Hans Nilson Langseth (July 14, 1846 – November 10, 1927) was a
Norwegian-American who held the record for the world's longest
beard.
Biography
Langseth was born in
Eidsvoll
Eidsvoll (; sometimes written as ''Eidsvold'') is a municipality in Akershus in Viken county, Norway. It is part of the Romerike traditional region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Sundet.
General information
E ...
on July 14, 1846 and immigrated to the United States in 1867. He married Anna Berntsen in 1870 and worked as a farmer in
Elkton Township, Clay County, Minnesota. Later on in his life, he began growing a beard as part of a contest, and he won the contest. In his later life, he traveled around the United States as part of a
freak show
A freak show, also known as a creep show, is an exhibition of biological rarities, referred to in popular culture as "freaks of nature". Typical features would be physically unusual humans, such as those uncommonly large or small, those with ...
showing off his beard.
Langseth died aged 81 in
Wyndmere, North Dakota
Wyndmere ( ) is a city in Richland County, North Dakota, United States. The population was 454 at the 2020 census. Wyndmere was founded in 1883 and named after Windermere in England. It is part of the Wahpeton, ND– MN Micropolitan Statisti ...
on November 10, 1927 and is buried in Elk Creek Church Cemetery in
Kensett, Iowa. When he died, his beard measured . It was donated to the Department of Anthropology at the
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums and education and research centers, the largest such complex in the world, created by the U.S. government "for the increase and diffusion of knowledge". Founded ...
in 1967.
See also
*
Hans Staininger
References
External links
Geiling, Natasha. 2014. The World's Longest Beard Is One of the Smithsonian's Strangest Artifacts. ''Smithsonian'' (November 19).*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Langseth, Hans
People from Eidsvoll
American circus performers
1846 births
1927 deaths
19th-century circus performers
20th-century circus performers
Norwegian emigrants to the United States
People from Clay County, Minnesota
Farmers from Minnesota