Mose Humphrey

Who is Mose Humphrey?

Mose Humphrey was a printer at the New York Sun and member of Fire Company 40. A parishioner of St. Andrew's Church, he inspired an urban folklore character of Big Mose. He was said to have a height of 8 ft and hands as big as Virginia hams, able to lift trolley cars over his head and rescue babies inside a stovepipe hat. The character of Mose first appeared on Broadway in Benjamin A. Baker's A Glance at New York, in 1848. Then Mose was featured in several stage shows and penny novels in the mid-19th century. The character was most identified with actor Frank Chanfrau.