 Clarence Chesterfield Howerton ( February 9 , 1913 – November 18 , 1975 ) , also known as Major Mite , was an American circus performer who starred in the sideshow for over 25 years , 20 of which were with the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus . He was 2 ft 4 in ( 0 @.@ 71 m ) tall and performed with several groups from the early 1920s through the late 1940s , billed as the smallest man in the world . His small physique was often contrasted alongside larger circus sideshow acts , such as the juvenile obese and the excessively tall . 
