By Ed Shannon, staff writer

Editor&8217;s note: This is the second of a two-part series.

When Milton Reynolds, the man who made millions with the sales of ball point pens and changed the way Americans wrote, came to Albert Lea in June 1947, he was given special honors for two other reasons.

First, Reynolds was coming back to the city where he was born July 10, 1892, in a home on South Pearl Street. He left the city about 1900 with the last name of Reinsberg, a name which was changed to Reynolds because of anti-German prejudice during World War I.

Second, a few months earlier he and two associates had set an around-the-world record in aviation, and as a result received reams and reams of publicity.

With a portion of the fortune made with the ball point pen venture, Reynolds decided to buy a large airplane. This super salesman also happened to be a licensed pilot who had been involved with aviation since about 1920. What he ended up with was a Douglas A26 twin-engine aircraft which was named the &8220;Reynolds Bombshell&8221; and considered to be the fastest private plane in the world in that era.

The &8220;Bombshell&8221; label used for this aircraft was based on the trademark name he had created for his brand of ball point pens.

Now what does a millionaire do with such a swift aircraft? One answer in either 1946

or early &8216;47 was to take a trip or two over a really remote region of Tibet in a futile search for a mythical mountain which was supposed to be even higher than Mount Everest. However, for someone so interested in publicity, one sure answer was to fly the plane around the world and try to set a new speed and/or time record.

In 1947 the record to beat was the one made by Howard Hughes in 1938. Hughes had flown 14,824 miles around the northern part of the globe in three days, 19 hours, and 14 minutes. The total flying time was 71 hours and seven minutes.

The route used by Hughes for his flight in 1938 was from New York City to Paris, then across the Soviet Union (Russia) to Alaska, across Canada and back to New York City.

The logical thing for Reynolds to do nine years later was to follow Hughes&8217; exact route and break his record with a much faster plane. However there was a new challenge in early 1947. The Soviet Union (Russia) denied Reynolds&8217; request to fly across their territory in the northern hemisphere. As a result, he had to find a new route.

The Reynolds Bombshell left New York City on April 12, 1947, and went to Paris. Egypt, India, China, Japan, Alaska, Canada and back to New York City on April 16, 1947.

Reynolds didn&8217;t make this flight alone. His name and the brand name of his ball point pen were on the aircraft and he was paying the expenses. He was listed as the navigator, the pilot was Captain Wm. P. &8220;Tex&8221; Odom, and the flight engineer was Carroll Sallee. The three men took turns flying the aircraft and trying to sleep whenever possible during their even longer route around the world.

The route taken by the Reynolds Bombshell totaled 19,899 miles. The actual flying time was three days, six hours and 55 1/2 minutes. The actual flying time was 62 hours and 46 1/2 minutes. Reynolds and his

associates had broken Hughes&8217; around-the-world record in all respects.

This exploit resulted in worldwide publicity, congratulations at the White House for the three aviators from President Harry S. Truman, and a homecoming celebration for Reynolds in Albert Lea two months later.

What evolved into &8220;Milton Reynolds Day&8221; in Albert Lea on June 18, 1947, came as the direct result of an article in a Chicago newspaper. The article said this city was the birthplace of the then-famous and record-setting aviator and extremely successful promoter and merchandiser of the ball point pen.

Once the slight confusion regarding the change from Reinsberg to Reynolds for his last name was cleared up, an invitation was extended to Reynolds and his wife to be the focus for a special day in Albert Lea.

This special day started at 10 a.m. with a water carnival on Fountain Lake six decades ago.

Reynolds and his wife, Edna, arrived in the city by car about 11 a.m. An informal luncheon was held for them at the Hotel Albert just before noon. This was followed with a parade at 1:15 p.m.

Reynolds and his wife rode in a convertible so folks could get a better look at the famous man. A program was next on the schedule at the Fountain Lake Park bandshell. Mayor Lyle Ostrander presented the couple with a key to the city. Reynolds talked about his April 1947 flight around the world, plus the flight over the really remote regions of Tibet just after World War II to look for the mythical mountain.

Meanwhile, the water carnival on Fountain Lake was in progress during the day with swimming events, canoe races, something called canoe tipping, and motor boat racing. At 3 p.m. the Reynolds were given an official boat ride around the lake.

At 3:30 p.m. a reception was held for Edna Reynolds. This was followed on the schedule with a baseball game between the Albert Lea and St. Peter teams.

A dinner starting at 6 p.m. was held at the Hotel Albert. The day ended with a program at the high school auditorium where a film based on the around-the-world flight by Reynolds was shown.

All during the time he was in Albert Lea that day, Reynolds was kept busy signing autographs with one of his Bombshell-brand ball point pens.

It&8217;s doubtful if the friendly man named Milton Reynolds ever came back to Albert Lea after his glorious homecoming 60 years ago.

A few years later Reynolds semi-retired and moved to Mexico City, Mexico, where he spent the rest of his life. His first wife, Edna died in April 1952. He remarried and had four children by both wives, according to one reference book.

Milton Reynolds, the man who made a mint merchandising the ball point pen, plus the Print-A-Sign device, and set a world aviation record, died on Jan. 23, 1976, at the Michael Reese Hospital in Chicago.