- Felipe Birriel’s growth was attributed to a tumor in his pituitary gland, rather than genetic factors.
- He was a Puerto Rican figure who represented the image of a jíbaro (country person) from the early 20th century.
- His extreme growth occurred during the difficult decade of the 1930s when the country was facing poverty and the United States was going through the Great Depression.
Felipe Birriel Fernández is a major figure in Puerto Rico’s history. At 7 feet 11 inches, he is the tallest person ever from Puerto Rico. He was never the tallest living person but this man’s reputation as “El Gigante de Carolina” or “The Giant of Carolina” has spread far and wide, from American streets to other shores. Born in 1916, Birriel worked in the fields as a child before experiencing rapid growth due to a pituitary gland tumor, which is called “gigantism”.
Felipe received radiotherapy treatment thanks to a machine sent from the United States and became the longest-lived human (77 years) with a gigantism condition when he passed away in 1994. He became a local legend in Carolina, Puerto Rico, appearing in a film and being honored during a basketball championship, leaving behind a legacy as “El Gigante de Carolina.”
The Legend of North Carolina’s Massive Giant
Felipe Birriel came from a modest background and was just a typical teenager in appearance, similar to other giants like Zhang Juncai or John F. Carroll. He was the oldest and the most notable of his six siblings. He lived his whole life in the state he was born in. Because he had to start helping his parents with the coffee, fruit, and sugarcane harvests (as a water delivery boy) at such an early age, he only managed to complete the second grade of primary school.
At the age of 16, Felipe Birriel started to show signs of his remarkable height, which he maintained throughout his life. As a harvester and fertilizer of crops, his work tools already became too small for him to control properly at this young age.
His quick development wasn’t anything to cheer about, however; it was the result of a tumor in his pituitary gland, which also left him feeling quite lightheaded and weak which is typical for people with the same condition. He had difficulties walking later in his life and had to use a wheelchair.
The Obstacles of Being 7’11 Tall
Learning about Felipe Birriel Fernández’s life indicates that he was more than just a freakishly large man who caused a stir in society. He was a person who had to overcome certain obstacles.
El Gigante de Carolina, as he is often known, Felipe Birriel, stood at a respectable 7 feet 11 inches. His organs were the standard size for a human, but his disease and rapid development severely limited his mobility and independence. His resolve, however, never wavered.
Felipe suffered from heart failures on top of his other symptoms since his heart was unable to pump enough blood to support his tall frame. Felipe’s health has been the subject of several investigations due to his family’s financial difficulties and the poor economic climate in Puerto Rico. Living in poverty in the Barrazas neighborhood of Carolina, his parents didn’t have the means to provide any treatment for his tumor.
Since Birriel’s heart was having trouble keeping up with the demands placed on it, he was able to walk only very slowly.
Nonetheless, despite everyone’s best efforts, his development was painfully sluggish. A radiation treatment machine was first sent from the United States to Puerto Rico in 1932, but it wasn’t until 1941 that the device really arrived.
This almost decade-long delay was probably due to the United States going through the Great Depression. The machine was needed to take his pituitary gland tumor under control, thus his unusual growth.
Eventually, doctors were able to undertake surgery to slow down Felipe Birriel’s rapid growth. The outlook was poor, despite the fact that the tumor had been excised. The tallest man in the nation, he was already famous as the Giant of Carolina at the time.
Some Acts of Exploitation
Felipe Birriel hoped for a better life for himself and his family even when he was deeply unable due to his sickness. Because of the malicious intent of others and his own naiveté, he was subjected to horrific acts of exploitation.
An American circus owner noticed him because of his stature and offered him “better living circumstances” in exchange for his participation in a tour of the United States. What had at first appeared like a promising beginning soon turned into a nightmare of abuse and hardship for him and his loved ones.
Due to enduring poor treatment, living conditions, and exploitation during his time in various North American cities, Felipe Birriel did not stop looking for a route back to his home state of Carolina until he finally achieved it. He worked in promotions and sales for different businesses throughout the island.
His Later Life
Despite his limitations, “Giant” was a fitting nickname since it reflected both his physical size and the effort he put forth to survive in life. Felipe was in two films, the first of which was “Flight of the Lost Balloon,” shot on location in Puerto Rico in 1961.
The shopkeepers of Carolina also helped their best man out by making gigantic furniture especially for him, as well as large shoes and clothing. He received funding from the government of Puerto Rico and businesspeople at the time.
On the morning of March 15, 1994, at the age of 77, Felipe Birriel Fernández died in his hometown of a heart attack. He’s the only known case of his illness that has survived to such an old age (Bao Xishun is currently 71 years old). Most people with gigantism usually die at young ages such as Feodor Machnow (34), Bernard Coyne (24), Radhouane Charbib (37), and John Rogan (38).
His death occurred in the residence where he shared with his brother Hermenegildo and sister-in-law Rosa María, who took care of him for more than 40 years in the same field in the Barrazas neighborhood where he was born.
The Legacy of the Carolina Giant
- Carolina is also called “La Tierra de Gigantes” or the Land of Giants” today in Birriel’s name.
- The painting “Carolina, Tierra de Gigantes” was unveiled in Carolina.
- “Gigantes de Carolina” (Carolina’s Giants) basketball team in the first-tier-level men’s league in Puerto Rico was founded in 1971 in honor of Birriel and they are the current champions of the league.
- There is a museum and a street called “El Paseo Felipe Birriel”.
- A robot that bears a similarity to Birriel greets tourists at the entrance of the “Galería de Gigantes,” or Gallery of Giants, in downtown.
- A children’s book named “Felipe Corazón de Gigantes” was written about Birriel’s life by Carolina author Wanda De Jesus Arvelo.
Give it enough time and with this rate, Felipe Birriel can turn into a local myth in the following centuries.
Although he reportedly developed feelings for a “girl” in the area, Birriel was never able to tie the knot with her. To celebrate the centennial of Birriel Fernández’s birth, a number of events, such as an ecumenical ceremony and the placing of a wreath at the cemetery in the Holy Cross Neighborhood, were organized back in 2016.
