Conjoined Twins 1900-39

A look at the 69 births and separation surgeries (40 sets of girls, 12 sets of boys, 15 sets of unknown gender and 1 possible boy/girl set, as well as one male fetus-in-fetu case) we saw reported during the first half of the 20th century. Cases are shown in chronological order:

Conjoined twins are born to an Innimite (Inuit?) woman near Victoria, British Columbia, on February 8, 1900. They are placed on exhibition at birth but a court injunction puts a rapid end to their career. Instead, their mother proposes to send them to the Paris Exposition.

Conjoined twin girls are born to Mrs. Isaac Rosenzweig of Cleveland, Ohio on March 17, 1900. The Evening Democrat reports, "The bodies are joined from the seventh rib to a point just below the hips. The left side of one child is joined to the left side of the other, the seventh rib of each being grown together. The stomachs and bowels of each are separate." The twins both die at birth.

Mrs. Louis Bobman of New York City gives birth to conjoined babies on July 25, 1900, described thusly in the Marion Daily Star: "The head, arms and legs of the child are normal, but its body seems to be that of three children, two boys and a girl. In the abdomen are eyes, and when the child cries the eyes in the abdomen weep as do the eyes in the head." Based on this description, the babies are most likely of the cephalopagus type.

Xiphopagus twin boys are born to the Williams family of Tennessee on May 25, 1901.

A curious (and unverified) case is reported from Wisconsin in 1902: xiphopagus conjoined twins of Italian ancestry, Petro and Edwardo, surgically separate themselves following a fight at the age of twelve. Petro dies of blood loss soon after the crude operation.

Omphalopagus twins are born in Salt Lake City, Utah, on July 22, 1903. One baby is stillborn and the attending physician separates them, but the second twin dies fifteen minutes later.

Thoracopagus twin boys are born to Mrs. Isaac Bashewitz of New York City on March 4, 1904, and survive for two days.

An alleged set of male-female conjoined twins is born in Pennsylvania in May of 1904, but survive for just thirty minutes.

An early case of attempted separation in the United States occurs in Michigan in April of 1905, on female xiphopagus twins. Seven hours after the twins are born, one sister is surgically separated from her stillborn twin, but sadly dies two days later.

A curious birth occurs on October 16, 1906, in Wheeling, West Virginia. Mrs. George Cullom is delivered of twin boys with two heads, four arms and three legs. After the twins pass away on December, the Culloms are offered $3,000 for the bodies, but they refuse, choosing instead to have their sons buried in a locked family vault in Baltimore.

Thoracopagus twin girls are born to the Jacobson family of Missouri on November 23, 1906. The sisters die soon after birth.

Conjoined twins are born to Mrs. Charles Van Dyne of Sarahsville, Ohio in April 1907, but both die soon after birth. The Newark Advocate reports, "The babies have practically one body, but there are two heads, four arms and four feet."

Xiphopagus twin sisters Mary and Anna, conjoined by a very narrow band of flesh, are born in Rio Hondo, Honduras, on May 17, 1907. The sisters are placed on exhibition and tour the United States with the Sells-Floto and Norris and Rowe circuses for several years until 1929, when one sister falls ill and they return to Honduras where both twins succumb.

Xiphopagus twins are born to "persons of some prominence" in Evansville, Indiana, on September 7, 1907, but survive only an hour. (The News (Frederick, MD), Sept. 7, 1907)

Another well-known pair of conjoined sisters, Daisy and Violet Hilton, were born in England on February 5, 1908. The two sisters were joined at the hips and appeared in two movies together, Freaks (as youngsters) and Chained for Life, while also performing on the stage. A Broadway musical on the Hilton's lives, Side Show, premiered in 1997 to generally good reviews but closed after just three months of performances. Daisy was very briefly married to a gentleman named James Moore but their marriage was annulled after just 10 days (the plot of Chained for Life also has one of the sisters getting married). The sisters both passed away from the flu in North Carolina in 1969.

Stillborn thoracopagus twins are born April 10, 1908, to Maria Holguin Herrera and her husband Antonio at Silver Bell, Arizona. Mr. Herrera has the twins' bodies embalmed by O.E. Parker of Tucson. Years later, in 1960, the babies preserved remains are discovered in a Watsonville, California bank vault, leaving many questions for authorities.

Lucia (l) and Simplico Godina with their wives

A pair of vaudeville stars from the Phillipines, Simplicio and Lucio Godina lived from 1908-36. They were married to twin (not conjoined) sisters, with whom they performed on stage. The Godina Twins were accomplished dancers and roller skaters and quite dissimilar in appearance. Lucio died from pneumonia at age 28 after which successful separation surgery was performed to save Simplicio. Unfortunately, he too died a few days later due to an infection in his nervous system.

Pygopagus twin girls, one with situs inversus of the heart, are born at the Helsingfors Deaconess Institute in Finland in 1909 to a farmer's wife and mother of two. They survive for at least six months and are cared for in the hospital.

A fetus-in-fetu twin of several months' gestation is surgically removed from the abdomen of the infant son of Martin Petzinger, a Chicagoan, in May of 1910. Sadly, the boy dies during the surgery.

Pygopagus twins Ganga Lai and Gaura Bai are born in Kankanahalli, Mysore, India in 1911 (or 1899). Ganga and Gaura appeared at the Paris Exposition of 1931 and in 1933 were examined and X-rayed by British Indian doctors at Calcutta. On July 25, 1949, Ganga suffered a cerebral hemorrhage and fell into a coma. Gaura remained conjoined to her nonresponsive twin for three years until her own death from breathing problems in 1952.

Elisabeth and Emilie Stoll, nicknamed "Emilisa", are born in Vilbel, Germany, near Frankfurt, on January 7, 1912. Conjoined at the tops of their heads and facing opposite directions, Emilisa were exhibited as a curiosity and survived for at least thirteen months (according to Dr. Rowena Spencer's book Conjoined Twins: Developmental Malformations and Clinical Implications (2003)).

The Gibbs Twins - 1930s

Conjoined twins Mary and Margaret Gibb were born May 20, 1912 in Holyoke, Massachusetts, joined at the buttocks. The twins avoided attempts to be separated, even after Margaret developed cancer and they died minutes apart on August 29, 1967. The Gibb Twins were quite different in appearance, Mary was two inches shorter than her sister and much heavier.

Conjoined twin boys are born to the Sikorski family of Pennyslvania in August of 1911.

Dicephalus dibrachius dipus twin girls are born to the Williams family of Mississippi in August of 1912.

Guadalupe and Josephine Hinojosa are born in Havana, Cuba on November 15, 1912, to Maria de Jesus Alcala and Diego Francisco Hinojosa. Joined by the abdomen and sharing a liver, the two are briefly exhibited by sideshow manager Harry H. Hargrave in the United States until 1917, when a prominent San Antonio, Texas, surgeon announces that he plans to separate the girls. Because the technology to separate a liver without significant blood loss does not yet exist, the surgeon gives the shared liver to the stronger twin, Josefina. Without a liver, Guadalupe quickly sickens and dies. Josefina, however, goes on to be the longest-lived former conjoined twin on record. She dies in Ciudad Victoria, Mexico, on January 19, 2002, aged 99.

One of the earliest well-publicized modern separation surgeries took place on March 4, 1914, in Paris. Omphalopagus twins Suzanne and Madeleine Durand, born on November 13, 1913, are separated in an operation that initially appeared successful. However, Madeleine suffers convulsions and dies on March 7.

Craniopagus twin girls are born to the Marsullis family of Illinois on March 13, 1914. The sisters both die soon after birth.

Another surgical separation is attempted in France in July of 1914, on pygopagus twins Marie-Ann and Ann-Marie (b. May 22, 1914).

Xiphopagus twins are born to Mrs. Andre Foreman of Lafayette, Louisiana on October 11, 1915.

Thoracopagus twin girls are born to the Mich family of Indiana on October 18, 1916.

Conjoined twin girls are born to an Italian-American family in New York City on August 15, 1919, and given only one name, Mary Pietrafesa.

Ischiopagus tripus twin girls are born on May 8, 1921 at Barner Memorial Hospital in Paterson, New Jersey.

On March 30, 1922, 34-year-old conjoined twin Josepha Blazek died of jaundice in Chicago with her sister Rosa succumbing a few minutes later. The Blazeks were born in Skerychov, Bohemia on January 20, 1878. Joined at the pelvis area, the two attracted headlines in 1910 when Rosa gave birth to a baby boy in Prague. The boy's father was willing to marry Rosa but the courts forbade the marriage.

A set of conjoined twins are born on Nov. 2, 1922 in New York City, Ruth and Sylvia Zarelsky. The xiphopagus twins are successfully separated at Borough Park Maternity Hospital on December 1, 1922.

Stillborn thoracopagus twin girls are born to the Savage family of Texas on July 19, 1924.

Mrs. Bell of England gives birth to conjoined twin girls on April 19, 1925.

Thoracopagus twins are born to the Mrs. Pauline Magner of Bayonne, New Jersey on July 17, 1925. Both pass away at birth.

"The Medich Grown-Together Twins", Lucy and Bessie Medich, are born in South Bend, Indiana, on May 22, 1926 to Mary and Nicholas Medich. The attending physician, Dr. Thomas Swantz, determines that they cannot be separated and the parents intend to allow them to die. The ischiopagus tetrapus sisters are briefly exhibited with a sideshow but both pass away from pneumonia on October 9.

Conjoined twins, who both die at birth, are born to the Carriger family of Oklahoma on November 25, 1926.

Zelda and Elda Alsleben are born to a rural German-American family, Mr. and Mrs. Ferdinand Alsleben, near New Auburn, Minnesota on January 8, 1927. Remarkably, the omphalopagus sisters are separated by a family doctor on March 14, 1927 and both survive, although Elda succumbs to a congenital heart defect at the age of 9.

Xiphopagus twin boys are born to Mrs. Carl Putnik of Denver, Colorado, on January 20, 1927. One boy is stillborn and attending doctors determine that the twins cannot be separated to save the other.

Mary and Ann Church, joined at the abdomen, are born in Pimlico, Westminster, London on September 5, 1927, but only survive for five days, with Ann succumbing two minutes before Mary.

Craniopagus twins Elsie and Marie are born in England on December 10, 1927, and surgically separated in January of 1928. One sister succumbs in surgery.

Meta Marie Keller of Marseilles, Illinois is separated from her stillborn conjoined twin sister shortly after her birth on February 1, 1928, to Mr. and Mrs. Frank Keller in a rural farmhouse. A December 16, 1936, issue of The Newspicture Weekly contains a photo of nine-year-old Meta and declares her "the only known survivor of an operation severing twins at birth".

Stella Bacon, 26, of Syracuse, New York gives birth to omphalopagus twin boys on April 12, 1928. One twin is stillborn, while the other survives only five minutes. On the subject of the twins' deaths, Mrs. Bacon tells the Syracuse Herald, "I'm glad they died. If they had lived they would have been freaks and couldn't have had any normal or happy life. I would never want any child of mine made into a circus or stage exhibition."

Thoracopagus male twins are born to Annabelle and Haywood Stevens of Pittsburgh in May of 26. The boys survive for just three days and both pass away five hours apart.

Pygopagus twin girls with the surname Blasik, as well as a non-conjoined triplet, are born in 1929 and survive for one month.

Juanita Fae and Wanda Mae Lenz are born in Mattoon, Illinois on April 30, 1929. The parents, Mr. and Mrs. Fred Lenz of nearby Ashgrove, send the pair to New York, accompanied by two nurses to be exhibited at an amusement park, but the sisters pass away in July before they can be shown. It is reported by the Ruthven Free Press that the girls had starved to death because they shared a stomach.

Xiphopagus twins are born to Frau Anna Holwitz of Dresden, Germany in May of 1929, but only survive a few hours.

Thoracopagus twin boys are born to Mr. and Mrs. Jesse Davis of Marietta, Ohio on July 28, 1929, but both die an hour after birth.

Stillborn thoracopagus twin boys are born to Mrs. Emerson Krauter, a 26-year-old mother of three, at Linwood, Ontario on January 28, 1931.

Stillborn thoracopagus twin girls are born to Mrs. Atwell Hillard in Columbus, Ohio on May 5, 1931.

Xiphopagus twin girls are born toMrs. Albert Forster of Maryland on July 7, 1931. The twins are separated on July 9 at Baltimore's Mercy Hospital and given a good prognosis, but sadly both die within a few days.

Pygopagus twin girls are born to Mrs. Refugio de Fernandez of El Paso, Texas in January of 1932. They only survive for about five minutes.

Barbara Joyce and Priscilla Ann Reed are born to Mr. and Mrs. Frank Reed of Malden, Massachusetts on December 5, 1932, along with a non-conjoined triplet brother, Frank Jr. Doctors at Malden Hospital are optimistic about separating the pair, as are the parents, who declare, "God will find a way for them somehow." Sadly, the girls pass away after only one day.

Dicephalus dibrachius dipus twin boys are born to Victoria and Henry Butler on a plantation near Greenwood, Mississippi on March 28, 1933, and survive for eight hours and 15 minutes. The mother requests that the twins be placed on exhibition for educational purposes and that a charity hospital be built in their memory in Greenwood.

A teenage mother, Ms. Magalhães of Brazil, gives birth to conjoined twins who both die at birth in 1934. Later, she suffers a mental breakdown and is found wandering the streets of her village, singing about her tragic twins.

Thoracopagus twins with one heart are born to the Mates family of Indiana on January 9, 1934. One twin is stillborn and the other dies soon after birth.

Stillborn ischiopagus tripus twins are born to the Sawall family of Illinois on April 6, 1935.

Edward Wesley Kurtz of Louisville, Kentucky is separated from his stillborn conjoined twin brother soon after birth in 1935 and survives to lead a normal life. At the time of a 1949 update, Edward, 14, is an athlete at his high school.

An Arizona woman, Mrs. Contreras, sadly dies in childbirth delivering stillborn thoracopagus twins on June 12, 1936.

Mary and Carina Fiorenza are born joined at the back of the head to Mr. and Mrs. Diego Fiorenza of Everett, Massachusetts on July 1, 1936. Carina dies two hours after birth and Mary succumbs 30 hours later as doctors prepare to separate her from her sister.

Remarkably, a second set of craniopagus twins is born on July 2, 1936: Annabelle and Norabelle Glick of Michigan City, Indiana, daughters of Mr. and Mrs. Wesley Glick. One sister dies 15 minutes after birth and Mrs. Glick elects not to have them separated for fear that the survivor will have too many problems. The second girl dies about 24 hours after the first. Mrs. Glick offers the bodies to the Indiana University Medical center for study so that future sets of craniopagus twins might be saved.

On November 26, 1936, stillborn thoracopagus twin girls are born to the Dosed family of Ohio.

Mrs. Giuditia Bandone, 43, of Spezia, Italy gives birth to conjoined twin girls at St. Bartholomew's Hospital on March 26, 1937.

Thoracopagus twin girls are born to Mrs. Nellie Burk, 24, of Nacogdoches, Texas, sister of the town's mayor, in May of 1937. Tragically, Mrs. Burk dies in childbirth and her baby twins succumb less than a day later.

In August of 1937, a seven-month-old Huntington, West Virginia, infant is surgically separated from her underdeveloped conjoined twin sister. What makes the case extraordinary is that the child is allegedly the great-great granddaughter of one of the Bunker Siamese twins.

Dicephalus tetrabrachius twins Irina and Galena, nicknamed "Ira-Galya", are born in the Soviet Union on November 6, 1937. The twins are kept in a Soviet hospital until their deaths on November 28, 1938, and are the subject of a 1939 educational film short titled Siamese Twins.

On March 17, 1938, Catherine Conlon, 34, of Harlem, New York gives birth to stillborn triplets, two of whom are pygopagus twins. The twins are born at home, while the triplet is born after Mrs. Conlon is rushed to a hospital.

Stillborn conjoined twin girls are born to the Erickson family of Minnesota in January of 1938.

[Back to Chronological Timeline of Conjoined Twins Timeline]