William Ball (Shropshire Giant)

William Ball
A lithographic print at the Museum of the Gorge, Ironbridge
BornJune 1795
DiedJune 1852(1852-06-00) (aged 57)
Burial placeSt Luke's Church, Doseley
52°39′22″N 2°28′42″W / 52.6561508°N 2.4782962°W / 52.6561508; -2.4782962
Other names
  • Big Billy Ball
  • 'The Shropshire Giant'
  • 'John Bull'
OccupationsIron puddler and shingler
EmployerCoalbrookdale Company
Known forHis great size, weight and strength
Height5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Spouses
  • Mary Bailey (d. 1824)
  • Margaret Wood (1790 - c.1850)
Children2

William Ball (June 1795 – 24 June 1852), the "Shropshire Giant", was a nineteenth-century iron puddler and "giant".

As an adult he was 5 feet 9 inches (1.75 m) tall and weighed more than forty stone (560 pounds, 254 kg).