Anna Swan

Anna with her husband Martin Bates poising next to a man of normal height.

A life lived on a grand scale – Nova Scotia’s remarkable giantess

Anna Swan (1846 – 1888) was one of the tallest women in history. Born in Mill Brook, Nova Scotia, to average-sized parents of Scottish descent, Anna was exceptional from the start – weighing 13 pounds at birth and growing rapidly. On her fourth birthday, she stood 4 feet 6 inches tall and weighed 94 pounds. She eventually reached a height of 7 feet 11 inches and weighed nearly 400 pounds.

In 1862, P.T. Barnum – the famous American showman – heard about Anna and sent an agent to Nova Scotia to recruit her for his American Museum in New York. Anna was just 16. Unlike many of Barnum’s ‘curiosities’, Anna was treated with genuine respect. Barnum ensured she received daily tutoring for three years, and she also studied piano and voice. She earned an impressive $1,000 per month – a remarkable sum for the time.

While touring, Anna met Martin Van Buren Bates, a man billed as the Kentucky Giant, who stood 7 feet 8 inches. In 1871, the couple traveled to London where they were married in a widely publicized ceremony. Billed as ‘the largest married couple in the world’, they toured Europe for 14 months before settling in Seville, Ohio.

There, they built a custom home with 14-foot ceilings, 8½-foot doors, and furniture scaled to their proportions. Ordinary guests reportedly had to climb onto chairs and sofas just to sit down.

Anna had two children who, unfortunately, did not live. She had a son who was 30 inches long and weighed 23 pounds, 12 ounces; his chest measured 16 inches and his head 19 inches, and each foot was 5 1/2 inches long. He only lived for 11 hours.

Anna died suddenly on August 5, 1888, just one day before her 42nd birthday. Martin ordered a coffin from a firm in Cleveland. A standard size coffin was sent as the firm believed that the order was a mistake. Furious, he contacted them again to say that the order was wrong. A new coffin was sent but the funeral had to be delayed by three days.

References:

Phyllis R. Blakeley, “SWAN, ANNA HAINING (Bates),” in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 11, University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003–, accessed January 30, 2025, https://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/swan_anna_haining_11E.html.

A historical page can be found at http://yeahpot.com/bates/giant.php

The complete story of Anna can be found at https://epe.lac-bac.gc.ca/100/205/301/ic/cdc/aswan/storyindex.htm 

Image sources:

Painted photograph of Anna in her wedding dress. https://www.tatamagoucheheritagecentre.ca/anna-swan/

Portrait: Phyllis R. Blakeley, “SWAN, ANNA HAINING (Bates),” in Dictionary of Canadian Biography, vol. 11, University of Toronto/Université Laval, 2003–, accessed January 30, 2025, https://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/swan_anna_haining_11E.html.