~ WHO'S WHO ~

Joseph Carey Merrick (The Elephant Man)

The Elephant Man was not the Elephant Man. To be more precise, John Merrick did not suffer from the genetic disorder which has come to be known as "Elephant Man disease." Recent studies of Merrick's remains have confirmed theories that Merrick was the victim of a much rarer disease that was unidentified until a century after his death, in a discovery that would be comparable to learning that Lou Gehrig did not have amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

Born in Leicester, at 50 Lee Street in 1862, Joseph Carey Merrick first began to develop tumors on his face before his second birthday. His condition quickly worsened as bulbous, cauliflower-like growths grew from his head and body, and his right hand and forearm became a useless club. Merrick earned a living by exhibiting himself in a variety of sideshows, dubbed "the Elephant Man" because of a tusk-like growth on his face. One promoter dreamed up the story that Merrick's mother had been trampled by a elephant while pregnant, resulting in her son's hideous deformities.

Medical science has long sought a more probable explanation. One early belief was that Merrick suffered from elephantiasis, a disorder of the lymphatic system that causes parts of the body to swell to grotesque proportions. Later it was theorized that he had an extremely severe case of neurofibromatosis. This nervous system disorder causes nerve cells to grow out of control, creating large, misshapen tumors. Neurofibromatosis is not phenomenally rare, occurring in one of every 4,000 births, although no known case of neurofibromatosis has ever been as profound as Merrick's condition.

In 1979, a much more rare disease was identified as causing overgrowth of bone and other tissue. This disorder, named Proteus Syndrome, has been recorded in fewer than 100 cases, ever. Several years ago a U.S. National Institutes of Health panel suggested that Proteus Syndrome may have been the true cause of John Merrick's plight. A study of Merrick's remains at the Royal London Hospital appears to back up this diagnosis.

Radiologist Amita Sharma found that Merrick's spine was not as sharply curved as is normally found in cases of neurofibromatosis. In addition, Merrick's ribs do not demonstrate the peculiar notches and thinness associated with neurofibromatosis, and are actually abnormally thick. The extreme overgrowth of bone in Merrick's skull and the right side of his body is consistent with Proteus Syndrome.

Sharma based her conclusions on a series of x-rays and CAT scans produced at the Royal London Hospital, where Merrick's remains have been kept since his death. Contrary to popular belief, the Elephant Man's skeleton has never been in the possession of Michael Jackson or any other freak-obsessed private collector. DNA tests will render a final confirmation of the Proteus Syndrome diagnosis, but it might be as long as two years before conclusive results are reached.

Joseph Carey Merrick was an unfortunate man, born with a disease popularly thought to be neurofribromotosis, or Proteus syndrome. Either way, he was blessed with rather unattractive growths, and his body progressively became more and more deformed. He was destined for a life of sadness and abuse, heaped on him rather generously by his family, and the public. His only success at earning a wage was to travel in "freak shows", popular in Victorian times. One of these travelling menageries came to rest in a shop-front across from the Royal London Hospital, at 123 Whitechapel Road, London. He caught the eye of Dr. Frederick Treves, a surgeon at the hospital, who paid Joseph to stroll across the street to be studied by students.

The menagerie traveled on, and Merrick managed to save a bit of money, only to be stolen from him by the curator of the show, stranding Merrick in Brussels. Joseph managed to scrape together enough money for a train trip back to London, and upon his arrival at Liverpool  Street Station he collapsed in exhaustion. Treves' business card was found among his meager possessions, and a call was made to the Hospital. Treves went to claim his friend, and offered him a home within the Royal London Hospital  grounds, where he would live out the rest of his life. Treves and Merrick enjoyed a friendship, and it was Treves that took it upon himself to start referring to Joseph as "John" in his memoirs. It is not know exactly why he made the decision to do this. For a few very years, Merrick enjoyed a happy life in a ground floor flat, in an area of the hospital grounds called Bedstead Square.

The entrance of Merrick's flat has since been bricked up , and the interiors now house the hospital catering department, but the windows out which Merrick would view the world are still there , hidden behind shelves of canned goods. He became a celebrity, even entertaining royalty.

Regarding Merrick's eventual demise, here is a quote direct from Treves diary: "he was found dead in his bed�He was lying on his back as if asleep, and had evidently died suddenly and without struggle. The method of his death was peculiar. So large and heavy was his head that he could not sleep lying down. The attitude he was compelled to assume when he slept was very strange. He sat up in bed with his back supported by pillows, his knees were drawn up, and his arms clasped round his legs, while his head rested on the points of his bent knees. 

He often said to me that he wished he could lie down to sleep 'like other people'. I think on this last night he must, with some determination, have made the experiment. The pillow was soft, and the head, when placed on it, must have fallen backwards and caused a dislocation of the neck. Thus it came about that his death was due to the desire that had dominated his life - to be 'like other people'. This was on April 11^th, 1890. He was 27 years old. The official Cause of Death: Asphyxia and Suffocation.

A funeral was held in the Chapel of the Hospital, and after the autopsy by Dr. Treves, it was decided that his skeleton should be set up in the Hospital Museum. He supervised the taking of plaster casts of the head and limbs and the preservation of skin samples. To the frustration of future researchers, the skin samples were lost during the Second World War. The jars containing them dried out in the absence of staff who had been evacuated. Merrick's assembled skeleton still resides within the walls of the hospital museum. Members of the public are not welcome.

Acknowledgements to D. Trull of the Fortean Times.

For more information see the Leicester Mercury website section "Famous Faces," or for an excellent article by Elizabeth Batt, go to Leicestershire Past and Present.

[ Back to Who's Who ]