MEET THE TALLEST MAN IN MEDICAL HISTORY,1918-1940.

- January 23, 2016

According to my research,Robert Pershing Wadlow also known as the Alton Giant and the Giant of IIIinois,was the tallest person in recorded history for whom there is irrefutable evidence.He was born and raised in Alton,IIIinois.Wadlow reached 8 ft 11,1 in {2.72 m} in height and weighed 439 lb {199 kg} at his death at the age of 22.His great size and his continued growth in adulthood were due to ''hyperplasia of his pituitaary 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.Wadlow was born to Addie Johnson and Harold Wadlow in Alton,IIIinois on February 22,1918 and was the oldest of five children.He was taller than his father at the age of 8,and in elementary school they had to make a special desk for him due to his size.By the time he graduated from Alton High School in 1936,he was 8 f 4 in {2.54 m}.After graduating he enrolled in Shurtleff college with the intention of studying law.Waslow's size began to take its toll,he required leg braces to walk and had little feelings in his legs and feet.Despite these difficulties,he never used a wheelchair.Wadlow became a celebrity after hhis 1936 U.S tour with the Ringling Brothers Circus.In 1938,he did a promotional tour with the international Shoe Company {Since 1966 called INTERCO}.They provided him his shoes free of charge.Examples still exist in several locations throughout the US,including Snyder's Shoe Store of Ludington and Manistee,Michigan and Alton Museum of History and Art.He possessed great physical strength until the last year of his life,when his strength and his health in general began to deteriorate rapidly.On July 4,1940,during a professional appearance at the Manistee National Forest Festival,a faulty brace irritated his ankle,causing a blister and a subsequent infection.Doctors treated him with a blood transfusion and emergency surgery,but his condition worsened due to an autoimmune disorder,and on July 15,1940,11 days after contracting the infection,he died in his sleep at the age of 22.He was buried at the Oakwood Cemetery in Upper Alton,Madison County,IIOinois.More photos below.