Robert Pershing Wadlow (February 22, 1918 – July 15, 1940), also known as the Alton Giant and the Giant of Illinois, is the tallest person in history for whom there is irrefutable evidence. The Alton and Illinois monikers reflect the fact that he was born and grew up in Alton, Illinois.[1]
Wadlow reached 8 ft 11.1 in (2.72 m) in height and weighed 439 lb (199 kg) at his death at age 22. His great size and his continued growth in adulthood were due to hyperplasia of his pituitary gland, which results in an abnormally high level of human growth hormone. He showed no indication of an end to his growth even at the time of his death.
Early life[edit]
Robert Pershing Wadlow was born to Addie Johnson and Harold Wadlow in Alton, Illinois on February 22, 1918, and was the oldest of five children. In elementary school, they had to make a special desk for him due to his size. After graduating from Alton High School in 1936, he enrolled in Shurtleff College with the intention of studying law. By the time he had graduated from high school, he was 8 ft 4 in (2.54 m).[1]
Later years[edit]
Wadlow's size began to take its toll: he required leg braces to walk, and had little feeling in his legs and feet. Despite these difficulties, Wadlow never used a wheelchair.
Wadlow was a celebrity; he was well-known owing to his 1936 U.S. tour with the Ringling Brothers Circus and his 1938 promotional tour with the INTERCO. He continued participating in tours and public appearances, though only in his normal street clothes. His shoes were provided to him free of charge by a shoe company for which he did promotional work and appearances.[5] Examples still exist in several locations throughout the US, including Snyder's Shoe Store of Ludington and Manistee, Michigan, and the Alton Museum of History and Art.
Wadlow was a Freemason. In 1939, he petitioned Franklin Lodge #25 in Alton, Illinois, and by late November of that year[6] was raised to the degree of Master Mason under the jurisdiction of the Grand Lodge of Illinois A.F & A.M. Wadlow's Freemason ring was the largest ever made.[citation needed]
One year before his death, he passed John Rogan as the tallest person ever. On June 27, 1940 (eighteen days before his death), he was measured at 8 ft 11.1 in (2.72 m) by doctors C. M. Charles and Cyril MacBryde ofWashington University in St. Louis.[citation needed]
On July 4, 1940 (11 days before his death), during a professional appearance at the Manistee National Forest Festival, a faulty brace irritated his ankle, causing a blister and subsequent parasitic infection. Doctors treated him with a blood transfusion and emergency surgery, but his condition worsened due to an auto-immune disorder, and on July 15, 1940, he died in his sleep at age 22.[citation needed]