Death of Chang & Eng Bunker Commonly known as Siamese Twins
Death of Chang & Eng Bunker~January 17, 1874
Chang & Eng Bunker was born in Siam on May 11, 1811.
Chang and Eng, are Siamese-American conjoined twins. Their popularity prompted the phrase “Siamese Twins” to become a synonym for conjoined twins in general. They are widely exhibited as objects of curiosity, and are “two of the most studied of the 19th century”.
Chang and Eng, joined at the waist by a tubular band of fabric about 3.25 inches long and about 1.5 inches in diameter, were born to a mixed-Chinese mother and a Chinese father. Their mother said their birth was no more difficult than some of their other siblings’. Their father, Ti-eye, was a fisherman, who died when the twins were young, possibly from a smallpox epidemic that raged in the area in 1819. Precise details of their early life. they are still not clear.
Chang and Eng were both 17 years old when they arrived in the United States. They arrived in Boston on August 16, 1829. They were quickly examined by many doctors. Their appearances were enthusiastically covered in newspapers with varying degrees of racial bias and prejudice.
After leaving the United States, they toured major cities in England, and when they returned to New York in March 1831, the twins had acquired some English reading, writing, and speaking skills. While touring the cities, the twins stayed at hotels, where they charged audiences to attend their “weird show”. In small towns, their manager would send out flyers before they arrived, and they would stay at a motel or inn for just a night or two.
The twins performed physical feats, running and somersaults. Their strangeness is emphasized: they wear braids and wear “Oriental” clothes. Their shows sometimes include swimming, checkers and tricks in the living room.
In 1843, Chang and Eng married sisters Adelaide and Sarah Yates, the daughter of a respected local landowner. While the girls had “a huge following,” the brothers had known them for several years, often visiting when they returned from business trips and befriending the whole family. Two couples – and there’s no doubt they’re two different couples, living in separate houses, brothers rotating fortnightly with each’s Wife.
Each wife was born in 1844.
While there are no details on how the couples proceed with their intimacy, it is worth noting that the brothers’ first children were born six days apart and a couple eight days later. . They would go on to have an incredible 21 children, among them.
In early October 1860, they signed a contract with the famous performer PT Barnum for a month and exhibited at Barnum’s American Museum in New York City. They performed for a number of distinguished guests, including the Prince of Wales.
By the time the Civil War ended in 1865, the twins’ finances were affected so they decided to continue the tour. Chang and Eng made a trip to England in 1868–69, meeting doctors and conversing in exhibitions; Their last visit was over 30 years ago. Chang’s daughter Nannie, who has never been away from home before, and Eng’s daughter Kate, both in their 20s, also joined the trip.
In 1870, Chang suffered a stroke that paralyzed the right side of his body, the side closest to his brother. Eng took care of his relative health again, as Chang strapped his right leg to a sling and used both crutches and his brother’s arm to carry out his day-to-day tasks. But he never got well again, suffering from a violent cough and drinking.
Early in the morning of January 17, 1874, one of Eng’s sons came to check on the sleeping twins. “Uncle Chang is dead,” the boy said to Eng, who replied, “Then you too!” More than an hour later, he was in excruciating pain, cold sweat broke out all over his body. The only notice he received about his dead twin brother, was to move his body closer to him. Two and a half hours after losing his brother, Eng Bunker died at the age of 62.
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Categories: Biography
Source: vothisaucamau.edu.vn
