1912: Washington woman has live frog in gullet for 11 months

In July 1912, US newspapers reported that a live frog had inhabited a Washington woman’s gullet for almost a year. According to the patient, Mrs V. L. King, the frog had been resident in her throat, oesophagus and upper stomach for around 11 months. She claimed to have swallowed a tadpole in drinking water back in August 1911 and in the ensuing months, it grew into a frog. By May 1912, Mrs King’s family members could hear the frog croaking in her chest.

After weeks of poor health and weight loss, Mrs King consulted surgeons, who dealt with the frog accordingly:

Strangely enough, claims of frogs taking up residence in early 20th century stomachs were not uncommon. In July 1906, Fred Hamm of Lakeview, Iowa vomited up an inch-long frog that had given him internal grief for more than a week. The following month, a Kansas farmer, Roy L. Steward, told reporters he had been harbouring a small frog in his oesophagus for several years.

Despite other reports of body-invading frogs in 1909 and 1911, there is no medical evidence or expert opinion that supports the notion of frogs growing to maturity inside the human body.

Source: The Citizen (Pennsylvania, July 31st 1912; The Spokane Press, August 7th 1906; The Brownsville Daily Herald, July 12th 1906. Content on this page is © Alpha History 2019-23. Content may not be republished without our express permission. For more information please refer to our Terms of Use or contact Alpha History.