, 10 minutes from the river in Dawson and 12 minutes to Connellsville," Romeo said. "It's nice to be centrally located."

The business is currently open from noon to 6 p.m. Wednesdays through Sundays, but the hours will increase when spring comes.

Rachel R. Basinger can be reached at or 724-626-3530.