Ernest C. Oberholtzer was born in 1884 in Davenport, Iowa, and died in 1977 in International Falls, Minnesota. He is known as an explorer, conservationist, and writer. Educated at Harvard University, Oberholtzer took a B.A. in landscape architecture in 1907, and remained at Harvard to do some graduate work. In 1908 he traveled to England and Scotland with his college friend Conrad Aiken.

In 1909 Oberholtzer first explored the border lakes in the Rainy Lake watershed area in northern Minnesota and southern Canada. By agreement with Oberholtzer, the Canadian Northern Railroad bought his notes and pictures documenting canoe routes in the area.

Oberholtzer worked for a short time as a newspaper editor and in 1910 went again to Europe, this time with his friend Harry French. Oberholtzer briefly served as vice consul in Hanover, Germany, before returning to northern Minnesota in 1912.

In 1912 Oberholtzer traveled to Hudson's Bay with an Ojibwe Indian companion, Billy Magee of Mine Centre, Ontario. The same year Oberholtzer moved to Rainy Lake, spending summers on an island, "The Mallard," and winters on a houseboat at Ranier. He often traveled the area with Indian companions, particularly Billy Magee, and was not only a friend of many Indians in the area, but also a teller of their stories and legends.

Oberholtzer is best known throughout the United States and Canada for his ceaseless efforts to preserve the Quetico-Superior wilderness. He was instrumental in the founding of the Quetico-Superior Council and the Wilderness Society; worked for the establishment of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area and Voyageurs National Park; and received many honors for his role in conservation work.