Ok, he was only 7ft 10 inches but Martin Van Buren Bates of Letcher County KY was an incredible man. A member of the 5th KY Infantry CSA he must have been an unusual sight to soldiers in the hollers of Eastern KY. After the war he join carnivals and made a fortune. He also married a woman taller than him...whew...unlike a lot of very tall folks, Martin was perfectly healthy and incredible strong. A lot of his relatives went from the 5th KY Infantry to the 10th Mounted Rifles but I don't think he did. Probably too much strain on a horse. Lol.