Myrtle Corbin is my great great grandmother in law. She was a strong and amazing woman. My mother in law is the spitting image of Myrtle! We have photos of her not ever made public. Thank you for focusing on the good and what she accomplished! Edit: I was a great off. She’s my husband’s grandfather’s grandmother.
My grandpa was a “freak.” He was a “fishman.” He had terrible psoriasis, and the rafts of psoriasis looked like scales. He had issues working -torquing the skin caused the skin to bleed. He got a job in a freak show, and made a good living. My gran and he divorced when my (perfectly normal) mom was small, and he toured the country making good money - until “them dang do gooders” decided that physical defect equaled mental defect and he (and those like him) didn’t realize he was being taken advantage of and closed down the shows - without a thought as to how these people who were not mentally challenged were going to get jobs, survive, etc. He went from having a home and a job to a drifter that was chased out of anywhere he tried to get a job. He ended his days living with his brother, shunned and hidden. For the “freaks” often the inner world of the sideshow with the other freaks was the only place they felt normal.
Your grandpa might have had ichthyosis, rather than psoriasis. The name comes from the scale-like appearance of the skin ("ichthys" = "fish" in Greek). Ichthyosis is caused by one of several different genetic variations. If he had two copies of one of the ichthyosis gene variations, then he'd have ichthyosis; your mom would be a carrier; and you'd have a 50/50 chance of being a carrier. It only costs about $200-$300 to run a genome these days, might be interesting to see if anyone is a carrier.
@@bcjb720 WOW that's very impressive knowledge you have there. And that's incredibly nice of to share that with the individual above in regards to their Grandfather and his struggles. I agree too, that getting a genenom test would be very interesting. Regardless of the results, honestly.
@@karenneill9109 no there isn't but it's often ignored from stories like these. She was obviously a very savvy woman and should have been represented as such
A lot of them still don’t. They’re on the dole, they hate the “do gooders” that took away a good living. They got to travel the world, meet interesting people. I personally think it should be UP TO THEM what they want to do with their own lives. And nobody, able bodied or not can tell if somebody is a POS to this day. 🤷♀️
Not sure why the video is focused on being called names…. She lived a very wealthy life and a long one. I think anyone would OK making 7K a week to be called names
Sad that you think money is all that matters. I couldnt imagine anything worse than someone saying at my funeral "she lived a wealthy life" sounds horrendous.
Even then, it wasn't always available. My mother was a twin born in 1929. Her twin died in 31 from an ear infection that would have been easily cured today.
Was discovered in 1928, but the technique to produce it for medical usage wasn't refined until 1940, the first human test was in 1941. Can only imagine how many lives it's saved, and hard to imagine a time where a simple scratch was a real concern, though it still is in some places.
I’m probably being controversial here, but I think she had a good life. She found love, had a good income, had babies and lived to a reasonable age for the time. Lots of healthy ‘normal’ people of that time had none of these things. I don’t feel sorry for her, I admire and salute her and all that she achieved. Very nice video, thank you.
She may have had a better life than she would have if she was born now. Her wage was enormous for the time, and I would not be too quick to judge the parents, in that age if you could not make money you could literally starve. The Halloween decorations are modern so we are no better. I don't think she would like being called tragic.
Yeah, I thought the narrator was a bleeding heart liberal... I've had a harder life than her, but you'll know it by looking at me or my accomplishments
She sounds like a very amazing woman. Even though she was treated cruelly it sounds as if she lived life with courage. Im glad she found happiness with her husband and children. May she rest in eternal peace.
Cruelty only hits you as cruel if it is unusual and specific to you. Back then, this was the way people talked and acted. If you look into the history of the Freak Show, crude as it was in concept, most of the performers had a pretty full and decent life outside of work hours. They were friends with each other (though not without drama at times) and many other circus performers. Many people stayed in the circus their whole lives because it paid well and they weren't treated like freaks by the circus
As a medical professional, I would definitely consider this a case of conjoined twins rather than polymelia. Polymelia is usually the growth of a single extra appendage, not the growth of an extra entire half of a body, as would be the case with a conjoined twin who is only there from the waist down. It's like the opposite of the Hensel twins, Brittany and Abby. This was interesting, all the same, so thank you for that!
Given our modern understanding of biology what’s our excuse for the nastiness we impose of LGBTQ and gender fluid people - especially given the fact that they represent a tiny proportion of the population.
Still would be today. Humans wisdom hasn't advanced in any time/way whatsoever!! 150 yrs ago and we haven't grown, matured, educated ourselves, mellowed, grown in empathy or anything of the sort for decade after decade! 😮😢 Actually, truly sad. ❤😊❤
She was rich and famous, had her pick of the best doctors in the country and raised 4 successful children. Frankly I'd love to be her instead of being completely broke all the time and unable to get the medical care I need not because it hasn't been invented yet, but because it's priced stupidly high. Heck even basic household items I need cost 100x as much as the "normal" version just because it's for the disabled.
I visited the Barnum Museum in Florida and was horrified by the way people with deformities were exploited by the circus owner. Later, it was explained that they were happy there. They had found each other. Separately they were freaks but together they were normal.
@@deborahtaylor9754 Circus acts incorporating wild animals have been kept out of NYC for some time now. But it was because of PUBLIC DEMANDS that it was stopped.
That would have been the RINGLING museum if it was in Florida. The Barnum museum is in Connecticut. I've been to the Ringling Museum in Sarasota, Florida. They have a wonderful collection of art, in addition to their circus museum.
@@VisionaryGardener Yes. My memory was of the wife. She created many needlework designs of pillows, a piano bench cover, etc., using PETIT POINT designs, which uses much smaller stitches and a smaller, fine pointed needle. This means a lot more work and more of a task for eyesight. I was a little horrified, so much tedious effort, in the hot & humid Florida weather. She was a waitress when her husband found her. He was a rich celebrity. My thought was he must be a horrible person. Then I went to the museum where many of the, “Freak,” posters were displayed. I was kinda sorry I had visited there.
Nothing comparable about viewing a family that are not physically handicapped. This is 2024. Life is lived under cameras.. Not our choices. Everywhere we go. Kids are used to it. No exploitation involved whatsoever. These people Barnum hires were exploited
The difference there is that in those days there was no social security and so the men had to find ways of working to earn a living. Alas, poor Josephine Myrtle's father was more of an opportunist and instead of protecting his daughter, as is a father's duty, he chose to exploit her. Shameful man.
@@Djulimee I definitely agree. Unfortunately we have seen other opportunists such as these poor kids on tv (Shirley Temple among many) or in music and now social media is empowering a whole new set of opportunistic parents. SMH, I don’t understand why people seem to think they have the right to live off their kids.
@@TheSapphireSprit The patriarchal construct treats women and children as property rather than autonomous beings. Despite much progress, that mindset still exists globally.
I understand the physical invasion of pretty much h any doctor . I was born in 1960 with displaced hips. For the next 10 years I had to pretty much allow any male to investigate me. Do you understand how embarrassing, humiliating that is ? Can't even imagine what she went through.
I a sorry that you went through this. In 1960 I was also born, as a D.E.S baby. I have had more photos taken of my internal vagina and uterus plus later ovaries to be used as "medical information." for "text books". Now I try to laugh it off, make a joke of it, and am just thankful that it has taught a lot of others about it.. In my 60's now I look at it as my private modeling albeit unpaid lol it hurts in the past but as someone once said to me, "you survived, were brave, and have moved on to a better life". I repeat that to you and hope it gives you some peace.
Doctors are very strange people with no sense of personal boundaries. I had my son by C-section and after the baby was removed the doctor called in some interns and they spent about five minutes rummaging around talking about how organs look different when they're living. Thankfully my son came back after being cleaned up so they had to sew me up. It was surreal.
I know somebody who's child had a rare disease and they always had various doctors examining her at the children's hospital which upset her. In fact once she had an visiting American lady professor come to see her who was really kind and gentle and explained far more to the parents in one session that the usual doctor did. Also kept in touch afterwards.
I never heard of this brave and very strong lady, but I think Myrtle Corbin is a freaking hero! She took the bad break that an accident of birth dealt to her and made a great life for herself, giving life to three children and, for that time period, lived a long life. Hurray for Myrtle!
I was presenting breach at my birth, but my mom's OB/GYN, Dr. McGregor, was one of the few doctors in our area trained to 'flip' a breach baby to allow for normal, head first, delivery. As a result, 22 young, predominantly male, interns watched my 18yr old mother give birth to me. My diminutive, beautiful, young mom gave permission for this viewing to educate new doctors so that they too might use the knowledge they gained to save lives. God Bless you Mom & Dr. McGregor ❤️
Her family was right to be concerned. The tallest man was stolen from his coffin and his skeleton sold. He had tried to prevent that with burial instructions in his will, but they were disregarded.
@newjoel18 no, not him, although I think they had the same problem.. This was a man in 1700s or 1800s, when the cemetary body snatchers were active. He was the tallest man at that time.
They would have to remove one leg from each side for her to appear "normal". Then she would still have had two vaginas. If they removed one of them then she would have still had one regular size leg and one small one. Seems she would be better off the way she was born.
@@ijoinedthedarkside333 Not every where is like the US, in the UK and the majority of Europe medical care is free. In the UK all medical care has been free (pay for in taxes) since the 1940's.
I think 59 years is actually really good for someone born with this sort of deformity back that long ago. A lot of people without deformities didnt live that long.
@@helloitsme7983 monsterous!! shame on you. Ur as bad as those that exploited her during her life. Her descendants are on this thread. Everyone deserves happiness and love….well except for monsters who think they are superior. Tsk tsk
I wouldn't say that it was a tragedy that she died at 59 years old. At that time, before antibiotics, it was a very respectable old age. She managed to have a long life where she god married and had living children, took her career into her own hands, and lived on her own terms.
@@annabellelee4535 exactly. Most had no other opportunities to earn a living, and they made the best out of their situations. Stopping freakshows put a lot of people out of work.
@@pianoreigns I have talked to sideshow performers quite often and yes, they love their jobs. They made good money until someone got all offended and banned them from performing. Why are you disgusted by them? I'm not disgusted by them. I've even met "Lobster Boy" aka Grady Stiles and I don't find even Grady to be disgusting. What he did was disgusting though.
@@annabellelee4535 So they loved being treated like garbage? Less than human? Gawked at for money? I mean, I guess everyone has their own kinks but I highly doubt they all enjoyed the treatment they got. And you couldn’t possibly know what every single one of them felt or whether or not they actually loved it. 🤦♀️ Stop trying to make it seem like the ill treatment of these people was something be loved. Not all of them loved their work, and even stated their dislike for it. And no one said anything about being disgusted by them. That’s just you trying to start something out of nothing. 🤷♀️ You’re grasping at straws there. How sad.
I am wondering why her doctor husband didnt suggest the infected leg be amputated in order to save her life. Amputation of limbs was done, especially since Civil War times...so many doctors had training and experience in that type of surgery.
It sounds like it travelled to her bloodstream (septicaemia) very rapidly, so perhaps too late for an amputation - But yes, strange to think that one of her legs ended up being the cause of death.
She gave birth successfully and had 4 children that lived. I wonder why they felt the need to terminate the first pregnancy, when she was obviously able to give birth. I'm very happy that she found love and had children, whom she obviously wanted and loved. She sounds like she was an amazing woman.
Pregnancy put a lot of strain on a body, and she was clearly ill, whether from the pregnancy its-self or another cause. I don't supose anyone will ever know for sure now, but it might have been the right decision
This poor woman..going though life with this abnormality. The courage..and strength it took to face each day..had to be tremendous. She had a strength that enabled her to cope. I am sure she had some weepy nights..wondering why. How Barnum treated his workers and animals...is.was cruel and revolting. It makes me sick at heart.
Not everyone sits around feeling sorry for themselves. She obviously didn't, which is why she had such a great life. Especially for those times. She had an excellent life. One to be envied, not to be cried over. Barnum wasn't a saint but he gave disabled people a way to have a life. Paid them very well, access to healthcare. She found love & had children. The way he treated animals was typical of those times. This narrator is a bleeding heart. She would never want all this pity!
I’m old enough to remember as a child (under 10) when the Annual Fair came to town, they had a section that had all the “Freak Shows” (as they were referred to back then). We weren’t even allowed to walk through that area - we would skirt around it. I was one of 7 kids. Both of my parents absolutely hated this kind of abuse / taking advantage of someone’s disability. By time I was a tween these shows had been banned in our city. They may have still been part of the Fair, but they weren’t allowed to set up. Amazing that Corbyn has such a “full” life.
Like it or not most of those who appeared in Circus "Side Shows" were happy to exhibit themselves. People with those type of "disabilities" had no other way of earning a living, were gawked at anywhere they went anyway and they actually made very good money exhibiting themselves. There is a documentary about former side show participants, they all speak with great resentment about how their chosen livelihood was ended by "do-gooders" who needed to mind their own business. According to the "mule faced woman" she was formerly earning $5 thousand dollars a month on the circuit but after laws were created to "protect" her she was forced to live in a tiny travel trailer and live on a little more than $1 thousand dollars a month in social security. People with "disabilities" are smart and fully capable of making decisions for themselves, they don't need anybody who is offended to "protect them". And this narrator has is WRONG! The "freaks" in the documentary spoke highly of Barnum, the was no need to portray him as some abusive "slave owner". I think the documentary (shown on PBS) may have been called "After the Sideshow".
@@user-ch9if6px6r The same, I could not stand it that people were called "freaks," even when I was tiny. They are people that are born differently that is all.
@@RachelLinks-pk6drhaving your disability on display for the world to see and having people gawk at you and make comments about your body just so that your parents can make money ….yeah that’s pretty bad. People should not exploit their children. Dad should have put all that effort into working.
I’m a Bicknell by birth. When I was a teenager, my dad told me we had a relative that had 4 legs. I thought he was joking until he took out a small black & white photo of Myrtle when she was young. It seems that the man she married, Clinton Bicknell, was closely related to my grandfather. I think first cousins. So, I’m not blood related to Myrtle but I definitely am related to her descendants. I have a photo of her grave that my sister took some time ago. I’m fascinated by her life story. On a side note, I believe Blount County is in Alabama rather than Tennessee.
My son was born with clubfoot. It was absolutely devastating for me when I found out while I was pregnant. It’s only his left foot but it was so sad. When he was 1 month old we started treatment which meant putting his whole leg in a cast. Everywhere we went people thought his leg was broken. What’s worse is the first doctor that casted my son, deformed his foot even worse. My baby had to go through so much pain and discomfort in his short time on earth. He is delayed in every other area and he didn’t walk until almost 2 yrs old. He’s the sweetest baby boy and adored by his two sisters. He sleeps in a brace to keep his foot straight. We ended up traveling to Florida to pay thousands of dollars out of pocket to have him fix my son’s foot. It’s been a hard road but I’ve been by his side for every second of it. He’s my precious baby and I would do absolutely anything for him. ❤ We need updated treatment methods for this supposedly common deformity.
Aww I am so very sorry your poor baby went through all that trauma and pain. I hope he is doing great now. I bet his sisters spoil him lol. My son has, aspergers and been through a lot he was punched kicked battered spit on and swore at, st his school for 3 and half years I was in school every week fighting to try and make them do something to stop it. They didn't we live in the UK my daughter in Southern Ireland. She got him into a school over their he did great he left school 2cyears early he is very clever he is coming home soon I hope. Give your son my very best wishes they go out to you and all your family to. I think your son will do great and bring you all a lot of joy.
My nephew was so long it took him till he was 2-3 to start walking he didn't like having to push up all that longness my stupid uncle saw him dragging his foot once and questioned that and why he wasn't walking yet something that whole family liked to do they couldn't take the simple he's just so long example that every doctor they went to said the samething basically the kid was so long they had to do a C-section at his birth because he couldn't turn
I'm so sorry she had to endure this. I wonder how hard it was for her to move about. I am happy that she got married and had a family but sad by the emotional turmoil she had to endure.
Born in Bono, Johnson County, Texas on 22 May 1896 to James Clinton Bicknell and Josephine Myrtle Corbin. Clinton Francis Bicknell married Alma Cordelia Jameson and had 3 children. He passed away on 8 April 1966 in Temple, Bell County, Texas, USA.
I don’t think she was tragic at all! Her condition was unique and it required her to live with a lot of creativity and determination, and it’s clear that she was a great success at that. It’s wonderful to hear that she found a career, a husband, and a family when all those things might have seemed impossible at her birth.
Thank you for an excellent video. It's so nice to hear people talking about people. Gives much more feeling than if some AI voice reported at me for half an hr
How is it outrageous that the doctors said she was a twin who didn't completely split? That's what her condition, Dipygus, is- twins that have not separated and one absorbed into the body of the other twin.
Yes, I agree that dipygus is the deformity that is caused by incomplete mono zygotic twinning; an incomplete absorbed twin. Why they thought it was strange, was because it was very rare, these doctors probably only read about it, and it was shocking to see back then. Also, newspapers, articles, scientific journals all hyped up the condition to attract readers, and followers.
@@tuft9250It’s not *completely* incorrect. There is speculation that this may be “a cause” of dipygus. The truth is, medical professionals don’t really know what causes the disorder, or if there are multiple factors contributing to the disorder. There have been studies showing a genetic expression that may be the reason that some people are born with dipygus.
Thank you for your informative, and respectable, documentary on Myrtle Corbin. I cannot imagine the hell she must have suffered throughout her life. For someone to consider using her image as a Halloween decoration is so insulting, so insolent as to actually be abusive! It wouldn't surprise me if that decision came from a relative of PT Barnum!
Also remember that for a woman to show her leg above the ankle was considered shameful. I suspect she was raised with the same puritanical attitude everyone had at the time. It was embarrassing in a way it would not be today.
Barnum was not the originator of the phrase "Suckers, there's one born every minute." It was used against him in court by a banker in a case over the "Cardiff Giant."
I must take slight issue with you on one point. I was a medical secretary for many years. Invariably, no matter which hospital, there was a medical dictionary which was large, very old and filled with hand drawn illustrations. The doctors meant no unkindness by calling them "monsters". Any extremely rare or hitherto unknown deformity was labelled as such. It was a medical definition. Generally back then, the babies died, were stillborn and were sometimes helped out of the world because the physical defects were such as to be considered incapable of life and the mother was told the baby was stillborn. They had no treatment or cure. People were poor with no social medical care. Of course it sounds dreadful but it was ignorance not unkindness. I have been in a pathology museum with things in jars and they can be alarming enough to see, even now. Anyway, I just wanted your viewers to know that.
I feel sorry for the child. She had been exploited by both her parents and by Barnum. Her childhood had to be unbearably sad. And adulthood didnt sound much better. She doesnt look happy in the pics. I hope she found some happiness at some point in her life. ❤😢
Honestly in most pics of that time period no one really looks happy. Given that this was during the 1800s where one had to sit entirely still so as not to ruin the exposure that is a contributing factor to the often serious look people of the time had.
@@annabellelee4535 I would definitely like to think so. In a book I read about her it seems her husband liked the money she could make going on tour too.
I am also a freak and working at haunted houses was the best job I have ever had in my entire life. I got treated like a rock star with an interesting body instead of only getting the brave to ask me what is wrong at my office job, while everyone else talked about me behind my back. I bet she went back to show business because she liked it.
With aaaaall respect to this poor woman and all tragedy and hardship she went through her life, with the statement that she had everything double down there, does it mean she had double periods? And hiw did her digestive system work? Things came out both ways? I mean people only saw her legs but she must have been dealing with so much stuff all her life!
I wondered the exact same thing. Especially when he stated that she was confused as to being pregnant on the left side when she said that the right side was being used for… that purpose. Or did I misunderstand? So, two separate uteri?
Yes, if she had double uteruses, therefore she had double periods. She would also have had double bladders, and she had double clitorises. Not necessarily would she have had double stomachs, and it didn't seem like it, or she would have been wider above the waist. She also had double anuses, because it was implied she had "double of everything down there." How that worked one could only imagine. It's crazy how we're still analyzing and dissecting this poor woman's body apart after she's been laid to rest. Curiosity, will get the better of people. Maybe donating her body to science would have been a better choice. Her spirit is long gone, but her body remains a novelty.
@@SapiophileGoddess It makes more sense when you understand that ovaries aren't neatly sealed to the ends of the fallopian tubes. Sperm can leave the fallopian tubes and enter the abdominal cavity. So they could have then entered the unsealed end of the other uterus' fallopian tube. It's all highly unusual but so is being a four legged woman.
She was likely a set if conjoined twins. If the zygote doesn’t split all the way you will have conjoined twins. Depending on how and where it separates will determine how that conjoining looks.
When you started on about the cruelty to the circus animals that was enough for me. And this shit still happens. It's vile, evil and heartbreaking. At least the little girl and her family were making money, and she had some protection in having a savvy father. Those animals had no one championing them.
Sad. But at least she was able to earn a decent amount of money. I know it was a terrible way to do it, but all her private business was already public knowledge. And we can't be hard on societal norms of 150 years ago, look at the absolute disgrace we have in trashy social media and reality tv. 150 years from now people may be looking at us and saying can you believe what these people were doing?
What she had to endure as a person from ignorant people, glad she was able to work and support her family and still keep her great disposition. This video was great, can you please do a video on PT Barnum, never knew how evil he was to animals and people. ( I am not criticizing you, but Methotrexate is not an antibiotic but a med given as a chemo med. Also for people that have auto - immune problems like Rheumatoid Arthritis and patients that have psoriasis etc)
She wasn’t one foetus absorbing her twin but an incomplete siamese twin. In the case of identical twins the fertilised egg splits completely before the first cell division and develops into two individuals. When it splits after the first cell division the split is often incomplete, which leads to a siamese twin. The extent to which the two halves are connected varies widely, from just some soft tissue and blood vessels to two half bodies fused together and two heads and ultimately to someone with three or four legs or arms.
You're absolutely right. However, the term "Siamese" is a smidge on the racist side - "conjoined" is the modern term. (Though it absolutely is the name they would have used in Myrtle's lifetime.)
Methotrexate (the medication showed when they were discussing her fatal infection) is a chemotherapy medication frequently used to treat Psoriasis as well as Psoriatic and/or Rheumatoid Arthritis. Odd choice, as they were lamenting the lack of antibiotics. 🤷🏻♀️
@@boogermaiden I am so very sorry that you have to take it at all. I had taken it off & on for nearly 30 years and suddenly developed toxicity to it. Please look up the symptoms of an extreme side effect 'Omental Infarction'; I had a blood clot and nearly died because I was misdiagnosed. Even a matter of mere HOURS later? The ER would NOT admit their mistake and treat me appropriately. By this time, my platelets were dropping so rapidly I needed a blood transfusion - my Dermatologist ended up admitting me to the hospital. 😔😕😥😖🤬 Be safe. ❤️🩹
She really wasn't that tragic. She found real love, had several healthy children, made huge amounts of money, did a second tour on her own terms, and lived to a relatively advanced age for her time (especially considering her disability and her pregnancies). She sounds like a strong and inspiring woman who made the best our of the cards she was dealt.
I was adopted..I was born 3 pounds..I never got to meet my parents or seen any pictures of me when I was a baby....I was 6 when I got adopted...by bad people...😢😢...Sad for her 😢
Im same situation exept my abusive adkpted parents refused to adopt me and inly ling term foster because they wanted the money that social services pay foster parwnts, and its alot, and pocketed it all and neglexted me etc. Plus i was put into this foster "care" as a new born so i never ever met my birth family or seen any phots of them
In India in recent years a boy was born with four legs and four limbs attached at the abdomen plus a girl born with four arms and four legs in both cases it was a parasitic twin. Both had surgeries to remove their parasitic twin the boy in 2010 and the girl in 2007.
There's an Indian god or goddess rather like that. I think I've heard about a high number of similar people in India 🤔 I wonder if there is something in the Indian genetics 🤔
From what I have gathered she was a pretty amazing woman. Self willed, determined and bold. And of course a great wife and mother. Thank you for your showwomanship😁rip
One thing that people forget all of time is that they look at someone with a disability is that they do not see the "ability" that is within the person. As with the word "disabled" the "able" gets lost - no one is perfect (and if you think that you are, you are on the wrong planet).
A lot of "Freaks" made a good living married and led relatively normal lives. They were national stars. They had support from the other performers and lived richer lives than they could today with similar disabilities.
The world is a cruel place to live. No matter where you’re at if you have some sort of extras or deformity, you’re considered an outcast. Even overseas where many have cleft lip and or cleft palate and are unable to afford surgery to have it fixed or are dealing with leg deformities, they are teased and outcasted by members of society. Thank God for Doctors Without Borders! So sad that Corbin passed away at a young age. I would have loved to live back in those days, but with the failing medical knowledge they had back then, not so much. Rip Myrtle Corbin 💐
The medical field has vastly changed since Corbin died in 1928 at the age of 59. And her death was almost 100 years ago. Even in the last few years we have made great strides in all of the sciences. We cannot judge the past by what we think they should have known when we have much more information than they did.
I think the mental and spiritual and emotional toughness and the braveness you had to be as a person back then let alone as a woman is amazing but the same time no one deserves to be treated the way she was
Did she leave a diary,or journal? If not we have no idea what her feelings were.Salute to this strong,intelligent woman! ❤❤Wonder what the FAKES were using,as fake legs ? Needles to say human NATURE,has only gotten worse.
My God the lack of compassion and caring of people for others who are suffering like this, should damn the rest of us to extinction. How is it possible that the poor child was not nutured and loved so much more throughout her devastatingly painful life. 😢😢😢❤❤
Are you kidding? We have a man running for President who mimics people with CP and avoids people with disabilities because “it makes him look bad.” He insults immigrants, calls them criminals with no evidence, and BTW the crime rate for those here legally is half that of those born here who are citizens, and of those here illegally the crime rate is even lower! (After all, those people want to avoid the police, not get entangled with the law.) But nearly half of the voters think this dementing, convicted felon, sexual assaulter and defamer, usiness and tax fraud cheat and fraud .. . Why these voters think he is GRRRRRREAT! Think America has changed much since 1870? Only if YOU are prepared to change from loving a guy like Trump who is such an insult to humanity will a safer, kinder society have a chance. If not, you might try to get acquainted with life in Russia or Hungary under “elected” dictators with absolute power.
The fact that her father cared enough to do everything he could to ensure she could make a living to help the family, and then to support herself says that he truly loved her. The family could simply have let her starve to death, or locked her away.
@@ace6285 OUCH! Are you perfect? Do you always think of everything from every angle? That Must stop you from doing much as you won't have the time, you'll be too busy thinking.
@@northernlady212 The epidemic of people who don’t think and advise the same for others has led us to the idiocy we see all around us now. Of course, perhaps the commenter was making a joke.
Poor Myrtle. She looked so sad in every photo. I find it wonderful that she was able to have children. I wish they knew more about medical surgeries back then. RIP Myrtle Corbin.
Myrtle Corbin is my great great grandmother in law. She was a strong and amazing woman. My mother in law is the spitting image of Myrtle! We have photos of her not ever made public.
Thank you for focusing on the good and what she accomplished!
Edit: I was a great off. She’s my husband’s grandfather’s grandmother.
How very cool that you descended from such a remarkable woman! Thank you for sharing your connection with us.
@@jillwklausenSHE DIDN'T descend from her, her husband did.
That’s incredible. Poor lady with 4 legs. Bless her!
Cool family and cool hat
@@milliesecond102
Oh geez, people do become one when they marry🪢
they do become a part of each other's family🪢
My grandpa was a “freak.” He was a “fishman.” He had terrible psoriasis, and the rafts of psoriasis looked like scales. He had issues working -torquing the skin caused the skin to bleed. He got a job in a freak show, and made a good living. My gran and he divorced when my (perfectly normal) mom was small, and he toured the country making good money - until “them dang do gooders” decided that physical defect equaled mental defect and he (and those like him) didn’t realize he was being taken advantage of and closed down the shows - without a thought as to how these people who were not mentally challenged were going to get jobs, survive, etc. He went from having a home and a job to a drifter that was chased out of anywhere he tried to get a job. He ended his days living with his brother, shunned and hidden. For the “freaks” often the inner world of the sideshow with the other freaks was the only place they felt normal.
DAMN. MY GRANDPA WAS AN ALCOHOLIC WHO DIED OF LIVER FAILURE. LOL
That's what happens when the do gooders, Aka Libs, are offended for others even though those others aren't offended themselves
How awful that he was treated that way. I'm very sorry that was done to him. Thank you for sharing his story.
Your grandpa might have had ichthyosis, rather than psoriasis. The name comes from the scale-like appearance of the skin ("ichthys" = "fish" in Greek). Ichthyosis is caused by one of several different genetic variations. If he had two copies of one of the ichthyosis gene variations, then he'd have ichthyosis; your mom would be a carrier; and you'd have a 50/50 chance of being a carrier. It only costs about $200-$300 to run a genome these days, might be interesting to see if anyone is a carrier.
@@bcjb720 WOW that's very impressive knowledge you have there. And that's incredibly nice of to share that with the individual above in regards to their Grandfather and his struggles. I agree too, that getting a genenom test would be very interesting. Regardless of the results, honestly.
The sad reality was if these people with deformities didn't put themselves on display they often had no other means to make a living.
And human curiosity is universal. If you’re going to be gawked at, perhaps making money off of it is a silver lining.
Many of them were incredibly talented performers. It's a disservice to think of all of them as victims
@@souxcasa Nothing to say they can’t be both.
@@karenneill9109 no there isn't but it's often ignored from stories like these. She was obviously a very savvy woman and should have been represented as such
A lot of them still don’t. They’re on the dole, they hate the “do gooders” that took away a good living. They got to travel the world, meet interesting people. I personally think it should be UP TO THEM what they want to do with their own lives. And nobody, able bodied or not can tell if somebody is a POS to this day. 🤷♀️
I am just amazed that she still managed to give birth to 4 healthy children and live up to 59 years old.
I love that her husband had a choice of “sides” though. How cool is that?
Not sure why the video is focused on being called names…. She lived a very wealthy life and a long one. I think anyone would OK making 7K a week to be called names
Sad that you think money is all that matters. I couldnt imagine anything worse than someone saying at my funeral "she lived a wealthy life" sounds horrendous.
@@finebetty7446 No risk that anyone will say about you.
@@finebetty7446we’re just ignoring the massive family and relatively long life? Ok
Penicillin was discovered on September 28, 1928. She died just about 5 months before the medicine that could have saved her was invented.
Wow. That's wild. Thanks for that info.
Even then, it wasn't always available. My mother was a twin born in 1929. Her twin died in 31 from an ear infection that would have been easily cured today.
@@jamesmommy13 that’s really sad that not even 100 years ago people were dying from ear infections of all things
Was discovered in 1928, but the technique to produce it for medical usage wasn't refined until 1940, the first human test was in 1941. Can only imagine how many lives it's saved, and hard to imagine a time where a simple scratch was a real concern, though it still is in some places.
im allergic to penicillin, broke into hiv(e)s i think
You did a wonderful job of presenting Myrtle Corbin as a human being. I loved your storytelling.
Thank you for your respectful telling of her story. People can be so cruel. I hope she rests in peace.
Calling her and other people with birth defects “freaks” throughout the video isn’t very respectful though.
@@kellydalstok8900 You’re right, and in the current year it would not be acceptable in any venue. But they are speaking the vernacular of the time.
@@kellydalstok8900😮
I’m probably being controversial here, but I think she had a good life. She found love, had a good income, had babies and lived to a reasonable age for the time. Lots of healthy ‘normal’ people of that time had none of these things. I don’t feel sorry for her, I admire and salute her and all that she achieved.
Very nice video, thank you.
Agreed.
She may have had a better life than she would have if she was born now. Her wage was enormous for the time, and I would not be too quick to judge the parents, in that age if you could not make money you could literally starve. The Halloween decorations are modern so we are no better. I don't think she would like being called tragic.
She certainly made the best of the situation. Life is hard. She did well with the deck she was handed.
Yeah, I thought the narrator was a bleeding heart liberal... I've had a harder life than her, but you'll know it by looking at me or my accomplishments
You aren’t wrong
She sounds like a very amazing woman. Even though she was treated cruelly it sounds as if she lived life with courage. Im glad she found happiness with her husband and children. May she rest in eternal peace.
If she's with Jesus then she's completely whole and so is her twin!!
@@BonnieM93 Ridiculous fairy tales are not helpful in the long run.
Cruelty only hits you as cruel if it is unusual and specific to you. Back then, this was the way people talked and acted.
If you look into the history of the Freak Show, crude as it was in concept, most of the performers had a pretty full and decent life outside of work hours. They were friends with each other (though not without drama at times) and many other circus performers.
Many people stayed in the circus their whole lives because it paid well and they weren't treated like freaks by the circus
She didn't really have a cruel life
@@cattymajiv Funny how nobody ever says this rudeness to Islam.
As a medical professional, I would definitely consider this a case of conjoined twins rather than polymelia. Polymelia is usually the growth of a single extra appendage, not the growth of an extra entire half of a body, as would be the case with a conjoined twin who is only there from the waist down. It's like the opposite of the Hensel twins, Brittany and Abby.
This was interesting, all the same, so thank you for that!
I read that one of the young ladies got married.
I know they share a body and have separate heads, but I don't know how I would handle that.
@@tinytt854 Yeah, one of them did recently get married. Idk, I'm sure they are kinda used to it, at this point in their lives lol.
@@KaiyaCorrbin The only thing odd to me about that is that just ONE of them got married...seems like they're a package deal, to me.
@@SeuOu Sure, but they are also their own people, they just happen to share the same body. There's two minds going on there, but I do get your point.
Its so interesting that each set of legs had a strong one and a weak one
Bless this poor woman. The cruelty shown towards her during this era in history was vile. May you Rest in Eternal Peace Myrtle 🙏🙏🙏❣️
Given our modern understanding of biology what’s our excuse for the nastiness we impose of LGBTQ and gender fluid people - especially given the fact that they represent a tiny proportion of the population.
Still would be today. Humans wisdom hasn't advanced in any time/way whatsoever!! 150 yrs ago and we haven't grown, matured, educated ourselves, mellowed, grown in empathy or anything of the sort for decade after decade! 😮😢 Actually, truly sad. ❤😊❤
She was rich and famous, had her pick of the best doctors in the country and raised 4 successful children.
Frankly I'd love to be her instead of being completely broke all the time and unable to get the medical care I need not because it hasn't been invented yet, but because it's priced stupidly high. Heck even basic household items I need cost 100x as much as the "normal" version just because it's for the disabled.
AMEN 🙏🙌❤
I'll bet that's not all Corbin's father exposed.
Beautifully told . I had heard of her but didn’t know she had two pelvic bones and reproductive systems. Thank you
I visited the Barnum Museum in Florida and was horrified by the way people with deformities were exploited by the circus owner. Later, it was explained that they were happy there. They had found each other. Separately they were freaks but together they were normal.
Barnum exploited wild animals for over 100 + years, too. It ended with poor ticket sales, Thank God.
@@deborahtaylor9754 Circus acts incorporating wild animals have been kept out of NYC for some time now. But it was because of PUBLIC DEMANDS that it was stopped.
That would have been the RINGLING museum if it was in Florida. The Barnum museum is in Connecticut. I've been to the Ringling Museum in Sarasota, Florida. They have a wonderful collection of art, in addition to their circus museum.
@@VisionaryGardener Yes. My memory was of the wife. She created many needlework designs of pillows, a piano bench cover, etc., using PETIT POINT designs, which uses much smaller stitches and a smaller, fine pointed needle. This means a lot more work and more of a task for eyesight. I was a little horrified, so much tedious effort, in the hot & humid Florida weather. She was a waitress when her husband found her. He was a rich celebrity. My thought was he must be a horrible person. Then I went to the museum where many of the, “Freak,” posters were displayed. I was kinda sorry I had visited there.
I don’t know that I buy that explanation
What a tragic life. Unfortunately right now parents are making money off their children on social media. Children everywhere need more protections.
Nothing comparable about viewing a family that are not physically handicapped. This is 2024. Life is lived under cameras.. Not our choices. Everywhere we go. Kids are used to it. No exploitation involved whatsoever. These people Barnum hires were exploited
The difference there is that in those days there was no social security and so the men had to find ways of working to earn a living. Alas, poor Josephine Myrtle's father was more of an opportunist and instead of protecting his daughter, as is a father's duty, he chose to exploit her. Shameful man.
@@Djulimee I definitely agree. Unfortunately we have seen other opportunists such as these poor kids on tv (Shirley Temple among many) or in music and now social media is empowering a whole new set of opportunistic parents. SMH, I don’t understand why people seem to think they have the right to live off their kids.
@@TheSapphireSprit
The patriarchal construct treats women and children as property rather than autonomous beings. Despite much progress, that mindset still exists globally.
@@GenXsinglefree you are so right.
This certainly gives one perspective. An utterly fascinating story that leaves me with more compassion and gratitude than I had a half hour ago....
Thank you for speaking my heart! 🤍🙏🕊
That part.
she made a relatively normal life for someone with so much to overcome. I did not realize she was able to have a family A truly fascinating story
Amazing. Given medical knowledge at the time... So brave to persist with pregnancies. Bit of luck involved there!
That’s disgusting someone laid with her like that
I can’t even get a date to show up what is this woman’s secret
@@SobrietyandSolacewhat??????!!!!!!
Ya, 7 kids is pretty amazing. I could have lived without the fact that she had 2 vaginas and had a preference for which one to use in the bedroom.
Nowadays her parents would just have a UA-cam channel.
Truth
True
Soon parents will document the castration of their Trans children and wrap it all up in Rainbow colored bow.
This whole world is about to burn!
The sad truth.
Lmao
I understand the physical invasion of pretty much h any doctor . I was born in 1960 with displaced hips. For the next 10 years I had to pretty much allow any male to investigate me. Do you understand how embarrassing, humiliating that is ? Can't even imagine what she went through.
I a sorry that you went through this. In 1960 I was also born, as a D.E.S baby. I have had more photos taken of my internal vagina and uterus plus later ovaries to be used as "medical information." for "text books". Now I try to laugh it off, make a joke of it, and am just thankful that it has taught a lot of others about it.. In my 60's now I look at it as my private modeling albeit unpaid lol it hurts in the past but as someone once said to me, "you survived, were brave, and have moved on to a better life". I repeat that to you and hope it gives you some peace.
Doctors are very strange people with no sense of personal boundaries. I had my son by C-section and after the baby was removed the doctor called in some interns and they spent about five minutes rummaging around talking about how organs look different when they're living. Thankfully my son came back after being cleaned up so they had to sew me up. It was surreal.
I was in a similar situation so I can imagine.
I hope these males were all doctors
I know somebody who's child had a rare disease and they always had various doctors examining her at the children's hospital which upset her. In fact once she had an visiting American lady professor come to see her who was really kind and gentle and explained far more to the parents in one session that the usual doctor did. Also kept in touch afterwards.
I never heard of this brave and very strong lady, but I think Myrtle Corbin is a freaking hero!
She took the bad break that an accident of birth dealt to her and made a great life for herself, giving life to three children and, for that time period, lived a long life.
Hurray for Myrtle!
I see what you did there. “Freaking” hero 😂
I think he said she had 7 children, but only 4 of the 7 lived. Still i only hv 2 children. She was freaking amazing indeed!
She made the best with what life gave her. Incredible story!!
I was presenting breach at my birth, but my mom's OB/GYN, Dr. McGregor, was one of the few doctors in our area trained to 'flip' a breach baby to allow for normal, head first, delivery. As a result, 22 young, predominantly male, interns watched my 18yr old mother give birth to me. My diminutive, beautiful, young mom gave permission for this viewing to educate new doctors so that they too might use the knowledge they gained to save lives. God Bless you Mom & Dr. McGregor ❤️
Her family was right to be concerned. The tallest man was stolen from his coffin and his skeleton sold. He had tried to prevent that with burial instructions in his will, but they were disregarded.
Robert Wadlow?
@newjoel18 no, not him, although I think they had the same problem.. This was a man in 1700s or 1800s, when the cemetary body snatchers were active. He was the tallest man at that time.
Charles Byrne?
His friends and family did what he asked, his body was stolen.
Today she would have had surgery. The poor kid.
Maybe.Some choose not to.
They would have to remove one leg from each side for her to appear "normal". Then she would still have had two vaginas. If they removed one of them then she would have still had one regular size leg and one small one. Seems she would be better off the way she was born.
@@Tempe1962because they cant afford it.
@@ijoinedthedarkside333 Not every where is like the US, in the UK and the majority of Europe medical care is free. In the UK all medical care has been free (pay for in taxes) since the 1940's.
@Tempe1962 some cannot be safely separated. These people might choose to not get treatment.
Myrtle Corbin is a strong spirit.
Writing a biography about her life would be an amazing experience.
Rest and peace to Myrtle. ❤
I think 59 years is actually really good for someone born with this sort of deformity back that long ago. A lot of people without deformities didnt live that long.
Without antibiotics Id be dead by age 23.
59 these days, is an accomplishment!
Her mama loved her
Can we stop think people died young for just die young. We allways become same age if not get sick or be in a fatal accident.
! @@zztopz7090
She had two uteruses and bled twice more than any woman! Wow! 😲😢 Poor girl
I have 2 of everything belonging to the reproductive system, but only 1 pelvis. Iron supplements ftw
@@blackswan1983 What is ftw? Why didn't you finish your comment?
Ftw = for the win
@cattymajiv I used to think it was F* the world 😅 til I learned different
I thought of the same thing!
Wow, what a life story! Both shocking and inspiring. What a great lady! So strong!
She had 4 children that lived. I hope they were with her when she passed. RIP ✝️
Omg. What kind of man would father kids with her... Ugh.
@@helloitsme7983 2 pelvises, 2 fathers.
Think outside the one box.
@@helloitsme7983 Moron
@@helloitsme7983shame on u. It’s 2024 and we know better. ur as rotten as those that exploited her. We all deserve love… well maybe not rotten people
@@helloitsme7983 monsterous!! shame on you. Ur as bad as those that exploited her during her life. Her descendants are on this thread. Everyone deserves happiness and love….well except for monsters who think they are superior. Tsk tsk
Great doc on Corbin, done with compassion and respect.
I wouldn't say that it was a tragedy that she died at 59 years old. At that time, before antibiotics, it was a very respectable old age.
She managed to have a long life where she god married and had living children, took her career into her own hands, and lived on her own terms.
I heard about her before somewhere, but you totally killed it. I couldn't imagine having your life a sideshow, poor Myrtle. Awesome video.
The sideshow people loved their jobs and were paid well.
@@annabellelee4535 exactly. Most had no other opportunities to earn a living, and they made the best out of their situations. Stopping freakshows put a lot of people out of work.
@@annabellelee4535You were there , were you ?
@@pianoreigns I have talked to sideshow performers quite often and yes, they love their jobs. They made good money until someone got all offended and banned them from performing. Why are you disgusted by them? I'm not disgusted by them. I've even met "Lobster Boy" aka Grady Stiles and I don't find even Grady to be disgusting. What he did was disgusting though.
@@annabellelee4535 So they loved being treated like garbage? Less than human? Gawked at for money? I mean, I guess everyone has their own kinks but I highly doubt they all enjoyed the treatment they got.
And you couldn’t possibly know what every single one of them felt or whether or not they actually loved it. 🤦♀️ Stop trying to make it seem like the ill treatment of these people was something be loved. Not all of them loved their work, and even stated their dislike for it.
And no one said anything about being disgusted by them. That’s just you trying to start something out of nothing. 🤷♀️ You’re grasping at straws there. How sad.
I am wondering why her doctor husband didnt suggest the infected leg be amputated in order to save her life. Amputation of limbs was done, especially since Civil War times...so many doctors had training and experience in that type of surgery.
It sounds like it travelled to her bloodstream (septicaemia) very rapidly, so perhaps too late for an amputation - But yes, strange to think that one of her legs ended up being the cause of death.
@@LibbySlaughter101I agree. The infection seemed to be very agressive. She probably didnt stand a chance.
She gave birth successfully and had 4 children that lived. I wonder why they felt the need to terminate the first pregnancy, when she was obviously able to give birth. I'm very happy that she found love and had children, whom she obviously wanted and loved. She sounds like she was an amazing woman.
People fear what they don’t know or understand.
@@207sunflowermore like they didn't have the medical knowledge available today
Pregnancy put a lot of strain on a body, and she was clearly ill, whether from the pregnancy its-self or another cause. I don't supose anyone will ever know for sure now, but it might have been the right decision
Thank you for this compassionate and unsensational report. Really interesting and human.
Thanks for the kind words.
I just love your channel. You tell their story in such a caring and respectful way.
This poor woman..going though life with this abnormality. The courage..and strength it took to face each day..had to be tremendous. She had a strength that enabled her to cope. I am sure she had some weepy nights..wondering why. How Barnum treated his workers and animals...is.was cruel and revolting. It makes me sick at heart.
Her strength enabled her to take honest stock of her situation, and to do what she needed to do to make an independent living for herself.
Not everyone sits around feeling sorry for themselves. She obviously didn't, which is why she had such a great life. Especially for those times. She had an excellent life. One to be envied, not to be cried over. Barnum wasn't a saint but he gave disabled people a way to have a life. Paid them very well, access to healthcare. She found love & had children. The way he treated animals was typical of those times. This narrator is a bleeding heart. She would never want all this pity!
That was a fascinating biographical account. She was a woman of extreme fortitude 👍🏻
I’m old enough to remember as a child (under 10) when the Annual Fair came to town, they had a section that had all the “Freak Shows” (as they were referred to back then). We weren’t even allowed to walk through that area - we would skirt around it. I was one of 7 kids. Both of my parents absolutely hated this kind of abuse / taking advantage of someone’s disability. By time I was a tween these shows had been banned in our city. They may have still been part of the Fair, but they weren’t allowed to set up. Amazing that Corbyn has such a “full” life.
My Mom was exactly the same way. We didn't go near the freak show.
Like it or not most of those who appeared in Circus "Side Shows" were happy to exhibit themselves.
People with those type of "disabilities" had no other way of earning a living, were gawked at anywhere they went anyway and they actually made very good money exhibiting themselves. There is a documentary about former side show participants, they all speak with great resentment about how their chosen livelihood was ended by "do-gooders" who needed to mind their own business. According to the "mule faced woman" she was formerly earning $5 thousand dollars a month on the circuit but after laws were created to "protect" her she was forced to live in a tiny travel trailer and live on a little more than $1 thousand dollars a month in social security.
People with "disabilities" are smart and fully capable of making decisions for themselves, they don't need anybody who is offended to "protect them". And this narrator has is WRONG! The "freaks" in the documentary spoke highly of Barnum, the was no need to portray him as some abusive "slave owner".
I think the documentary (shown on PBS) may have been called "After the Sideshow".
@@user-ch9if6px6r The same, I could not stand it that people were called "freaks," even when I was tiny. They are people that are born differently that is all.
I cannot imagine going through life like that and being treated so badly. So sad.
$400 every 2 weeks in 1920 was being treated badly?
@@RachelLinks-pk6drHer humiliation
@@marycampbell1576 That's around 200k a year in today's money. People humiliate themselves for less.
Horrible Parents.
@@RachelLinks-pk6drhaving your disability on display for the world to see and having people gawk at you and make comments about your body just so that your parents can make money ….yeah that’s pretty bad. People should not exploit their children. Dad should have put all that effort into working.
SHE MADE 59 YEARS , AT THAT TIME WAS A LONG LIFE FOR ANYONE, STRONG SPIRITED PERSON, WITH THREE SURVIVING CHILDREN, AWESOME LIFE ALL THINGS CONSIDERED
Don't forget she was rolling in dough and gorgeous!
59 wasn’t considered a ‘long life’ by anyone. Look up how infant mortality skewed the result of ‘average lifespan
@@debbylou5729I'M NEVER WRONG DEBBIE DOO
Im a 53 year old fat guy! She's running rings around me! Literally!😂
The majority of people who survived childhood went on to have long lives, being 59 wasn't really a wow factor, not even back then.
Thank you for making and posting this video. I hope her family appreciated her.
I’m a Bicknell by birth. When I was a teenager, my dad told me we had a relative that had 4 legs. I thought he was joking until he took out a small black & white photo of Myrtle when she was young. It seems that the man she married, Clinton Bicknell, was closely related to my grandfather. I think first cousins. So, I’m not blood related to Myrtle but I definitely am related to her descendants. I have a photo of her grave that my sister took some time ago. I’m fascinated by her life story. On a side note, I believe Blount County is in Alabama rather than Tennessee.
There is a Blount county in both states. The one in Tennessee is south of Knoxville and the one in Alabama is north of Birmingham.
Both
My son was born with clubfoot. It was absolutely devastating for me when I found out while I was pregnant. It’s only his left foot but it was so sad. When he was 1 month old we started treatment which meant putting his whole leg in a cast. Everywhere we went people thought his leg was broken. What’s worse is the first doctor that casted my son, deformed his foot even worse. My baby had to go through so much pain and discomfort in his short time on earth. He is delayed in every other area and he didn’t walk until almost 2 yrs old. He’s the sweetest baby boy and adored by his two sisters. He sleeps in a brace to keep his foot straight. We ended up traveling to Florida to pay thousands of dollars out of pocket to have him fix my son’s foot. It’s been a hard road but I’ve been by his side for every second of it. He’s my precious baby and I would do absolutely anything for him. ❤ We need updated treatment methods for this supposedly common deformity.
Aww I am so very sorry your poor baby went through all that trauma and pain. I hope he is doing great now. I bet his sisters spoil him lol. My son has, aspergers and been through a lot he was punched kicked battered spit on and swore at, st his school for 3 and half years I was in school every week fighting to try and make them do something to stop it. They didn't we live in the UK my daughter in Southern Ireland. She got him into a school over their he did great he left school 2cyears early he is very clever he is coming home soon I hope. Give your son my very best wishes they go out to you and all your family to. I think your son will do great and bring you all a lot of joy.
@@SunshineBear1211 Very sad. But he had a loving mother who did everything she could for him. Believe me, not every child has that.
My nephew was so long it took him till he was 2-3 to start walking he didn't like having to push up all that longness my stupid uncle saw him dragging his foot once and questioned that and why he wasn't walking yet something that whole family liked to do they couldn't take the simple he's just so long example that every doctor they went to said the samething basically the kid was so long they had to do a C-section at his birth because he couldn't turn
I'm so sorry to hear. Take the doctor who was wrong to the court!
I’m sorry you both had to go through this. God has a special purpose for him❤
This was very interesting, thank you for taking the time to educate us on this lovely woman.
It is a sad story, but historically important, and so very well documented by you.
Excellent Narration Dear❣️
You cared to listen and take our words to heart and now you're a delight to listen to.🥰
Yes, I agree. The voice sounds familiar. I think it's Dave Tango from Ghost hunters/ TAPS?
I'm so sorry she had to endure this. I wonder how hard it was for her to move about. I am happy that she got married and had a family but sad by the emotional turmoil she had to endure.
Wow...what a story! Thank you.
Sick of the parents to exploit the child but no more sick than some of the parents on social media today.
Seems like they protected her and used the opportunity to better everyone. Father negotiated a large salary and she got to keep it. Resourceful.
@@m.bird.That doesn’t deter from the fact that he used his child to make a profit. 🤷♀️ They were still shitty parents.
She was a beautiful lady. GOD bless her🫂✝️✝️ May she REST EASY 🌹🌹
God bless this strong woman! This was most respectfully done and so interesting! Thank you! ❤
Born in Bono, Johnson County, Texas on 22 May 1896 to James Clinton Bicknell and Josephine Myrtle Corbin. Clinton Francis Bicknell married Alma Cordelia Jameson and had 3 children. He passed away on 8 April 1966 in Temple, Bell County, Texas, USA.
Interesting
She was a brave girl and woman. ❤❤❤
I don’t think she was tragic at all! Her condition was unique and it required her to live with a lot of creativity and determination, and it’s clear that she was a great success at that. It’s wonderful to hear that she found a career, a husband, and a family when all those things might have seemed impossible at her birth.
This is the kind of history I enjoy learning about. Amazing story
she had lots of positives in her life, well done Myrtle.
Props to her for making the most out of what she was given in life. I see no need to pity her.
Those were hard times & despite her ups and downs & her personal tragedies, she made her blighted life a triumph over adversity.
Thank you for an excellent video. It's so nice to hear people talking about people. Gives much more feeling than if some AI voice reported at me for half an hr
How is it outrageous that the doctors said she was a twin who didn't completely split? That's what her condition, Dipygus, is- twins that have not separated and one absorbed into the body of the other twin.
This is completely incorrect. That is not at all what dipygus is. Simply go check online. It's easy to dispell.
I think you have this wrong.
Yes, I agree that dipygus is the deformity that is caused by incomplete mono zygotic twinning; an incomplete absorbed twin.
Why they thought it was strange, was because it was very rare, these doctors probably only read about it, and it was shocking to see back then.
Also, newspapers, articles, scientific journals all hyped up the condition to attract readers, and followers.
I read the definition. I think you need to explain your theory of the condition dipygus.
@@tuft9250It’s not *completely* incorrect. There is speculation that this may be “a cause” of dipygus. The truth is, medical professionals don’t really know what causes the disorder, or if there are multiple factors contributing to the disorder. There have been studies showing a genetic expression that may be the reason that some people are born with dipygus.
Thank you for your informative, and respectable, documentary on Myrtle Corbin. I cannot imagine the hell she must have suffered throughout her life. For someone to consider using her image as a Halloween decoration is so insulting, so insolent as to actually be abusive! It wouldn't surprise me if that decision came from a relative of PT Barnum!
Also remember that for a woman to show her leg above the ankle was considered shameful. I suspect she was raised with the same puritanical attitude everyone had at the time. It was embarrassing in a way it would not be today.
She had a more normal life than others with physical anomolies. I hope her children lived well too.
Her sad little face in the photos says everything. What a heartbreaking story - Barnum was the biggest freak. RIP Myrtle🌹
A somber face in her photos doesn’t indicate she was unhappy… people didn’t smile in photos back in those days.
They didn't smile because still photography exposures took a long time. You'd have gotten muscle cramps by the end if you tried to smile.
@@pettytoni1955that's interesting!
He sure was.... and in the 90's some one made a Broadway musical about his tail. And for what??
@@DarleneBattle-n8wlove the greatest showman. Awesome musical
Barnum was not the originator of the phrase "Suckers, there's one born every minute." It was used against him in court by a banker in a case over the "Cardiff Giant."
I must take slight issue with you on one point. I was a medical secretary for many years. Invariably, no matter which hospital, there was a medical dictionary which was large, very old and filled with hand drawn illustrations. The doctors meant no unkindness by calling them "monsters". Any extremely rare or hitherto unknown deformity was labelled as such. It was a medical definition. Generally back then, the babies died, were stillborn and were sometimes helped out of the world because the physical defects were such as to be considered incapable of life and the mother was told the baby was stillborn.
They had no treatment or cure. People were poor with no social medical care. Of course it sounds dreadful but it was ignorance not unkindness. I have been in a pathology museum with things in jars and they can be alarming enough to see, even now. Anyway, I just wanted your viewers to know that.
That was the first thought for me r me too. So sad.
Silent deliveries where every glance marks the time waiting .
Total BS They knew Calling a Child or any Human a Monster was insulting they Don't call disabled People Monsters today Why
Ummm. Monster meant the same back they. Cold azzholes
Monster is unkind in any century.
I feel sorry for the child. She had been exploited by both her parents and by Barnum. Her childhood had to be unbearably sad. And adulthood didnt sound much better. She doesnt look happy in the pics. I hope she found some happiness at some point in her life. ❤😢
Honestly in most pics of that time period no one really looks happy. Given that this was during the 1800s where one had to sit entirely still so as not to ruin the exposure that is a contributing factor to the often serious look people of the time had.
Thankyou for sharing.
She married a doctor and had 5 healthy children so I'm sure she had happiness.
@@annabellelee4535 I would definitely like to think so. In a book I read about her it seems her husband liked the money she could make going on tour too.
Circus people have a reputation for treating each other better than outsiders do.
I am also a freak and working at haunted houses was the best job I have ever had in my entire life. I got treated like a rock star with an interesting body instead of only getting the brave to ask me what is wrong at my office job, while everyone else talked about me behind my back. I bet she went back to show business because she liked it.
It's certainly possible. This video is good in many ways, but it does fell patronising in parts
With aaaaall respect to this poor woman and all tragedy and hardship she went through her life, with the statement that she had everything double down there, does it mean she had double periods? And hiw did her digestive system work? Things came out both ways? I mean people only saw her legs but she must have been dealing with so much stuff all her life!
I wonder how that worked? She had children from both sets so they had to be fully functional.
I wondered the exact same thing. Especially when he stated that she was confused as to being pregnant on the left side when she said that the right side was being used for… that purpose. Or did I misunderstand? So, two separate uteri?
Yes, if she had double uteruses, therefore she had double periods. She would also have had double bladders, and she had double clitorises. Not necessarily would she have had double stomachs, and it didn't seem like it, or she would have been wider above the waist. She also had double anuses, because it was implied she had "double of everything down there." How that worked one could only imagine.
It's crazy how we're still analyzing and dissecting this poor woman's body apart after she's been laid to rest. Curiosity, will get the better of people.
Maybe donating her body to science would have been a better choice. Her spirit is long gone, but her body remains a novelty.
@@SapiophileGoddess It makes more sense when you understand that ovaries aren't neatly sealed to the ends of the fallopian tubes. Sperm can leave the fallopian tubes and enter the abdominal cavity. So they could have then entered the unsealed end of the other uterus' fallopian tube. It's all highly unusual but so is being a four legged woman.
Excellent questions and not really answered.
She was likely a set if conjoined twins. If the zygote doesn’t split all the way you will have conjoined twins. Depending on how and where it separates will determine how that conjoining looks.
🤦🏿
Poor baby she didn't ask for that to happen or anything but made the most out of it.
When you started on about the cruelty to the circus animals that was enough for me. And this shit still happens. It's vile, evil and heartbreaking. At least the little girl and her family were making money, and she had some protection in having a savvy father. Those animals had no one championing them.
Sad. But at least she was able to earn a decent amount of money. I know it was a terrible way to do it, but all her private business was already public knowledge. And we can't be hard on societal norms of 150 years ago, look at the absolute disgrace we have in trashy social media and reality tv. 150 years from now people may be looking at us and saying can you believe what these people were doing?
🎯
More than decent for that time in history.
I love the term "presentism." It is our insistence on judging people from the past based on the standards of today.
What she had to endure as a person from ignorant people, glad she was able to work and support her family and still keep her great disposition.
This video was great, can you please do a video on PT Barnum, never knew how evil he was to animals and people. ( I am not criticizing you, but Methotrexate is not an antibiotic but a med given as a chemo med. Also for people that have auto - immune problems like Rheumatoid Arthritis and patients that have psoriasis etc)
She would have to face 100's of millions more ignorant people in today's world.
She wasn’t one foetus absorbing her twin but an incomplete siamese twin. In the case of identical twins the fertilised egg splits completely before the first cell division and develops into two individuals. When it splits after the first cell division the split is often incomplete, which leads to a siamese twin. The extent to which the two halves are connected varies widely, from just some soft tissue and blood vessels to two half bodies fused together and two heads and ultimately to someone with three or four legs or arms.
You're absolutely right. However, the term "Siamese" is a smidge on the racist side - "conjoined" is the modern term. (Though it absolutely is the name they would have used in Myrtle's lifetime.)
Methotrexate (the medication showed when they were discussing her fatal infection) is a chemotherapy medication frequently used to treat Psoriasis as well as Psoriatic and/or Rheumatoid Arthritis. Odd choice, as they were lamenting the lack of antibiotics. 🤷🏻♀️
I take it for my Rheumatoid Arthritis. Very small doses tho. It's very strong for the liver 😭
@@boogermaiden
I am so very sorry that you have to take it at all. I had taken it off & on for nearly 30 years and suddenly developed toxicity to it. Please look up the symptoms of an extreme side effect 'Omental Infarction'; I had a blood clot and nearly died because I was misdiagnosed. Even a matter of mere HOURS later? The ER would NOT admit their mistake and treat me appropriately. By this time, my platelets were dropping so rapidly I needed a blood transfusion - my Dermatologist ended up admitting me to the hospital. 😔😕😥😖🤬 Be safe. ❤️🩹
Was the rash cellulitis? It spread so fast on my mom that she passed away quickly from it... Tragic ending for Myrtle...
She really wasn't that tragic. She found real love, had several healthy children, made huge amounts of money, did a second tour on her own terms, and lived to a relatively advanced age for her time (especially considering her disability and her pregnancies). She sounds like a strong and inspiring woman who made the best our of the cards she was dealt.
I was adopted..I was born 3 pounds..I never got to meet my parents or seen any pictures of me when I was a baby....I was 6 when I got adopted...by bad people...😢😢...Sad for her 😢
I am sorry for you and, as an adoptive parent, very angry at those who were mean to you.
Im same situation exept my abusive adkpted parents refused to adopt me and inly ling term foster because they wanted the money that social services pay foster parwnts, and its alot, and pocketed it all and neglexted me etc. Plus i was put into this foster "care" as a new born so i never ever met my birth family or seen any phots of them
😢Best wishes to you❤We have the same system in Sweden, horrible and cruel against children and parents..@@AnimalLoving-24
In India in recent years a boy was born with four legs and four limbs attached at the abdomen plus a girl born with four arms and four legs in both cases it was a parasitic twin. Both had surgeries to remove their parasitic twin the boy in 2010 and the girl in 2007.
There's an Indian god or goddess rather like that. I think I've heard about a high number of similar people in India 🤔 I wonder if there is something in the Indian genetics 🤔
IT'S ALL FROM THE DEPLETED URANIUM THE US ARMY BOMBED AND SHOT UP THE PLACE. FOR 10 YEARS.
Genetic mutation, and pollution.
They marry their cousins sometimes so the genetic pool would be quite weird.
Please refer to your theories as speculation.
@northernlady, yes, there is a Hindu (I think) goddess with multiple arms on each side.
From what I have gathered she was a pretty amazing woman. Self willed, determined and bold. And of course a great wife and mother. Thank you for your showwomanship😁rip
One thing that people forget all of time is that they look at someone with a disability is that they do not see the "ability" that is within the person. As with the word "disabled" the "able" gets lost - no one is perfect (and if you think that you are, you are on the wrong planet).
I usually say don’t dis my ability. Thank you for your message and understanding.
@@cassandraknight8804 You are very welcome - and I like your saying. ☺
I have always preferred " Other-abled."
@@bonnylouwho76 Thank you, I like this
You are so right!
A lot of "Freaks" made a good living married and led relatively normal lives. They were national stars. They had support from the other performers and lived richer lives than they could today with similar disabilities.
Really enjoyed! You have a very mesmerizing voice! Sad but she atleast had some joy in her life!
The voices used on this channel are AI generated. They are computer created. Some are more 'human' sounding than others.
@@tuft9250 even more interesting! Well I liked the AI voice, and it enhanced your telling the story!
Thanks for the info…..
Thank you for the respect you have given Corbin in this documentary video❤
The world is a cruel place to live. No matter where you’re at if you have some sort of extras or deformity, you’re considered an outcast.
Even overseas where many have cleft lip and or cleft palate and are unable to afford surgery to have it fixed or are dealing with leg deformities, they are teased and outcasted by members of society. Thank God for Doctors Without Borders!
So sad that Corbin passed away at a young age. I would have loved to live back in those days, but with the failing medical knowledge they had back then, not so much.
Rip Myrtle Corbin 💐
This is horrible and disgusting how cruel they were to a human being who should have had surgery. What a nightmare life she lived poor lady.
Surgery was not an option back then.
The medical field has vastly changed since Corbin died in 1928 at the age of 59. And her death was almost 100 years ago.
Even in the last few years we have made great strides in all of the sciences. We cannot judge the past by what we think they should have known when we have much more information than they did.
First of all surgery was not an option. Second why should she have surgery. Thirdly she had a great life under the circumstances.
I'm not sure surgery would be possible now, never mind back then.
You did an excellent in your narration. I will be viewing your channel, since you don't have the excessive repeats like the other channels...
Appreciated! Welcome 🤗
Your initials are the same as my favourite person 🤭
@@NondeM Thank you, have a great day!
I think the mental and spiritual and emotional toughness and the braveness you had to be as a person back then let alone as a woman is amazing but the same time no one deserves to be treated the way she was
What a unique story!
I live in Blount County, Tennessee and did know this.
If i were Myrtle's family, i would SUE whoever decided to put her photograph in Halloween decorations. 10 years or 100 years, family is family.
She was super pretty imo. I would have tried dating her too. Its sad she dies of the infection, but happy to hear she lived a full life.
When life gives you four legs and two pelvises, make as much lemonade as you can, girl!
There was no "good news" about her death. She clearly did not want to die and was otherwise healthy.
Did she leave a diary,or journal? If not we have no idea what her feelings were.Salute to this strong,intelligent woman! ❤❤Wonder what the FAKES were using,as fake legs ? Needles to say human NATURE,has only gotten worse.
Your last sentence is 100%.
If anyone says anything, we are "shaming". They need to be ashamed but anything goes now. Except telling the truth.
Extraordinary story.....thank you so much for sharing.
My God the lack of compassion and caring of people for others who are suffering like this, should damn the rest of us to extinction. How is it possible that the poor child was not nutured and loved so much more throughout her devastatingly painful life. 😢😢😢❤❤
Are you kidding? We have a man running for President who mimics people with CP and avoids people with disabilities because “it makes him look bad.” He insults immigrants, calls them criminals with no evidence, and BTW the crime rate for those here legally is half that of those born here who are citizens, and of those here illegally the crime rate is even lower! (After all, those people want to avoid the police, not get entangled with the law.) But nearly half of the voters think this dementing, convicted felon, sexual assaulter and defamer, usiness and tax fraud cheat and fraud .. . Why these voters think he is GRRRRRREAT!
Think America has changed much since 1870? Only if YOU are prepared to change from loving a guy like Trump who is such an insult to humanity will a safer, kinder society have a chance.
If not, you might try to get acquainted with life in Russia or Hungary under “elected” dictators with absolute power.
The fact that her father cared enough to do everything he could to ensure she could make a living to help the family, and then to support herself says that he truly loved her. The family could simply have let her starve to death, or locked her away.
Poor woman.
Double the periods too. 😢
Didn't think about that!
yes, put your head back into the sand, don’t think, don’t wonder.
@@ace6285 OUCH! Are you perfect? Do you always think of everything from every angle?
That Must stop you from doing much as you won't have the time, you'll be too busy thinking.
@@northernlady212 The epidemic of people who don’t think and advise the same for others has led us to the idiocy we see all around us now. Of course, perhaps the commenter was making a joke.
Women have double periods without having 2 lots of uterus 🙄
Poor Myrtle. She looked so sad in every photo. I find it wonderful that she was able to have children. I wish they knew more about medical surgeries back then. RIP Myrtle Corbin.