Robert Pershing Wadlow
Robert Pershing Wadlow , according to
Guinness World Records is the tallest man in medical history for whom there is irrefutable evidence. Wadlow reached an unprecedented 8 ft 11.1 in in height and weighed 439 lb at his death. His great size and his continued growth in adulthood were due to a tumor within his pituitary gland. He showed no indication of an end to his growth even at the time of his death.
Encyclopedia
Robert Pershing Wadlow , according to
Guinness World Records is the tallest man in medical history for whom there is irrefutable evidence. Wadlow reached an unprecedented 8 ft 11.1 in in height and weighed 439 lb at his death. His great size and his continued growth in adulthood were due to a tumor within his pituitary gland. He showed no indication of an end to his growth even at the time of his death.
Early life
Wadlow was born to Harold Franklin and Addie Wadlow in
Alton, Illinois on 22 February, 1918, at the weight of 8 lb, 6 oz and normal height. He was the oldest of five children; his younger siblings were Helen Ione, Eugene Harold, Betty Jean, and Harold Franklin II. His height increased normally until he was four years old. He then started attracting attention due to his rapid growth. By the age of eight, he was 6 ft 2 in tall. At 10, he was 6 ft 6 in and 220 lb . At the age of 14, he became the world's tallest
Boy Scout at the height of 7 ft 4 in , averaging a growth of four inches per year since birth; at that time he wore size 25 shoes.
At 16, Wadlow was 7 ft 10.5 in tall and weighed 365 lb . At 17, he weighed nearly 400 lb and was 8 ft 1.5 in tall. By age 18, Wadlow had grown to be 8 ft 4 in and weigh more than 390 lb ; his size 37AA shoes , were provided to him free of charge. In 1936, after graduating from Alton High School, he enrolled in
Shurtleff College with the intention of studying law. By 1937, Wadlow had exceeded all previous recorded human heights. At 19, he was 8 ft 6 in and weighed 435 lb . On his 21st birthday he attained his greatest weight- 491 lb .
Later years and death
Wadlow's size began to take its toll: he required leg braces to walk, and had little feeling in his legs and feet. When Robert was 21, he reached 8 ft 3 ½ in tall. On June 27, 1940 , he was measured at 8 ft 11.1 in by doctors C. M. Charles and Cyril MacBryde of Washington University in St. Louis.
In his time, Wadlow was among the most popular of
American celebrities; he was well-known due to his 1936 U.S. tour with the
Ringling Brothers Circus and his 1938 promotional tour with the INTERCO. He continued participating in various tours and public appearances.
On July 4, 1940 Robert was hospitalised while making a professional appearance at the National Forest Festival; a faulty brace had irritated his ankle, causing a blister and bad infection. Doctors treated him with a blood transfusion and emergency surgery, but his condition worsened and on July 15, 1940, he died in his sleep.
Around 40,000 people attended Wadlow's funeral on 19 July. He was buried in a half-ton coffin that required 12 pallbearers to carry, which was interred within a vault of solid concrete. It was believed that Wadlow's family were concerned for the sanctity of his body after his death, and went to these lengths of security to ensure he would never be disturbed or stolen.
Today
In 1985, a life-size
bronze statue of Wadlow was erected at the
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville School of Dental Medicine. To this day he is still affectionately known as the "Gentle Giant."
Gigantism, the disorder from which Wadlow suffered, usually involves only the lower extremities, so that in most cases the head and trunk are of more or less normal size while the lower torso and legs attain extreme proportions. This is in contrast to
Dwarfism, in which the lower
extremeties tend to be underdeveloped yet the upper body remains relatively normal.
Robert Wadlow had a pituitary gland tumor that secreted large amounts of growth hormone resulting in acromegalic gigantism. Death is usually a result of heart complications due to the large volume of blood needing to be circulated.
See also
- Xi Shun, the tallest man alive.
- Gul Mohammed, the shortest man ever verifiably recorded.
References
- , 17 March 1928; 23 February 1931; 20 February 1934; 26 March 1935; 22 February 1937; 25 February 1939; 15 July 1940.
Further reading
- The gentleman giant; the biography of Robert Pershing Wadlow. 1944. Frederic Fadner, assisted by Harold F. Wadlow. Boston, B. Humphries, Inc.
- Looking back and up: At Robert Pershing Wadlow, the gentle giant. 1993. Sandra Hamilton. Alton Museum of History and Art.
External links
- Video clip on the life of Robert Wadlow
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