Angus MacAskill (1825 – 8 August 1863) was a Scottish-born Canadian giant. In its 1981 edition the Guinness Book of World Records stated he was the strongest man, the tallest non-pathological giant and the largest true giant in recorded history at , he also had the largest chest measurements of any non-obese man at . MacAskill was said to have accomplished feats of lifting a ship's anchor to his chest and holding over with only three fingers.
Early life
MacAskill was born on the Isle of Berneray in the Sound of Harris, Scotland. His father was Norman MacAskill, who was tall, and his mother was Christina Campbell. He had twelve siblings, several of whom died young, and he was an ordinary-sized baby. After several years in Stornoway, Outer Hebrides, the family settled in the fishing community of Englishtown, Cape Breton Island, around 1831.
Young MacAskill was said to be of normal stature, but in entering his adolescence he began to grow rapidly and by his 20th year had attained , eventually reaching within another year or two. His early adult weight was . His shoulders were wide, and the palm of his hand wide and long; his wrists were in circumference; his ankles measured in circumference; by 1863 he was wearing boots long. His feet were probably around long and wide. He had "deep-set blue eyes and a musical, if somewhat hollow voice"; and "a mild and gentle manner." Despite his size he was well proportioned.
He was known in his home community of St. Anns as "Gille Mòr" (translated to "Big Boy"). He was also known to many as the "Cape Breton Giant" or simply "Giant MacAskill".
When MacAskill was approximately 14 years old he travelled on a fishing schooner from St. Anns to North Sydney and the crew took him along to a dance. An altercation with a dancer led to MacAskill striking his tormentor's jaw with his fist. The man landed in the middle of the floor and was unconscious for so long the other dancers thought he was dead. When the captain returned to his schooner he found MacAskill on his knees praying that he had not killed the man.
Adult career
MacAskill was rumored for feats of strength such as lifting a ship's anchor weighing to chest height, and an ability to carry barrels weighing over apiece under each arm or reputedly able to lift a hundredweight, i.e. , with two fingers and hold it at arm's length for ten minutes.
In 1849, he entered show business and went to work for P. T. Barnum's circus, appearing next to General Tom Thumb. In 1853 he toured the West Indies and Cuba. Queen Victoria heard stories about MacAskill's great strength and invited him to appear before her to give a demonstration at Windsor Castle, after which she proclaimed him to be "the tallest, stoutest and strongest man to ever enter the palace", and presented him with two gold rings in appreciation.
The fishermen of St. Anns envied MacAskill's strength. While they laboriously bailed their boats, MacAskill set his weight under his two-ton boat, tipped it on its beam ends and reportedly emptied the bilge water. He reportedly single-handedly set a mast into a schooner. He was also said to have been able to lift a fully grown horse over a four-foot fence.
There are various accounts of an incident with an anchor that may have taken place in New York or New Orleans. French sailors apparently taunted MacAskill to lift an anchor lying on the wharf, which was estimated to weigh . MacAskill easily did so and walked down the wharf with it, but one of the anchor's flukes caught in one of his shoulders, crippling him. However, this was not the cause of his death, as he lived for many years thereafter.
After a show business career demonstrating his size and strength in Europe and North America, he returned to his home community of Englishtown and purchased a gristmill, a general store and several other properties.
Death
In the summer of 1863, MacAskill undertook a trip to the colonial capital at Halifax, where he had been planning to sell produce and purchase stock for his store that he would need for the winter season from the city's wholesalers. During the trip, he suddenly became seriously ill and was returned to St. Anns, where his family moved him back to his parents' home. His original childhood bed was hastily lengthened and put up in their living room to provide for his care. The doctor's diagnosis was brain fever. After a week's illness, MacAskill died peacefully in his sleep on August 8, 1863, the Presbyterian minister the Rev. Abraham McIntosh and many neighbours being in attendance in the house.