Marriage

On 20th June in 1872, Anna Swan of Nova Scotia married Martin Van Buren Bates.

Both were 7-foot-11-inches, but their lives were so much more than their heights.

Anna Haining Swan was born on Aug. 6, 1846 in New Annan, Nova Scotia. She was 16 pounds at birth, the third of 13 children.

Martin Van Buren Bates was born on Nov. 9, 1837 in Kentucky. He went on to serve in the Civil War, reaching the rank of captain. He was wounded in battle and captured. Put into Camp Chase, he quickly escaped.

By the age of four, Anna was 4 feet 6 inches. At six, she was 5 feet 2 inches.

She continued to grow and at 12 she was 6 feet 1 inches. At 18, she reached her full height of 7 feet 11 inches.

Highly intelligent, she excelled in literature and music. She loved acting and singing, as well as playing the piano. At one point, she even played Lady Macbeth.

When she was 17, she started working for P.T. Barnum.

On July 13, 1865, a fire struck Barnum's American Museum and she nearly lost her life as the stairs were on fire and she was too large to get out a window. Thankfully, fellow employees smashed the wall with a nearby loft derrick to help her escape.

She met Martin Van Buren Bates during her touring, who was her height, and the two began to fall in love. They married on June 17, 1871.

Anna toured North America and Europe with her husband, and even met Queen Victoria. The Queen gave her a satin gown and diamond ring, and Bates received an engraved watch.

The couple eventually retired and built a mansion that included 14-foot ceilings and extra wide and tall doors.

Together, they had two children. The first was a girl who was 18 pounds at birth but she died soon after. The next was a son who is the largest recorded newborn ever at 23 pounds. He died 11 hours after his birth.

In 1879, the couple resumed touring and then retired again in 1880. The couple spent the rest of their years living quietly on their farm.

Sadly, on Aug. 5, 1888, Anna died suddenly in her sleep.

After Anna's death, Martin was inconsolable. He had a large statue made in her likeness in Europe and shipped to Canada to be placed at her grave.

Martin remarried and lived a quiet life until his death in 1919.

There is a museum dedicated to the life of Anna Swan in Tatamagouche, Nova Scotia.