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Capt Eddie is 79 or 80 years of age here. The "Grand Old Man of Ballooning" as he was affectionately called,
is seated on the hickory wood trapeze bar made in the 1880's by his father, Comfort Allen. This bar is now at the
Smithsonian Institute.
Captain Eddie made his last performance when he was 80 years of age. At Indianola Iowa, he did his signature
balloon jump but his parachute failed to open properly. He sustained significant injury.
In 1975 at Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, during the 68th annual General Conference of the Federation Aeronautique
Internationale, Captain Eddie Allen received the highest honor in ballooning, the "Mongolfier Diploma".
Captain Eddie and Edgar were red-haired twins. The twins began their daredevil stunts at ages
15 and 16. They would perform a double parachute suspension, each with trapeze bar beneath the balloon basket. The boys would
hang from their knees and do stunts on the bar. When the hot air balloon attained a certain height, they would cut themselves
loose from the trapeze bar and parachute to the ground. The twin boys performed hundreds of times, including the NY World's
Fair.
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Presented by Deborah Shelton Wood,
Sources: "The FLYING ALLEN Genealogy" by Deborah Wood, 2005, Genesee Country Express, October 11, 1989
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