Democratic Sentinel, Volume 1, Number 24, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 27 July 1877 — The Tallest Man in America. [ARTICLE]

The Tallest Man in America.

The papers are speaking of a tall man named Thurston, who now lives on White Oak creek, Titus county, Texas. He is seven feet six inches high, standing bare-footed. He is a half-brother to Dr. Thurston, of Versailles, Mo. Mr. Thurston went to California some years before the war. and his companions had a great deal of fun with him. When they saw a train of wagons coming to meet them they would carefully conceal Henry in a wagon, and avlicu the train came up tiiey would manage to introduce the subject of tall men. They would propose to bet any sum that they had the tallest man in the oroAvd. It so happened that most of Henry’s companions were men of medium stature, and it Avas not hard to get up a bet. When the money would be staked, they would then bring Henry out of the Avagon, and propose to have the measurement take place right away. The beaten parties never failed to enjoy the joke, and always passed over tho money cheerfully. Henry Thurston Avas a soldier in the Confederate States army. Ke had a brother named Lafayette Thurston, who was also a very tall man; but not so tall by several inches as Henry. Lafayette Thurston was woundcd in the leg at Jenkins’ Ferry, and it was found necessary to amputate the leg about half Avay from the knee to the foot. He then had a longer leg than a great many men have. We think Lafayette died from the effect of this wound. Col. Austin M. Stanton, chief of Gen. Parson’s staff, was a tall man, and he frequently stood straight under Henry Thurston’s arm while extended horizontally. In a crowd of men Henry Thurston always appeared like a man standing on a stump overlooking the by-standers.—Deaf-Mute A dvane.c.