Local historian Herb Prentice writes that one brave Prof. E.E. Harris first attempted an ascension on April 7, 1892, from the park between the railroad tracks and First Street (Firestone Boulevard). The wind was too strong and the event was called off.
And the first try the following day was a failure as well. Due to the alleged inexperience of the assistant the airship was not sufficiently charged with hot air, and after reaching a most modest height of 50 feet, slowly descended. Worse, on the second attempt to inflate it, it caught fire and burned.
Prof. Harris was no quitter. One week later he was back again. This time the bag leaked causing him to fail to reach the proper height. The wind blew the balloon and its passenger over downtown Downey, just clearing the tops of the building. Seeing he was about to collide with the steeple of the Baptist Church, the professor dropped to the church roof, slid to the edge, and dropped 20 feet to the ground. The balloon was found with large tears in several places about a mile outside of town.
The local press reported on the next day’s activities. "On Saturday a large crowd was on hand to see the professor’s free show. The damage to the balloon had been repaired by pasting cotton cloth over the torn palace. At 11 a.m. all was ready. ‘Let her go,’ said the daring air navigator. The 50 or more men or boys who were holding her down let go their hold. The big cotton globe, with the aeronaut suspended beneath his parachute, shot upward rapidly and floated slowly away to the westward. In a minute, or two perhaps, the spectators caught a glimpse of a white streak descending almost like the lightning’s flash, then an opening parachute dropping rapidly from which the bold navigator was seen struggling to free himself to meet more easily his anticipated fall. An instant’s suspense-a sickening thud-and the form of the aeronaut was seen lying motionless upon his back, within a few yards of his starting point. In a few minutes Prof. Harris was assisted to his feet, trembling in every limb.A soothing potion was administered by Dr. Kendrick, and with a little more assistance, the terribly jarred professor managed to leave the grounds. His escape from instant death was miraculous.
"Finding that the balloon was leaking badly, and would take him no higher, at an elevation of about 450 feet, the professor cut loose, rather than risk descending in that style of balloon. The height reached was not sufficient to allow the parachute time to fully break the fall. Its perfect action, however, saves his life. The balloon sailed away gracefully, reaching an altitude of probably 1,500 feet, then turning over, as intended, dropped like a writhing serpent to the ground.
"Since his fall, Prof. Harris has been resting quietly at the hotel, and expects to be able to fill his engagement to make an ascent at Redondo on the twenty-fourth."
It is unknown whether the good professor died a balloonist or went into another line of work.