Has Jess got a TALL TALE for you all today…literally!

When one thinks of the Cherokee Strip, one doesn’t normally conjure up an image of Goliath or Tom Thumb or a full-blown circus for that matter, unless maybe you’re from the area and grew up listening to the tales.

Lewis Wilkins, born in 1869 or 1870, was known as "The Oklahoma Giant" due to his extraordinary height of 8 feet 2 inches and weight of 365 pounds. He grew up in a large family in Butler County, Kansas, and moved to a farm near Waukomis after the Cherokee Strip opened in 1893. By the age of 12, he was already over six feet tall and gained fame through his travels as a giant, touring worldwide. Despite being well-formed, Lewis faced health issues later in life, ultimately discovering a bone tumor pressing on his optic nerve. After a trip to Chicago for potential surgery, he died on July 10, 1902, at age 33. His funeral drew a crowd of about 2,000 people, and he was buried near his family home, with his body temporarily placed in a specially designed casket to prevent theft for carnival displays. Although his family received a significant insurance payout, Lewis was reinterred in Waukomis Cemetery without a marker indicating his status as the tallest man in the world at the time of his death.

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