Myrtle Corbin, the Four-Legged Woman
Josephine Myrtle Corbin was born in Lincoln County, Tennessee, in 1868. By all accounts, she was a normal child – except for one thing. Josephine was born with two pelvises. That meant she had four legs. The two inner legs were smaller and weaker, however, and she couldn’t walk on them. After her school days were over, she turned to showbusiness and joined her first circus at the age of 13.
P.T. Barnum didn’t need to come up with an original name for Myrtle – she already had one. From the start, she referred to herself as the Four-Legged Girl from Texas. The impresario simply tweaked this and presented her as the ‘Four-Legged Woman’. Since several other shows and promoters had similar acts, Barnum presented Myrtle as unique and genuine. Doctors were invited to examine her as part of the performance, and Myrtle would be asked to wiggle all four of her legs upon request.
At the height of her popularity, Barnum was paying Myrtle a massive $450 a week. Alongside her professional success, she also got married and – to the astonishment of her doctors – started a family. It was in order to raise her children that Myrtle eventually quit showbusiness. She died in 1928. Since then, medical experts have often looked into her case, concluding that the two extra legs belonged to Myrtle’s unborn twin, as did her extra sexual organs.