Whatever Happened to the Fischer Quintuplets of South Dakota?

In August 1963, most Americans had never even heard of Aberdeen, South Dakota. Less than one month later, that would all change, and the small South Dakota town would be thrust into the national spotlight, all thanks to five adorable babies known as the Fischer quintuplets.

When Mary Ann Fischer gave birth to four girls and one boy on a Saturday morning in September, history was made, and the small town of Aberdeen was put on the map.

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Meet the Fischer Family of Aberdeen, South Dakota

There was a point in time in the 1960s when the first thing that came to mind when the average American thought of South Dakota wasn't Mount Rushmore, it was the Fischer quintuplets. At the height of the craziness, the "Fischer Five" were arguably more famous than the presidents' faces carved in granite. While the public followed their every milestone through the pages of the Saturday Evening Post, the family itself was feeling a little overwhelmed.

The five babies (Mary Ann, Maggie, Cathy, Margie, Jim) were born on September 14, 1963, at St. Luke's Hospital in Aberdeen. It was said at the time that the babies were so tiny, each of them could be held in a human hand. Because of this, they were placed in incubators and closely monitored.

This was a big deal at the time, as the babies were the first surviving quintuplets to be born in the United States. As you could probably predict, this created a media frenzy of sorts, and for the first time, major newspapers, magazines, and television programs all sent their journalists to South Dakota to report on this medical miracle.

Even the way the quintuplets were conceived was out of the ordinary, as it was thought that all five came from three different eggs. This led to a set of fraternal twins and a set of triplets.

After their birth, the quintuplets became international celebrities, receiving a medal from the Pope, along with several large donations, including a 800 acre farm (with a 17-room mansion) outside of Aberdeen and a large sum of money. The huge home and sprawling estate were sorely needed as the family included not just the quintuplets, but also their six brothers and sisters.

The parents (Mary Ann and Andrew) divorced in 1980, with Mary Ann keeping the mansion and Andrew becoming a cattle rancher. As for the quintuplets themselves? Most of them ended up living their lives close by.

Two of them still live in Aberdeen, one lives just a 45-minute drive south in Redfield, one moved three hours north to Fargo, and one moved all the way to Arizona.

Even after their parents, Mary Ann and Andrew, passed away (in 2012 and 2015), the quintuplets and their six other siblings (11 children in total) have remained incredibly close. They still gather for holidays and milestones, maintaining a bond that was forged in the early 1960s, when they were the talk of the world.

To learn more about the Fischer quintuplets and their story, check out the YouTube videos below.