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Twins Facts
Most Twins
Mrs. Fyodor Vassilyev (sometimes seen as Feodor Vassiliev, or Fydor Vassilet) of Shuya, Russia (1702 or 07- June 16 1782) gave birth to 16 sets of twins (in addition to 7 sets of triplets & 4 sets of quads.). She had a total of 69 children, 67 of whom survived infancy who were born between 1725 - 1765. Mrs. Mary Jonas who died in 1899 had 15 sets, and all were boy/girl.
Most Premature
Carol Banski writes us: Our twins were born at 124 days early and they are both still alive. Born at 22 weeks we were told we had a zero % chance of survival. Kay was 1lb 2oz and 11 3/4 inches Nick 1lb 5oz and 11 1/2 inches. Despite the fact that they have had serious complications and have both lost their vision due to being so premature (that they never developed enough retina) they are wonderful and I could not love them more. We still spend a fair amount of time at Children's Hospitals and Clinics of Minneapolis but for the most part we are home and everyone who has ever met the babies will tell you that they are truly miracles. Thanks for you time.
Longest Interval Between Twins
Mrs. Peggy Lynn gave birth to Hanna on November 11 1995 and twin Eric on Feb 2 1996, 84 days later, the longest interval between twins. The previous record was held by Mrs. Danny Berg of Italy, who had Diana on December 23 1987 and her twin Monica on Jnuary 30 1988, 38 days later. The Keys family of Louisiana had their twins 95 days apart, in 1994 and 1995.
Oldest Female Twins
The oldest female twins in the world were Japan's Kin Narita and Gin Kanie who were born August 1 1892. Kin passed away on January 23 2000 from heart failure at the age of 107, and Gin passed away February 28 2001 at 108. The oldest females in the USA were most likely Alice Grubb Hill and Maggie Grubb Lambeth of North Carolina were born January 13 1884, and both died at 106. Mildred Widman Phillipi and Mary Widman Franzini of Missouri missed celebrating their 105th birthday when. Mildred died May 4 1985, 44 days before the landmark event. Vassilka Dermendjhieva and Vassila Yapourdjieva from Bulgaria were born in 1862 and supposedly lived to at least 104. Alice Maria and Emily Edith Wheeler were born April 20 1888 in England, and were alive as of 1990, making them 102 at that time, and probably the oldest ever UK twins. Unknown deceased date. Sarah and Mattie Duckworth turned 102 on February 11, 1968, Unknown deceased date. Gertrude Blasingame and Pearl Due of Arkansas, were born July 27 1899. Gertrude passed away in 2000. Rhea Spohner and Ruth Emblow turned 100 in February 1998. Twins Mary and Marjorie Chavasse of England lived to 100 years 332 days and 103 years 213 days. Twins Treva Pence and Mabel Harpine of Maryland were born July 19 1900 and lived to 100. Mabel passed away on March 2 2001. Lola Vaughan Bell and Lula Vaughan Tolleson both lived to 100 (Lola to 100 and Lula to 103).
Oldest Male Twins
The oldest male twins ever were Eli and John Phipps born February 14 1803. Eli lived to 108 years, 9 days. They are also the USA's longest lived male twins. Dale & Glen Moyer of Ohio were the second oldest in history & were born June 20 1895. Glen died at age 105 in 2001. Gulbrand & Bernt Morterud of Norway were born December 20 1858 and Bernt died at age 101, while Gulbrand died at 105. Matthew and Joseph Rossiter of Canada were born March 31 1909 reached the age of 91. Matthew passed away in July 2000.
Oldest Female Twins (Living)
Currently the oldest living female twins in the US (and perhaps the world) may be Estella Oksol and Luvella Olsen were born April 20 1900 and are now 101 years old. They were born in North Dakota and currently live together in Minnesota. The Clarke twins, Alice and Nellie, of England were born in June 15 1900, and are the UK's Oldest Living Twins. Isabelle Ferguson Lettinger and Charlotte Ford born July 30 1904 in Pennsylvania. Anna McParland and Bridie Kennedy were born on October 1 1905 in Northern Ireland. Ella Vacek and Sylvia Pospisil of Nebraska turned 95 in 2000. Identical twins Mattie Vines-Jones and Libba Nixon of North Carolina were born on January 7, 1910. Fraternal twins Ethel May and Eva Fay Hope of Florida were born February 17 1910 and turned 91 in 2001. Fraternal twins Clara Ratermann and Bertha Ellers of Illinois, were born June 10, 1910. Millie and Connie Loveland of England turned 90 on March 6 2001. Mary and Marian Lamb of the US born in 1895, who were at one time listed as the US's oldest set. We were notified recently that Laura & Lilian Boucher (they married cousins with the same last name) were born on June 7, 1900. They now live in Escanaba, MI and are in great shape considering their age.
Oldest Male Twins (Living)
Lee and Sam DeSpain who were born January 13 1902 and currently reside in Kentucky are the oldest male living twins. Identical twins Sherman and Sheridan Everett of Oregon were born on September 6 1902. Lawrence and Louis Schweihofer were born December 4 1905. Curtis and Curran Carter of Indiana were born August 29 1908. Twins David and Barnett Satz of New York were born July 4 1910.
Oldest Boy/Girl Twins (Living)
E. John Renwick and Irene Bell of Manitoba, Canada were born July 15, 1903 and both turned 98 in 2001. Josie and Joseph Jantz of Washington were born March 14 1909 and are both 92.
Tallest Twins
The tallest living male twins are Michael and James Lanier of Michigan who are 7ft 4in, born November 27 1969. The tallest females are Heather and Heidi Burge who are 6ft 4 3/4in. Heidi plays for the WNBA's Los Angeles Sparks. The previous record was held by Pat and Pam Terry of Ohio, who are both 6ft tall. The tallest in the UK of all time were the Knipe brothers, born in 1761, who both reached 7ft 2in. The height record holders in the UK as of 1990 were Andrew and Timothy Hull who were born October 24 1968 and are 6ft 9.3in and 6ft 10.3in.
Shortest Twins
The shortest living male twins are John and Greg Rice of the Florida who are 34" tall. The shortest females are Dorene Williams and Darlene McGregor of USA who are 4ft 1". The shortest of all time were Matjus and Bela Matina of Hungary (later of USA) who were both 30" tall.
Lightest Birthweight
The world's lightest twin birth weight is Courtney and Chloe Smith of Alexandria, LA were born March 1, 2000 weighing 12 ounces and 12.5 ounces respectively. After a 4.5 month stay in the CHRISTUS St. Frances Cabrini Hospital Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, the Smith Twins were doing fine and attend Nachman Elementary School in Alexandria, LA. In 2000 they were chosen as the Louisiana Representatives for the Foresters Champions Across America and Canada promoting Children's Miracle Network.
Heaviest Birth Weight
The heaviest birth weight born to Mrs. J.P. Haskin of Arkansas, on February 20 1924, totallying 27 lbs 12ozs. A set born in England, the Warren's weighed a total of 25lbs 8 ozs at their birth on December 6 1884. Another set of twins born in 1997 by Judy Anderson of Wilson, North Carolina weighed a combined total of 18 lb 10 oz.
Heaviest Twins
The heaviest twins were Billy Leon and Benny Loyd McCrary (December 7 1946) of North Carolina, who weighed 743lbs and 723lbs. Billy died on January 13 1979 from heart failure after a fall from a mini bike. Benny died March 26 2001 from heart failure.
First Test Tube (IVF) Twins
The world's first test tube twins are Stephen and Amanda Mays born June 5 1981.
Longest Separated Twins
Iris Johns and Aro Campbell were separated from each other Jan 13 1914 and reunited 75 years later. Phillip and Barbara McAurley were born in England May 27 1916 and separated June 1917 until Jun 29 1987, 70 years later.
Most Identical
The most identical twins are John and William Reiff of Pennsylvania, who have won a record 22 titles in a most identical contest. They have had a 13 year winning streak (57-96).
Youngest Mother of Twins
The youngest mother of twins is Donna Dowman of England, conceived twins at 13 and had Rachel and Rebecca at age 14 in 1997. Nicola Doherty of England had her twins Courteney and Caitlyn April 20 1997 when she was 14.
Youngest Father of Twins
The youngest father of twins is James Sutton of England, who was 13 when his girlfriend Sarah Drinkwater (age 17) had identical twins Leah and Louise in late 1999. Oldest Mother and Father of Twins The oldest mother of twins is Lin Fu-mei of Taiwan, who apparently had twins at age 59. Judy Cates of the USA had twins at age 58. Lynne Bezant of England had twins David and Susan on May 24 2001 at age 56. Marilyn Nolen had twins Travis and Ryan on March 22 2000 at age 55.
Interesting Story on Distant Twin Sisters
Gertrude Eddy & sister Dorothy McMahon were born 11/13/1901 in Prince Edward Island, Canada. Early in their childhoods they moved to the Boston area, where they both continue to live today. Gertrude lives on her own in Belmont, MA & Dottie lives on her own in Lynn, MA. Not surprisingly, they are extraordinarily close & talk 2 or 3 times/day on the phone. Because traveling is difficult, they rarely see each other in person.. Both were nurses well into their 70s, and even after retiring provided nursing assistance to friends. Gertrude lost her first husband (Albert Sandusky) after only a few years of marriage in 1931(?). They had one son, Albert Jr. She remarried in the early 1940's to Melvin D. Eddy. He died in 1963. She has lived on her own since. Dottie married Charles McMahon in 1933 and was married to him until the early 1950s, at which time they divorced. They had no children. She didn't remarry. Despite the expected assortment of physical ailments that strike the elderly, both women are remarkably sharp. (The truth is, absolutely nothing gets by them.) Both are big Red Sox fans and active letter writers.
Company Employing The Most Twins
Cirque Du Soleil, a French Canadian circus with shows running in Las Vegas and Disneyworld, has 4 sets of twins working for them. Sarah and Karine Steben work in Las Vegas at O at the Bellagio hotel doing trapeze work. Elsie and Serenity Smith are touring Asia and the Pacific with the show Saltimbanco doing a trapeze act that the Steben twins originated. The Gutszmit twins, Daniel and Jacek, are identical males who do a hand balancing act in the Saltimbanco show. There is also a set of identical twin brothers, Bruce and Stacey Bilodeau working on the show at Disneyworld, called La Nouba. They perform on the German wheel, and appeared in Cirque's 1991 tour of Nouvelle Experience. New York City's Twinsworld Restaurant employs 37 sets of twins & it is a requirement to be hired.
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