Who was Civil War’s biggest man?
Look no further than Martin V.B. Bates

Three things distinguish Martin Van Buren Bates from other officers in the Confederate army.

He had a photographic memory, was merciless in avenging deaths of family members and was considered the largest man in the world.

The Letcher County native, who weighed 300 pounds at age 13, grew to a height of 7-feet-11 and a weight of 500 pounds. By age eight, he could relate history’s most important dates and events. At age 16, he enrolled at Emory and Henry College and became a teacher.

But it was the Civil War where Bates – described as a man of refinement, quiet and gentlemanly – gained his reputation.

He rose to the rank of captain and fought in the Battle of Middle Creek, the second Battle of Cynthiana and in another action near Cumberland Gap. He wore two 71-caliber horse pistols that had been made especially for him at the Tredegar Iron Works in Richmond, Va. He had a saber that was 18 inches longer than the standard weapon and rode a huge Percheron horse that he took from a German farmer in Pennsylvania. He was severely wounded in a battle at Cumberland Gap and also was captured, although he later escaped.

Early in the war, guerilla bands pillaged, murdered and robbed throughout much of eastern Kentucky. Bates, described as brave and relentless, was chosen to confront the marauders and drove them far back into Virginia. He and Col. Ben Caudill of Letcher County led the army and located the enemy late one night. They built a huge fire that attracted the guerillas as intended. As the outlaws swooped down on the encampment, Bates and the Kentuckians opened fire and killed 12 of the band and captured some 15 others.

But, it was shortly after the end of the war, that Bates’ full fury was revealed. He discovered, after returning to the Whitesburg area, that one of his brothers had been captured by local Unionists and tortured to death with bayonets. Bates gathered his men and searched out the murderers. One by one they were captured or killed and their wives, parents, grandparents and children were rounded up and taken to an area where eight nooses were arranged. Bound prisoners had the nooses placed around their necks as they stood on a log rolled beneath them.

At Bates’ signal, the log was rolled away and the prisoners dropped a few inches and slowly choked to death. It took some 15 minutes for the men to die as their relatives were held at bay by cocked pistols and drawn swords.

The relatives were told not to touch the dead or remove them from the gallows. The bodies were to remain there and rot, their corruption warning all of the consequences of killing a Bates. If anyone violated the order, he or she would die in the same way. Absolutely no mercy would be shown. In addition, the victim’s family would be destroyed, their house burned, their stock killed.

“Take warning,” the giant said, “because no other warning will be given!”

Bates knew he could not remain in Letcher County after the hanging. Martin then joined a circus and later married Anna Hannon Swan, who was eight-feet tall. They were dubbed the “Love Giants” and are listed in The Guinness World Records Web site as the tallest married couple.

In Whitesburg, Letcher Historical Society President Creda Isaacs said a papier-mâché statue of Bates, created by a Letcher County Central High School art class, already draws attention in the front window of the town’s library. Maxine Bates Quillen, great niece of Martin Bates, said plans for a student-made papier-mâché statue of Anna are in the works.

The Tourism Commission has received a $10,000 grant from Berea College’s Brushy Fork Institute for a study to determine how much it would cost to build a welcome and history center.

A park would feature the statue of Bates and eventually others. Quillen said a bronze statue of Bates could cost as much as $84,000.

Isaacs said Letcher County has long needed a museum to preserve historical artifacts. She said the history center and memorial park featuring Bates’ statue would help preserve Letcher County’s history “before it is all lost.”