Human Link Archives - www.oldtimestrongman.com

Sailor Jim White: The Human Link

Posted on Friday, March 11th, 2022 by John Wood

Here’s a rare one that you probably haven’t seen before: “Sailor” Jim White, Champion Strong Man of The Navy, performs “The Human Link” feat in front of a crowd in Boston, circa 1917. Three lads per side couldn’t budge the brawny fireman. This performance was done to impress prospective Navy recruits.

Travis The Human Link

Posted on Friday, August 17th, 2018 by John Wood

Here’s a classic shot of Warren Lincoln Travis performing the classic strength feat “The Human Link”. Although out of the frame, travis actually has a pair of horses looped over each elbow, and it’s all he can do to stop from being torn limb from limb!

The Amazing Samson!

Posted on Tuesday, August 14th, 2018 by John Wood

Many strongmen performed The Human Link Feat but around 1920, The Amazing Samson upped the ante by a bunch. He not only held back a pair of draught horses, he also bent a steel bar over his leg at the same time! Amazing indeed. It should also probably be mentioned that he attempted this feat as a result of a bet.

The Mighty Young Apollo

Posted on Wednesday, August 1st, 2018 by John Wood

The Mighty Young Apollo — A.K.A. Paul Anderson from Melbourne, Australia performed many unusual feats during his colorful career. He was fond of the Human Link Feat, letting cars and trucks run over him, and pulling railroad cars with his teeth. He once let an eight ton elephant stand on his chest! One of his feats — “The Bridge of Death” involved taking a wrestler’s bridge position whilst two men with heavy sledge hammers smashed a piece of granite on his chest, oh, and a hunting knife was placed on the ground below him with the blade at his heart! He made it through though, the Mighty Young Apollo actually was still performing amazing feats into his 80’s. Here he is bending a steel bar in his teeth.

Jack johnson

Posted on Sunday, April 8th, 2018 by John Wood

The first African American heavyweight boxing Champ Jack Johnson certainly earned his title inside the ring and out. When he did finally get his shot he had lost only two of his previous 63 fights going back almost a decade prior.

As far as preparation for the ring, Johnson’s condition bears the unmistakable mark of physical training and the old photos from the training camps in his era certainly back it up.He threw the medicine ball performed calisthenics, jumped rope, chopped wood and generally engaged in exactly the kind of physical training he would have needed to in order to compete for (and Win!) the Heavyweight championship of the world.

The tale of the tape from the Johnson/Jeffries fight indicates that Johnson had a 7-7/8 inch wrist, 15-1/4 inch flexed forearm and 17-inch flexed upper arm all at a 210-pound bodyweight. You may not realize this but Jack Johnson also was a performing strongman after his boxing days were over and one of his favorite feats was the human chain.

Tullus Wright – The American Sampson

Posted on Tuesday, December 12th, 2017 by John Wood

Tullus Wright, from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, traveled the country in the late 1800’s, performing in fairs and carnivals as “The American Sampson”. Wright performed a number of traditional feats of strength but his specialty was The Human Link as shown here at “Chas Lee’s Great Museum of Living Wonders,” circa 1892.

Hans Kavan: The Austrian Hercules

Posted on Tuesday, October 11th, 2016 by John Wood

In March of 1925, Hans Kavan “The Austrian Hercules” noted wrestler and sometimes strongman performed this “human link” feat to win a wager. Kavan was thankfully not torn asunder with two horses on each arm, pulling in opposite directions. Kavan had a brother named Franz who was also a decent wrestler. (That’s right, Hans and Franz from Austria was a real thing!)

Gaston Heon

Posted on Tuesday, October 14th, 2014 by John Wood

There has been a long tradition of Canadian Strongmen, one that you probably haven’t heard of is Gaston Heon of Quebec. Heon performed standard feats such as phone book tearing, the human link and having a large rock broken on his chest with a sledge hammer… but he also performed several unusual — and somewhat dangerous — feats, such as allowing himself to be run over by a car traveling 40 miles per hour(!) and this backlift/support of a 3000 pound automobile.