The story of the long-lived Siamese twins Ronnie and Donnie Galion (7 photos)

Ronnie and Donnie Galion have been performing in the circus since they were three years old. They managed to overcome many difficulties and live to a record 68 years for Siamese twins.







The brothers were born in Dayton, Ohio, USA, on October 25, 1951 to Eileen and Wesley Galion. The twins spent two years in hospital and doctors eventually decided they could not be safely separated.



Each had its own heart, stomach, liver, lungs, kidneys, arms and legs. Their bodies were joined at the lower digestive tract and bladder, which emptied into one penis, controlled by Donnie.

The famous impresario Ward Hall took the boys into his show. This decision was not easy for the parents, but they had to raise nine children. In addition, the twins were refused admission to school.





For three decades, Eileen and Wesley traveled with Ronnie and Donnie to circuses, shows and fairs in the United States, Canada and Latin America.



The twins earned enough money to provide for their family. They retired at age 39 and bought a home in Dayton, where they lived independently for two decades.

Ronnie and Donnie cooked their own meals, did their own laundry, and took showers without assistance. They were active in the community and used a double wheelchair. The brothers dreamed of getting married and having children, but it was difficult for them to build personal relationships.



They couldn't both lie down, so they had to take turns sleeping. That was until 2010, when they received a custom-made chair bed.

Despite the commonality of many aspects of life, the brothers had different characters and political views. Of course, they argued and there were fights.

According to their brother Jim, Robbie loved to eat and Donnie did most of the housework.



Jim dealt with financial matters, giving the twins a monthly allowance, since they loved toy cars and could spend all their money on buying them.

In 2009, Ronnie suffered a viral infection that led to the formation of a blood clot in his lungs.

After hospitalization, they needed care and help with almost everything.



At 63, they became the oldest conjoined twins in the world. For Ronnie and Donnie, who always dreamed of getting into the Guinness Book of Records, this was happiness.

The brothers died of heart failure on July 4, 2020, at the age of 68 years, 253 days.

Siamese twins, according to statistics, are born rarely - 1 case in 250 thousand births. Many of them die in the first months of life due to anatomical features and developmental defects.