Prairie Profiles, Ken Nelson: Albert Lea’s Ben Franklin
Published 12:00 am Tuesday, June 20, 2006
By Garret Felder, staff intern
Ken Nelson sat in the basement of his self-constructed home nestled on the northeastern shore of Albert Lea Lake, surrounded by wood-paneled walls covered with his accomplishments. With plaques, mounted fish, and trophies scattered throughout the room, he opened a tan briefcase that showed the wear-and-tear of a couple decades.
In addition to the descriptions on each award and trophy in the room, the briefcase is Nelson’s autobiography that started and continues in Albert Lea. Inside the aging piece of luggage are constructional sketches, books, and a list &045; each one telling a small tale of his life as his sketches became inventions, his stories got published, and his list of patents grew. But while this hometown boy recognizes his life’s sunset and his many good fortunes, he still has plenty of stories, close calls, and creations to hash out to whoever wants to sit down and listen.
&8220;It’s been a pretty exciting life with some appendages that just don’t make any sense at all,&8221; Nelson said. &8220;Three years ago my youngest grandson said to me, &8216;Grandpa, you’ve got so many stories to tell that you have to start writing your memoirs,’ and I said someday I will, someday I will.&8221;
Shortly after his grandson’s request, Nelson tore his Achilles’ tendon, putting him up for a while and giving him a reason to write his memoirs. As soon as his storytelling began, Nelson said, his memoirs were being published in the &8220;Minnesota Memories&8221; book series at the request of series author Joan Claire Graham.
But Nelson’s stories are not like the fictional tales a good-for-nothing uncle tells his nephews and nieces. Instead, these are the true stories of his accomplishments as a non-college engineer/inventor and some other crazy happenings during his 81 years of life.
Some of the tales are about him as a kid, like when he was caught hanging in a tree by a chain from his groin. Or when he was an adult, like when he didn’t board a flight and later found out the airplane crashed.
His lucky streak didn’t seem to cease as he got older and retired, either. Instead he ended up being stuck in the middle of a ring of fire on Albert Lea Lake and using a trash can lid to get himself out.
Yet from a near-death experience of catching pneumonia while in the navy to being challenged by a moose on the Gunflint Trail with a frozen gun, Nelson’s stories haven’t quit.
Despite his many anecdotes that many would believe to be fictional, Nelson’s big tale describes the career of a practical and highly-decorated inventor.
&8220;Inventing stemmed from somebody saying to me that it couldn’t be done or somebody saying to me if it would be possible to do this,&8221; Nelson said, while opening up the vintage briefcase. &8220;I would latch onto either my idea or somebody else’s suggestion for something new and different. And then I would start the machinery (points to his head) that would turn it into a viable product.&8221;
After idolizing Charles Lindbergh as a child and creating many motor scooters out of the Maytag motors his father traded farmers for, Nelson’s story began in 1951 with his first recorded creation. His first task, while working at the Midway Machine shop, came from an Albert Lea man who asked Nelson to design an automatic irrigation fluid valve for use with a cystoscope &045; a tool used in a prostate exam procedure.
&8220;I realized after many, many years that engineering is one stage of the game but invention is completely separate,&8221; Nelson said, after showing his sketch of the cystoscope dated Feb. 12, 1951. &8220;Engineering is the study of known facts and then application, but invention is pursuit of the unknown. And I was an inventor.&8221;
Following Nelson’s design of the valve and handing in the blueprint, he unfortunately never saw the Albert Lea man again, he said. But Nelson figured the importance of his creation was the reason why. Still that didn’t stop Nelson from seizing the other inventing opportunities that would soon come his way.
Later, Nelson had the chance to use his creating ability by working for the Scotsman ice machine company in Albert Lea. Nelson spent 15 years as a salesman and then the remainder of his 32-year career with the research team of the company.
&8220;I had a Ph. D., from Purdue University, who had taught nine years at the university, work under me in research. He told me repeatedly, &8216;You can’t do this. That won’t work.’ Well, that was the incentive to figure out a way to make it work,&8221; Nelson said, digging for more artifacts in his briefcase. &8220;And that’s the difference between an engineer and inventor. An engineer knows that it can’t be done. An inventor isn’t smart enough to know that.&8221;
During his 32 years with Scotsman, Nelson received two major U.S. patents (among many others) for some of his inventions in the ice machine industry. Nelson continued to receive patents throughout his time and became so highly respected in the industry that even NASA came to Nelson and his company for help with a confidential project.
&8220;It’s probably elevated bragging on my part,&8221; Nelson said. &8220;But because of the many patents that were registered in the patent office in my name and my company’s name, [Scotsman] was the place that they could logically seek out knowledge about insulation.&8221;
Although the task requested by NASA may have been the summit of Nelson’s inventing career, he added more creations to his list in the ice machine industry and received patents in 17 countries. Nelson said he estimates that he owns over 100 total patents in the ice machine industry.
Following his retirement from Scotsman in February 1989, &8220;the machinery&8221; inside Nelson’s head continued to turn, he said. And it started with an accident happening to a friend.
Steve Tuveson of Albert Lea was injured while manning a trapshooting shed, Nelson said. After a freak accident where Tuveson barely escaped with his life, Nelson said, Tuveson was taken to the Mayo Clinic in Rochester. After visiting his friend a couple times, Tuveson requested a new creation from Nelson.
&8220;He said, &8216;When I get out of here we got to figure out a way to mount some sheds (deer antlers). And I was like, &8216;What do you mean by mounting sheds?’&8221; Nelson said, beginning to pull a new creation out of a small bag. &8220;So I asked him, &8216;What do you want to do?’ And he replied, &8216;I want to be able to adjust [the antlers] so they match in different positions and look exactly the same.&8221;
Shed collecting, Nelson said, is a new sport like finding arrowheads, where people try to find matching sets of antlers for mounting on a deer mannequin. Tuveson wanted a way to connect a set of sheds and be able to adjust them as he saw fit.
So Nelson said he started creating a design for the request and he later found out there was plenty of demand for his creation. With the first set of adjustable antlers, Tuveson was offered $1,250.
Nelson made 13 more connected sets before being approached by Cabela’s Outfitters. One might ask, &8220;How did Nelson help the giant sports store with his invention?&8221; Just look for the mannequin in the store with the plaque for &8220;the largest shed of deer antlers in North America,&8221; Nelson said, because the antlers are mounted with his invention.
Yet what makes Nelson’s creation a little more interesting is how he never made any money for it. Instead, he gave all the profits to Tuveson’s family which continues to sell thousands of the antler mounts nation-wide. He said the Tuveson’s told him the new business will also help put their son through college.
And for Nelson, that recognition means more than any amount of
money.
&8220;My best reward since my retirement has been the satisfaction I get from seeing other people happy about my efforts,&8221; Nelson said with a smile. &8220;I do it because it’s fun and it makes me feel good.&8221;
And thus has been the reason for most of his creations, Nelson said. But he hasn’t stopped there. While serving as a manager of the Shell Rock River Watershed District Board, he also created his own prototype for a Shell Rock River Dam. The finely detailed model received positive reviews from county commissioners, the Lions and Kiwanis Clubs, the Department of Natural Resources, Ducks Unlimited and the watershed district, Nelson said, but will not be used.
&8220;I am disappointed that the idea didn’t become a part of the solution,&8221; Nelson said, in relation to the water level problem of the Shell Rock River. &8220;I didn’t want my name involved with it and that is probably what killed it.
But I thought it shouldn’t carry my signature because I was part of the watershed district.&8221;
Although his model wasn’t chosen by the board to solve the problem and he attended his last district meeting as a manager June 13, Nelson looks forward to having more time to do what he wants, like spending time with his grandchildren, looking after his tree farm that makes him feel &8220;closer to his maker,&8221; or spending time with his wife Vera.
Besides his storytelling and inventing talents, Nelson was also a state champion trapshooter and participated in the world championships in Ohio for the Minnesota team. He also said he has fished in three oceans, flown airplanes, and owned plenty of motorcycles.
But no matter what Nelson may have his hands on or how much he has to do, he said he always has time to chat with anyone.
So stop by Nelson’s home on the northeast corner of Albert Lea Lake and he’ll show you the tree farm, his 2004 Jefferson Award for Outstanding Public Service or the award the watershed district named after him. Either way, Nelson will have plenty of stories and advice to share that could make anyone leave with a smile.
&8220;The things you read in a book are already known. Somebody had to know them to write the book,&8221; Nelson said to a graduating class of Augsburg College students in a speech. &8220;But the way you connect the elements of your mind, like a computer, gives you the opportunity to create all new things.&8221;