I Discovered my Great Uncle was a Giant
When I meet a new person with the surname Bates, the first question I ask is: Are you kin to the Giant?
If the answer is a quick yes, then my response is Hello, cuz!
If the response is What are you talking about, I immediately know 1) they are not related to me, or 2) they are poorly informed as to their own family history.
Occasionally, people ask me: Are you related to Norman Bates? (i. e., the movie Psycho) to which I respond, (giving them a wicked smile)… he was my first cousin, (once removed).
If you had a close relative that was unusual or remarkable in some way, then you would likely hear stories told in the family by grandparents, aunts, or uncles about their lives.
At an early age the stories I learned were about a Giant. In fact, I was his Great Nephew.
The Kentucky River Giant: the Largest Man in the World
I began the process of exploring who he was and in turn finding all my cousins related to my Great Uncle, Martin Van Buren Bates. I discovered that, in fact, he was, during his lifetime, the largest man in the world. But there was even more…
he married the largest woman in the world, and they traveled the world together as international celebrities.
Martin Van Buren Bates was born in 1837 in Eastern Kentucky and lived a long life dying in 1919. John Wallis Bates (b.1779) and Sarah Walthrop Bates (b.1793) were among the founding member families of Eastern Kentucky. Martin’s parents were the proprietors of an extensive farm near Whitesburg, Kentucky (Letcher County) in a crossroads settlement called Kona, on the North Fork of the Kentucky River. Kona was located at the base of the Pine Mountain and served as an early campsite for Cherokee and Shawnee Indians as well as early explorer Daniel Boone (He left his signature D.B. on a tree nearby). This Indian trail led up the Pine Mountain, through the Pound Gap and down to Pound, Virginia.
Martin, known as the Kentucky River Giant, was the youngest of a family of 7 boys and 5 girls. While his father stood six feet two inches in his stocking feet and weighed two hundred and twenty pounds, his mother reached only five feet one inch in height, and weighed but one hundred and fifty six pounds.
According to his autobiography (which he sold as a souvenir):
“My growth was gradual and it is probable, that owing to that fact each portion of my body developed equal and symmetrically. I was educated in Emma Henry College, Washington County, Virginia. When I was fifteen I stood six feet in height and was to all appearances a man. At that time the war between the States was commenced.”
As a young man Martin enlisted as a private in the Southern Confederate States of America to fight in the Civil War (along with his brothers Henderson, Uriah, Jesse, James and Robert). He rose to the rank of Captain, having fought in several actions in Kentucky, Virginia and Tennessee. He was captured several times and imprisoned at Camp Chase in Ohio but managed to return to service.
After the war ended, Martin recognized that he could no longer remain in Kentucky. (His brother James was murdered by Union Home Guard forces.) He along with his nephew, John Wright, joined the John Robinson Circus in Cincinnati, Ohio .
Martin became the featured attraction in the so-called “cabinet of curiosities” (in today’s terms, the sideshow) He was without question, a remarkable man for ordinary citizens to behold and appreciate. He stood 7 feet 11 inches tall and weighed 475 pounds, wearing boots so large “it took a bushel of corn to fill one boot”. He traveled with a group of unusual performers. His cousin, John Wright, performed as a “shootist”, riding a galloping horse while shooting targets with his pistol (a talent he perfected during his Civil War action.) Martin traveled as part for the circus for five years, visiting all parts of the United States and Canada.
When he discussed a tour of the Continent with Judge H. P. Ingalls, his promoter, he was introduced to P.T. Barnum and Anna Haining Swan, the largest woman in the world. Anna was from Nova Scotia. (She was actually taller than Martin, although he did not like to admit it.) Usually her weight was around 350 pounds (159 kg). Her highest recorded weight was 413 pounds (187 kg).
In July 1865 in New York city, she was rescued from a fire at Barnum’s museum. The stairs were in flames and she was too large to escape through a window. In her fear, she bowled over the men sent to help her. Employees of the museum found a derrick nearby, smashed the wall around a window on the third floor, and lowered Anna by block and tackle with 18 men holding the end of the rope. At the time Anna weighed 394 pounds (179 kg).
Martin continues in his autobiography with travel notes:
“Finally I accepted an offer of Judge Ingalls to make a tour of Europe and joined him at Elizabeth, New Jersey. It was then I met my wife and as our history from that time blends into one I shall for the future treat the subject jointly.” Here follow the highlights from his journal :
The Tallest Man and Wife That Ever Existed
April 22, 1871, couple left New York on the City of Brussels of the Inman Line accompanied by Judge H. P. Ingalls.
May 2, 1871, arrived at Liverpool, and spent a week at the Washington Hotel.
May 19, 1871, arrived in London and gave a reception at the Willis Rooms on Kings Street to editors and medical men exclusively.
May 29, 1871, gave first public reception at same place.
Meeting Her Majesty Queen Victoria
June 2, 1871, Ordered by royal command to appear before Her Most Gracious Majesty, Queen Victoria, at Buckingham Palace. The Queen expressed her pleasure in the warmest terms and presented us with several valuable presents. (Queen Victoria supplied the dress material for the wedding dress including 100 yards of satin an 50 yards of lace).
Marriage at St. Martins -in-the-Fields
June 17, 1871, we were united at the Church of St. Martins in‑the‑Fields facing on Trafalgar Square. The ceremony was performed by the Rev. Rupert Cochran, a native of Halifax, Nova Scotia, who was assisted by the Rev. Dr. Roberts and the Vicar of St. Martins. Bridesmaids were Mlle. Augustine and Mrs. Dr. Buckland. My Best Man was the Honorable Henry Lee, scientific editor of “Land and Water.” Judge Ingalls gave the bride away.
We were married just as the morning service was over on Saturday. I had previously rented and furnished a house at 45 Craven Street, where the wedding breakfast was served by the celebrated caterers, Spears and Bonds. After breakfast, we started for Richmond, where I engaged rooms at the “Star and Garter”.
Greeting European Royalty
June 21, 1871, we returned to London and gave a private reception for the Prince of Wales at Masonic Hall. The Prince was accompanied by his staff, the Grand Duke Vladimir of Russia and Prince John of Luxembourg. We appeared twice more before the Queen, once at Buckingham Palace and once at Windsor Castle. Also had the honor to be the guests of the Princess of Wales at Marlborough House, and her sister, the Princess Christina, second daughter of the King of Denmark. We then exhibited at Crystal Palace and several theaters.
The week before Christmas found us in Edinburgh, Scotland and Glasgow.
First Child Born
May 19, 1872, our first child, a daughter was born, and died at birth. (n.b. Actually she was stillborn. Captain Bates donated the body to science) She weighed 18 pounds and was twenty-seven inches tall. On advice of Doctors we left England and traveled on the continent for pleasure, only giving receptions when requested by Royal Command. After touring Ireland, we decided to return to America.
July 2, 1874, we left England on the “City of Antwerp”. We toured the southwest.
Purchasing a Farm in Seville
Then, having decided to be a farmer, I bought a 130‑acre farm near Seville, Medina County, Ohio, building a house later known as: The House The Giants Built. I stocked my farm with blooded cattle, mostly shorthorns. My draft horses were the Norman breed, with a pair of Clydesdale carriage mares eighteen hands high.
The seasons of 1878‑79 found us the leading attractions of W. W. Coles Bros. Circus, Menagery and Museum.
A Second Child
January 19, 1879, our second child, a son was born, only to again die at birth. He was 28 inches tall, weighing 22 pounds, and perfect in every respect. He looked at birth like an ordinary child 6 months old. (n.b. The second baby was 23 3/4 pounds. He lived for 11 hours).
Martin and his Anna settled down on their farm in Seville Ohio and designed and had built a large home that matched their size and stocked a barn with the space needed to be comfortable. He had a stable filled with his favorite Percheron horses as well as other horses and exotic animals.
On August 1889 Anna became ill and died. The funeral was postponed because the the wrong size casket was shipped. Unfortunately he had to re-order it. To avoid that in his death, he had his own casket built and stored in his barn for years. At the grave site he erected a large monument in her honor. The monument was a female figure carved from the finest white marble mounted on a triple granite base which stood 18 feet high.
Later Martin remarried to Annette LaVonne Weatherby at the home of her father, the Rev. J.W. Weatherby of Troy, Ohio and they remained on the farm. Ten years later he and his wife moved into the village of Seville into a townhouse at 56 North Main Street. They remained there until his death in 1919. At that point his widow sold all his holdings in a huge estate sale.
He was buried in the casket he had built for himself years earlier. The head stones located in Mound Hill Cemetery reads: Martin Van B. — Anna H. — Babe — Sister.
What I Have Learned About The Giants
The real story of Martin Van Buren Bates and his family is extraordinary. His life was filled with unexpected events and characters both tragic and heartbreaking, yet simultaneously, exciting and inspiring.
Within his family I found even more. His brothers were Civil War heroes who fought (and some died) in important battles in Kentucky, Virgina and Tennessee.
His cousin the shootist, later known as Bad John Wright became the most famous lawman (a US Marshal) in Eastern Kentucky, and with a character in the book The Trail of the Lonesome Pine drawn from his life experiences.
His brother Robert was a founder of Knott County, Kentucky and its first sheriff. Robert’s son Jesse, served as a sheriff of Letcher County in the 1940–70’s. Another grandson (Rev. Thomas Garrett Bates) was a preacher in the Old Regular Baptist Church who founded seven churches in Perry, Letcher, Breathitt, and Knott counties.
Martin’s life and times certainly qualifies The “Kentucky River Giant” as one of the most famous Kentuckians to have ever lived. His struggles and triumphs illustrate the pursuit of a passionate life well-lived.
The Kentucky River Giant: Collecting Cousins
My cousins and I are honored to celebrate his life and legacy by joining friends and families in an intentional act of collecting cousins. Toward this end, we have established a Facebook page called: Collecting Cousins: The Kentucky River Giant.
We are doing more. We have begun an active search of identifying and locating relatives spread throughout the United States. (We estimate that there are at least 300 plus relatives that can link their kinship within the Bates family as direct relatives.) At this point we have 115 persons exploring their possible relationship. To assist us we have brought together a team of expert genealogists (Rhonda Cookenour and Lois Wright Tweedy) who will guide us in the process of identifying our relatives. Our plan is to collect the real stories found within our families that document and shed light on Martin’s life and times. We want to assemble these stories and share them with ourselves as well as the world-at-large.
We are networking with other groups as well. A conference will be held Sept. 22–24, 2016 at Breaks Interstate Park- Tales of the Cumberland’s: A Storytelling Convention which will include families of Devil John Wright, Doc Taylor, Talton Hall, Ira Mullins, & Martin V. Bates. These were among the key players in the settlement of Eastern Kentucky.
We are also advocating for tourism development in Eastern Kentucky. Our cousin Maxine Bates Quillen and the Letcher County Historical Society has begun work with county and state government officials. Discussions center on developing a new Kentucky State Park (named in the Giant’s honor) and purchasing a statue that would be included in a museum near Whitesburg, Kentucky. We have begun a fundraising campaign to create a life size statue of his likeness. If you are interested in what we are doing, then please join us.
We Need Your Help
Are you a possible relative of the “Kentucky River Giant”? Join us on Facebook:
Would you like more information about the conference in September?
Call 800–933–7275 for more information or click on
Would you like to help us support a statue of The Kentucky River Giant in a new state park in Kentucky?
Please make a contribution in the Giant’s honor:
Letcher County Historical Society - Giant Fund
Please follow us as we discover and reveal the history and fascinating details of the Bates families’ life and times as we identify new relatives along the way. We will report to you though our publication on Medium:
Life & Times of The Kentucky River Giant
Finally, we would love to know what you think about our adventure. Please as us questions or give us feedback…
What do you think?
