Measured in feet, inches, and sheer disbelief — the tallest people ever documented, almost all the result of gigantism caused by a pituitary or genetic condition.
| Rank | Name | Height | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Robert Wadlow (1918–1940) | 272 cm | United States |
| 2 | John Rogan (1868–1905) | 267 cm | United States |
| 3 | John F. Carroll (1932–1969) | 264 cm | United States |
| 4 | Willie Camper (1924–1943) | 262 cm | United States |
| 5 | Siah Khan (1913–1948) | 259 cm | Iran |
| 6 | Sultan Kösen (b. 1982, living) | 251 cm | Turkey |
| 7 | Édouard Beaupré (1881–1904) | 251 cm | Canada |
| 8 | Don Koehler (1925–1981) | 249 cm | United States |
| 9 | Väinö Myllyrinne (1909–1963) | 248 cm | Finland |
| 10 | Zeng Jinlian (1964–1982) | 248 cm | China |
No matching rows.
Pituitary gigantism kept him growing his entire life — he was still growing at 22, when he died of complications from an infected blister caused by a leg brace. He remains the tallest person in history with irrefutable medical documentation.[1]
A condition called ankylosis fused his joints in later life, leaving him unable to stand or walk unassisted despite his extraordinary height. He made a living selling autographed photos of himself.[1]
Severe spinal curvature complicates his official height figure — different measurement methods (standing vs. accounting for spinal curvature) give somewhat different numbers, which is common among the tallest people on record.[1]
One of several extraordinarily tall Americans documented in the early 20th century, though far less biographical detail survives about him than about Wadlow or Rogan.[1]
His height was caused by Proteus syndrome — the same rare disorder, causing overgrowth of bone, skin, and other tissue, associated with Joseph Merrick ("The Elephant Man").[1]