“Big Louie” Moilanen, Once the Tallest Man in the World
Oct 6, 2008 | Share this | Leave a comment
Louis “Big Louie” Moilanen is a legend in the Upper Peninsula, a legend that transcends much more than just the Upper Peninsula.
Louis Moilanen was born at the turn of the century in 1900 and grew up in the ghost town of Boston, which is about five miles north of Hancock.
Though he was born to a 4 foot tall mother and a 5′ 9″ father, Louis Moilanen would grow to be 8′ 4″ and approximately 450 pounds. During his lifetime it was said that he was the tallest man in the world and become known as “Big Louie”.
Like many locals in the area, “Big Louie” worked in the mines. At one time he also worked as a bartender in Hancock. That is one bartender I would not want to upset. I can’t imagine walking into a bar and seeing a bartender who is 8′ 4″. I would probably be a little scared.
Word traveled fast about Louis and he would eventually work for the Barnum and Bailey Circus for a short time.
The medical condition which lead to his enormous height would also be the cause of his death. “Big Louie” Moilanen passed away in 1926 at the young age of 26. A custom built coffin was built for him and he was buried at the Wasa Cemetery near Hancock.
Photo courtesy of A. L. Paulson, Calumet, MI
If you enjoyed this post please subscribe to our RSS feedSave/Share:
9 Comments
Leave Your Comments...
Loading ...
I can imagine any bar fights while Big Louie was around were rather short!
(Your Google map of Boston doesn’t point to the U.P. though)
It’s too bad the NBA wasn’t around at that time.
Robert,
Thanks for letting me know, I fixed the Boston link.
what was the medical condition he had?
It was meningeal tuberculosis.
My great grandfather was peter pyykkonen from demmon michigan my grandmother was hattie pyykkonen born in 1900 she told me that she was big louies cousin and attended his funeral when she was 13 years old …
It would be an educated guess these days that my namesake suffered some type of pituitary malfunction. I heard he was 28 when he died. Either way a short life. He has some of the facial characteristics of my first cousin David Moilanen. My family grew up with the legend of Big Louie, I was greatly dispointed as a teen to have my father tell me we were not related. E. Louis Moilanen, Calif.
I believe my Grandfather Gust Moilanen (d. 1927, buried at St. Henry’s Lutheran Church, Nisula MI) had a sister who married a Pyyrohnen. He had 3 sisters one married a Heikkanen, one a Lahti, and I think the third a Pyrrohnen. But, I’m not 100% sure and if your grandmother was 13 at the time it wouldn’t have been Gust’s sister, but, maybe her daughter?
I have a better copy of this postcard in California. My family was very familar with Big Louie. I was forever disappointed when my father told me I was NOT related to Big Louie. i dispute it to this day. He looks just like my cousin David. Regards from Willits, Eldon Louis Moilanen. moilanene@sbcglobal.net.