T-R PHOTO BY ROBERT MAHARRY Tom Bowman, the owner/operator of Firehouse Aquatics, closed his bait, tackle and pet store southwest of Ferguson near the Green Castle Recreation Area on Wednesday after six years in business.

GILMAN — Firehouse Aquatics Owner/Operator Tom Bowman said people often asked him why he ran his bait, tackle and pet shop on a gravel road “in the middle of nowhere” — in actual terms, it’s a Gilman address a mile and a half southwest of Ferguson near the Green Castle Recreation Area — and in response, he’d simply point to the serenity and natural beauty all around him.

“Because people come out, and they enjoy… just this,” he said. “People come out from Des Moines, Omaha, Kansas City, Chicago. We have people from all over, and they come out and go ‘Wow.’ And somebody’s not trying to shove things they don’t need at them.”

A number of factors including the recent supply chain and workforce issues brought on by the pandemic, his own move to Marshalltown and changes in laws regarding the transportation of live animals have led Bowman to the difficult decision to shut down the store, which closed for the final time on Wednesday night.

“It’s just been too much to handle. I’ve been doing it every day for six years,” he said.

From the get-go, Bowman faced a unique set of challenges — for one, navigating the zoning laws surrounding opening an aquatic store in an unincorporated area and convincing neighbors it wouldn’t be a nuisance.

At first, the pandemic actually provided an unexpected jolt to the business. As a result of people spending more time in isolation or at home, fishing became a popular hobby, and the store got busier than usual.

Unfortunately for Bowman, the supply chain situation did impact him negatively, and an amendment to the Lacey Act, which governs the shipment of wildlife into the United States, made it much harder to import reptiles and mammals that he had previously sold. His delivery service stopped bringing live animals, and then his tax rate and utility costs both skyrocketed.

“It’s just a lot of stupid stuff, and it’s just like, I just can’t combat it anymore,” Bowman said.

Despite some of the unpleasant circumstances that facilitated the closure, Bowman reiterated that he loved doing what he did, especially entertaining kids and helping new fishermen and women learn the tricks of the trade. He was always eager to help and work with other related businesses, including Acrylic Tank Manufacturers from the television show “Tanked,” and he even hosted educational classes on how to take care of reptiles.

“My biggest goal was to help the new hobbyists start out great instead of going to some place that had no knowledge,” he said.

Although Wednesday was the last night to shop at Firehouse, Bowman has plans to sell off the remaining inventory and work with other stores to distribute the live animals. It’s been an emotional rollercoaster saying goodbye to something that occupied so much of his time and efforts over the last six years, but the memories will always remain.

For Bowman, who was born in Marshalltown, graduated from Des Moines Hoover High School and later moved back to this area (he also has a job with Marshalltown Water Works now), he isn’t sure what will come next — he’s been approached by other backers about a potential new location — but he can promise he isn’t getting out of the business completely.

“Firehouse the building will be no more, (but) Firehouse Aquatics will still be around,” he said.

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Contact Robert Maharry

at 641-753-6611 ext. 255 or

rmaharry@timesrepublican.com.