Louis Moilanen

Louis Moilanen (also known as Lauri Moilanen and Louie Moilanen) came to the Keweenaw at the age of four in 1889, the son of Louis and Annie Moilanen. The family arrived from Finland and homesteaded just north of Hancock in the Salo district. Little Louie thrived in the new environment overlooking Lake Superior and at nine years old he was the height of an average man. Ten years later he was declared to be the tallest man in the world. Big Louie was seven foot nine inch tall, even though his parents were just five foot. When young Louie came to town in his horse drawn buck board it was quite a sight. Buying clothes was difficult, so the Ed Haas Men’s Store in Houghton tailored clothes for Louie and special ordered size 19 shoes and size nine Stetson hats.

Louie lived not too far from the Boston mine where he got his first non-farming job as a timber man in the Franklin Junior. Setting and shimming large timbers with block and tackle in the small stopes and drifts was hard work, but fellow miners said he could do the work of two men. Louie’s size was a handicap and he soon found out that the mines were designed for five foot men.

With Louie Moilanen’s fame spreading, he soon was offered a chance to travel with the Ringling Brothers- Barnum Bailey Circus as a side-show attraction. After three seasons of people looking at him and asking dumb questions, Big Louie yearned for the Keweenaw. He was a very shy man and did not enjoy large crowds, especially when they were gawking at him. During this time his father died and hastened his return to the farm to help his widowed mother.

After two years on the farm, Louie got into the saloon business in the City of Hancock. He operated a tavern on the corner of Franklin and Tezcuco Streets in downtown Hancock. Serving his customers well, he prospered until the constant flow of gawkers caused him to yearn for the solitude of the Salo farm.

In 1911, the shy, friendly giant with the deep baritone voice, ran and won the election for Justice of the Peace in Hancock. Big Louie did well as the J.P. and thoughts of sending him to Lansing as the representative were bantered around. But in 1913 ill health struck Louie. He suffered from occasional spells which caused erratic behavior. Then on Saturday, September 13, he suddenly became violently ill and had to be put in jail for his own safety. The doctor was summoned and Louie was sent to St Joseph Hospital in Hancock. Three days later the shy, gentle giant was found slumped over his Bible, dead. An autopsy confirmed his death was due to tubercular meningitis of the brain.

Undertaker Crawford of Hancock ordered a special coffin for Louie, nine feet long and 3 feet wide. The box weighed 300 lbs. It took eight men to take Louie into the Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Church on Reservation St. in Hancock where Rev. Matt Pesonen officiated. Later that day they laid him to rest in the Lakeside Cemetery just west of Hancock.

Louie Moilanen was truly a gentle giant who never sought fame or fortune. As his business card read when he was with Barnum Bailey Circus, “Louis Moilanen, let me see you smile. Do not spurn me. Looking for some one to love. Let’s get acquainted. Introduce me to yourself.” Simple, but honest, and extremely lonely, Big Louie touched a lot of people in the Keweenaw and elsewhere.