Photo by Laurie Skrivan, lskrivan@post-dispatch.com, "He's tall," said Jessa Price, 7, who plays on the life-size statue of Alton's Gentle Giant Robert Pershing Wadlow as her grandmother takes photos on Saturday, Feb. 3, 2018, in Alton. It was clearly an advertising gimmick, but it attracted customers: Display Roberts shoe right in the center of your best window, insert the picture and write-up about Robert in your newspaper and you will be agreeably surprised at the attention this shoe will attract to your store.. He had two sisters, Helen and Betty, and two brothers, Eugene and Harold Jr., all of whom were of average height and weight. Robert Wadlow, sitting in the middle row fourth from the left, as a third grader in the school play "Tom Thumb Wedding" - 1928. Robert Pershing Wadlow was born on February 22, 1918 in Alton, Illinois. No one suspected that he was different until he began to grow far more rapidly than most babies. The newest piece here reclaims that record. However, only a few artifacts remain as physical reminders of Wadlow. His height of 8' 11.1" qualifies him as the tallest person in history. Photo courtesy of Steve Cox, 9. Moreover, many documentaries were made on his size and life some of them are The Life and Death of Robert Wadlow (2015), Size Matters (2018), Extreme Bodies, Extraordinary Peoples, Ripleys Believe It or Not!, Extraordinary Humans: Gigantism, Historys Mysteries. Theyve also refreshed their Robert Wadlow display and added new artifacts. For our 60th anniversary, we looked back over the years at the tallest people, from Robert Wadlow to Sultan Ksen (who currently stands 8 ft 2.8 in tall). This condition causes an abnormally high level of the human growth hormone and Robert was never given any treatment to stop it. Therefore he might remain the tallest man for a very long time.". Robert Wadlow, The Giant of Illinois, is the tallest (272 cm/ 8' 11") person in history. Robert Wadlow was born a normal, healthy-sized baby at 8 pounds and 5 ounces (3.8kg). 16. They called the event the STL Sticker Swap and the mayor proclaimed it STL Sticks Together Day to commemorate the record. Perhaps surprisingly, Robert entered the world no differently to most babies. 76. (AP Photo), Robert Wadlow was buried in a 10-foot-long steel casket that required 18 pallbearers, July 19, 1940. "The only admissible evidence upon the true height of giants is that of recent date made under impartial medical supervision.". Robert Wadlow, 10, right, of Alton, poses with an 11-year-old boy of average height in 1929. 17. Photo by Laurie Skrivan, lskrivan@post-dispatch.com, Standing 6 feet 8 inches, John Hubbard of St. Louis stands in front a 7-foot 4-inch silhouette of the Alton's Gentle Giant (his height when he was 13) during a visit to the Alton Museum of History display on the life of Robert Wadlow on Saturday, Feb. 3, 2018, in Alton. 8. 21. The tallest man on record is Robert Wadlow, an Illinois man who died at 2.71m (8ft 11in) in 1940 at the age of 22. He was 8 foot 11 inches and weighed in at 439 lbs. Robert, who is 8 feet 4 inches tall, will join the Ringling Brothers Circus for a six-week appearance. Graduated from high school on January 8, 1936 (not yet 18), At death, he was the world's tallest man according to, This page was last edited on 23 February 2023, at 01:34. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, Robert Wadlow of Alton, Illinois, is the tallest man who has ever lived. Photos and Memories (4) When Wadlow turned 5 years old, he was 5 feet, 4 inches tall and wearing clothes that were made for teenagers. In 1936, Wadlow was noticed by the Ringling Brothers and their traveling circus. Wadlow was born in an American family in Alton, Illinois, on February 22, 1918, to his parents Harold Franklin (father) and Addie May Johnson Wadlow (mother). 64. 78. Screencapture via stltoday.newspapers.com. And why did the tallest man in history end up dying so young? No one suspected that he was different until he began to grow far more rapidly than most babies. There are lessons to be learned from the tallest mans tragically short life. Robert Wadlow poses with actresses Maureen OSullivan and Ann Morris in 1938. Robert may have had a bright future ahead of him as a lawyer if he had survived. I like boys adventure stories. By the age of eight, he was taller than his father. Had Robert lived today, he would not have grown that tall. The Alton museum contains a shoe display case with display instructions from the Peters Shoe Co. At the time, she was 7 feet 7 inches tall and was the worlds tallest woman. [6] During his appearances, he dressed in his everyday clothes and refused the circus's request that he wear a top hat and tails. He was 1.6x the height of an average contemporary human at 5'6" (1.67 m), or taller by 3.5 ft (1.05 m). The doctor told Robert that if he cooperated with the tests and exam, he would give him his pen-sized flashlight, which Robert admired. According to the Alton Museum of History, Robert Wadlow was born as a normal child with the height and weight of a normal baby. He also did a promotional tour with the International Show Company (now INTERCO), which agreed to make him shoes for free. But in 2014, a king piece in Belgium, which stood at 16 feet, 7 inches, broke the record. Bettmann/Contributor/Getty ImagesRobert Wadlow poses with actresses Maureen OSullivan and Ann Morris in 1938. Venezuela's Angel Falls has an initial drop of 2,648ft (807m) and a total height of 3,212 (979m) . Wadlow's height was 8ft 11.1in (2.72m)[2][3][4] while his weight reached 439lb (199kg) at his death at age 22. Robert was born on 22nd Feb' 1918, with a normal 4 kg birth weight. His enormous size and his continuous growth in adulthood were due to an excess of his pituitary gland, which results in an abnormally high level of human growth hormone (HGH). Talking about the appearance of Wadlow he was measured at 8 ft 11.1 in (2.72 m) in height and weighed 439 lb (199 kg). They wore differently colored ponchos to represent the different parts of the brain. The trial of Kemner v. Monsanto Co. started on Feb. 6, 1984, before Circuit Judge Richard Pl Goldenhersh and ended on Oct. 22, 1987. Rommerskirchen had read about Wadlow in the Guinness Book of World Records and decided to visit the statue while in Alton. The band Miss Jubilee will bring the crowd back to Wadlows heyday with music from the 20s and 30s. He reached 8' 11.1" (272 cm) in height and 490 pounds (222.26 kg) in weight before his death at the age of 22. FacebookTwitterYouTubeInstagramLinkedInSnapchatPinterestTiktok, Registered Office: Ground Floor, The Rookery, 2 Dyott Street, London, WC1A 1DE, United Kingdom, Otto - Longest human tunnel travelled through by a skateboarding dog, Ashrita Furman - Most Guinness World Records titles held. He got his first mention in the Alton Telegraph at age 8, when he was 6 feet and weighed 169 pounds. For comparison, he was one and a half feet taller than Andre the Giant and almost two feet taller than Shaquille O'neill. He made friends wherever he went. The Alton Museum of History and Art will also host an all-day birthday bash Thursday, with birthday cake, extended hours from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and free admission. 100. In 1938, the Wadlow family filed a federal lawsuit in court in St. Joseph, Mo., against a Barnes Hospital doctor and the New York Times for libel. The True Story Of Herbert Sobel, The First Commander Of The 'Band Of Brothers', The Terrifying True Story Of The Winchester Mystery House And The Tormented Heiress Who Built It, What Stephen Hawking Thinks Threatens Humankind The Most, 27 Raw Images Of When Punk Ruled New York, Join The All That's Interesting Weekly Dispatch. On July 15, 1940, Robert Wadlow died in his sleep. At the time they did not have the modern medicine that we have today to fight infections, and this would ultimately be the cause of Roberts death at the young age of 22 years old. In 1985, a life-sized bronze statue of Robert Wadlow was erected on campus of the Southern Illinois University School of Dental Medicine in Alton. The 1,000-pound casket required 12 pallbearers. And since Wadlow was the oldest of his two brothers and two sisters (who were all of average height and weight), he was expected to play with his siblings and participate in many of the same activities they did. (2) Robert Wadlow - 9 Foot Tall World's Greatest Medical 184K subscribers Subscribe 62K views 4 years ago Jessica is the daughter of Julie and Dan Harder of Alton, and Drew is the son of Sheila and Dean Emerick of Bethalto, Illinois. He was also regarded as being very quiet, earning him the nickname "Gentle Giant." Dr Donald Rau, Medical Consultant, Guinness World Records explained: "Robert Wadlow escaped the attention of surgeons, as they were not confident enough to operate on him. At a tender age of 13 he became the world's tallest Boy Scout with his height ranging to an incredible 7'4 (224 cm). The tallest person in the world, Robert Wadlow was 8'11" or 2.72 m and weight 439 lb or 199 kg at the time of his death. At almost 13 inches long, Robert Wadlow also holds the record for having the largest hands ever. He had to walk sideways up steps so his feet could fit on the treads. At age 13, he became the worlds tallest Boy Scout at 7 feet, 4 inches. (Photo by Cristina M. Fletes, cfletes@post-dispatch.com). I thought it over long ago and decided to ignore them. Standing about 6 feet tall when he was just a child, Wadlow soon began to tower over most adults. His school desks had to be modified with wooden blocks to keep him from hurting his back crouching over. Uranus has a fudge factory, a bar, a shooting and archery range, an axe-throwing facility, a strip club, a tattoo parlor, and other attractions. He didnt play basketball for his high school team coaches were afraid hed get hurt. Read more about the catsup bottle and other big things in St. Louis here. 31. 20. How old was Harold Wadlow Jr. at the time of his death? A month before his death, doctor Cyril MacBryde and C. M. Charles from Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri measured Robert Wadlow's height at 8 ft 11.1 in (2.72 m). It took twelve men to carry it out of the funeral, supported by . His great size and his continued growth in adulthood were due to hypertrophy of his pituitary gland, which results in an abnormally high level of human growth hormone (HGH). All city businesses closed for the funeral, which was attended by tens of thousands of people. During an interview with the St. Louis Star-Times just before his 13th birthday, when he was 7 feet, 4 inches tall, he said he was getting used to people following him around. (Usually, only six pallbearers are needed.) She began watching birds with the Webster Groves Nature Study Society after moving there in the 1960s and eventually traveled the world, keeping a card-file system of her spottings. A life-size statue of Wadlow was erected opposite the Alton Museum of History and Art in 1986.[1][14]. Robert Wadlow, who has an over-active pituitary gland that causes his radical growth, is 8 feet 4 inches tall and weighs 391 pounds. Wadlow stood at 8-foot-11 with a shoe size of 37AA. 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