Caroline Crachami

Caroline Crachami (c. 1815 – 4 June 1824) was the first person recognised to have primordial dwarfism. Sometimes cited as the smallest person in recorded history, she was nine years old or less at the time of her death, and it is unlikely that she had finished growing. Crachami was said to have been born in Palermo, Italy, and she was known as the "Sicilian Fairy" or "Sicilian Dwarf." She was only about 50 cm tall at the time of her death; it was claimed that at birth she had weighed only one pound (454 grams) and measured about tall.

Early life

Caroline Crachami was born in Palermo, Sicily, around 1815, although the exact date of her birth is uncertain.

Death

Only weeks after arriving in London for exhibition, Crachami developed a persistent cough. She died there on 4 June 1824, at the reported age of nine, apparently from a respiratory illness, probably tuberculosis. It was suggested that Caroline was in fact 3 years old at her death, rather than 9, although contemporary reports of her abilities and language suggest an older child, and make this a matter for debate.