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'''American [[supercentenarian]]s''' (i.e. citizens of the [[United States]] who have attained the age of at least 110 years) include: |
'''American [[supercentenarian]]s''' (i.e. citizens of the [[United States]] who have attained the age of at least 110 years) include: |
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== List of the oldest living |
== List of the oldest living Americans since 1976== |
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Revision as of 09:17, 31 December 2008
American supercentenarians (i.e. citizens of the United States who have attained the age of at least 110 years) include:
List of the oldest living Americans since 1976
Name | From | To | Age range | Gender | Lifespan | State/Country |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Mary Bittlebrun | May 18, 1974 | August 6, 1976 (811 days) |
110–112 | F | March 19, 1864 – August 6, 1976 112 years 140 days |
Illinois (born) Arkansas (died) |
Sophia DeMuth | August 6, 1976 | December 2, 1977 (483 days) |
110–111 | F | June 30, 1866 – December 2, 1977 111 years 155 days |
Missouri (born) Nebraska (died) |
Fannie Thomas | December 2, 1977 | January 22, 1981 (1,147 days) |
110–113 | F | April 14?, 1867 – January 22, 1981 113 years 283? days |
Illinois (born) California (died) |
Neille Spencer | January 22, 1981 | November 13, 1982 (660 days) |
111–113 | F | August 24, 1869 – November 13, 1982 113 years 81 days |
New Hampshire (born) New Jersey (died) |
Emma Wilson | November 13, 1982 | October 13, 1983 (334 days) |
112–113 | F | May 12, 1870 – October 13, 1983 113 years 154 days |
Missouri |
Matthew Beard | October 13, 1983 | February 16, 1985 (492 days) |
113–114? | M | July 9, 1870? – February 16, 1985 114? years 222 days |
Virginia (born) Florida (died) |
Ollie Bay | February 16, 1985 | December 31?, 1985 (318 days) |
112–113 | F | November 11, 1872 – December 31?, 1985 113 years 50? days |
Illinois |
Mamie Eva Keith | December 31?, 1985 | September 20, 1986 (263 days) |
112–113 | F | March 22, 1873 – September 20, 1986 113 years 182 days |
Illinois |
Mary McKinney | September 20, 1986 | February 2, 1987 (135 days) |
113 | F | May 30, 1873 – February 2, 1987 113 years 248 days |
California |
Florence Knapp | February 2, 1987 | January 11, 1988 (343 days) |
113–114 | F | October 10, 1873 – January 11, 1988 114 years 93 days |
Pennsylvania |
Carrie C. White | January 11, 1988 | February 14, 1991 (1,130 days) |
113–116? (disputed) |
F | November 18, 1874? – February 14, 1991 116? years 88 days |
Florida |
Lucy Hannah | February 14, 1991 | March 21, 1993 (766 days) |
115–117 | F | July 16, 1875 – March 21, 1993 117 years 248 days |
Alabama (born) Michigan (died) |
Margaret Skeete | March 21, 1993 | May 7, 1994 (412 days) |
114–115 | F | October 27, 1878 – May 7, 1994 115 years 192 days |
Texas (born) Virginia (died) |
Wilhelmina Kott | May 7, 1994 | September 6, 1994 (122 days) |
114 | F | March 7, 1880 – September 6, 1994 114 years 183 days |
Illinois |
Sarah Knauss | September 6, 1994 | December 30, 1999 (1,941 days) |
113–119 | F | September 24, 1880 – December 30, 1999 119 years 97 days |
Pennsylvania |
Myrtle Dorsey | December 30, 1999 | June 25, 2000 (178 days) |
114 | F | November 22, 1885 – June 25, 2000 114 years 216 days |
Ohio |
Maude Farris-Luse | June 25, 2000 | March 18, 2002 (631 days) |
113–115 | F | January 21, 1887 – March 18, 2002 115 years 56 days |
Michigan |
Grace Clawson | March 18, 2002 | May 28, 2002 (71 days) |
114 | F | November 15, 1887 – May 28, 2002 114 years 194 days |
United Kingdom (born) Florida (died) |
Adelina Domingues | May 28, 2002 | August 21, 2002 (85 days) |
114 | F | February 19, 1888 – August 21, 2002 114 years 183 days |
Cape Verde (born) California (died) |
Mae Harrington | August 21, 2002 | December 29, 2002 (130 days) |
113 | F | January 20, 1889 – December 29, 2002 113 years 343 days |
New York |
Mary Christian | December 29, 2002 | April 20, 2003 (112 days) |
113 | F | June 12, 1889 – April 20, 2003 113 years 312 days |
Massachusetts (born) California (died) |
Elena Slough | April 20, 2003 | October 5, 2003 (168 days) |
113–114 | F | July 4, 1889 – October 5, 2003 114 years 93 days |
Pennsylvania (born) New Jersey (died) |
Charlotte Benkner | October 5, 2003 | May 14, 2004 (222 days) |
113–114 | F | November 16, 1889 – May 14, 2004 114 years 180 days |
Germany (born) Ohio (died) |
Emma Verona Johnston | May 14, 2004 | December 1, 2004 (201 days) |
113–114 | F | August 6, 1890 – December 1, 2004 114 years 117 days |
Iowa |
Elizabeth Bolden | December 1, 2004 | December 11, 2006 (740 days) |
114–116 | F | August 15, 1890 – December 11, 2006 116 years 118 days |
Tennessee |
Emma Tillman | December 11, 2006 | January 28, 2007 (48 days) |
114 | F | November 22, 1892 – January 28, 2007 114 years 67 days |
North Carolina (born) Connecticut (died) |
Corinne Dixon Taylor | January 28, 2007 | February 14, 2007 (17 days) |
113 | F | April 2, 1893 – February 14, 2007 113 years 318 days |
Washington, D.C. |
Edna Parker | February 14, 2007 | November 26, 2008 (651 days) |
113–115 | F | April 20, 1893 – November 26, 2008 115 years 220 days |
Indiana |
Gertrude Baines | November 26, 2008 | Present (5681 days) |
114 – | F | April 6, 1894 – age, 130 years, 71 days |
Georgia (born) California (residence) |
The forty oldest verified Americans in History
Rank | Name | Age | Born | Died | Sex | Race | State/Territory of Birth |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Sarah Knauss | 119 years, 97 days | September 24, 1880 | December 30, 1999 | F | W | Born in Pennsylvania. |
2 | Lucy Hannah | 117 years, 248 days | July 16, 1875 | March 21, 1993 | F | B | Born in Alabama. |
3 | Elizabeth Bolden | 116 years, 118 days | August 15, 1890 | December 11, 2006 | F | B | Born in Tennessee. |
4 | Carrie C. White[1] | 116 years, 88 days (disputed) |
November 18, 1874 | February 14, 1991 | F | W | Born in Florida. |
5 | Maggie Barnes | 115 years, 319 days | March 6, 1882 | January 19, 1998 | F | B | Born in North Carolina. |
6 | Edna Parker | 115 years, 220 days | April 20, 1893 | November 26, 2008 | F | W | Born in Indiana. |
7 | Margaret Skeete | 115 years, 192 days | October 27, 1878 | May 7, 1994 | F | W | Born in Texas. |
8 | Bettie Wilson | 115 years, 153 days | September 13, 1890 | February 13, 2006 | F | B | Born in Mississippi. |
9 | Susie Gibson | 115 years, 108 days | October 31, 1890 | February 16, 2006 | F | W | Born in Mississippi. |
10 | Maude Farris-Luse | 115 years, 56 days | January 21, 1887 | March 18, 2002 | F | W | Born in Michigan. |
11 | Mary Bidwell | 114 years, 352 days | May 9, 1881 | April 25, 1996 | F | W | Born in Connecticut. |
12 | Gertrude Baines | 130 years, 71 days | April 6, 1894 | Living | F | B | Born in Georgia. |
13 | Mathew Beard | 114? years, 222 days | July 9, 1870? | February 16, 1985 | M | B | Born in Virginia. |
14 | Carrie Lazenby | 114 years, 218 days | February 9, 1882 | September 14, 1996 | F | B | Born in Georgia. |
15 | Myrtle Dorsey | 114 years, 216 days | November 22, 1885 | June 25, 2000 | F | W | Born in Ohio. |
16 | Wilhelmina Kott | 114 years, 183 days | March 7, 1880 | September 6, 1994 | F | W | Born in Illinois. |
17 | Martha Graham[2] | 114 years, c.180 days | December, 1844 | June 25, 1959 | F | B | Born in Virginia. |
18 | Ettie Mae Greene | 114 years, 171 days | September 8, 1877 | February 26, 1992 | F | W | Born in West Virginia. |
19 | Irene Frank | 114 years, 150 days | October 1, 1881 | February 28, 1996 | F | W | Born in Texas. |
20 | Emma Verona Johnston | 114 years, 117 days | August 6, 1890 | December 1, 2004 | F | W | Born in Iowa. |
21 | Bettie Chatmon | 114 years, 108 days | April 30, 1884 | August 16, 1998 | F | B | Born in Louisiana. |
22 | Odie Matthews | 114 years, 107 days | December 28, 1878 | April 14, 1993 | F | W | Born in Texas. |
23 | Florence Knapp | 114 years, 93 days | October 10, 1873 | January 11, 1988 | F | W | Born in Pennsylvania. |
Elena Slough | 114 years, 93 days | July 4, 1889 | October 5, 2003 | F | W | Born in Pennsylvania. | |
25 | Mary Anna Boone | 114 years, 92 days | February 10, 1887 | May 13, 2001 | F | W | Born in Kentucky. |
26 | Emma Tillman | 114 years, 67 days | November 22, 1892 | January 28, 2007 | F | B | Born in North Carolina. |
27 | Grace Thaxton | 114 years, 18 days | June 18, 1891 | July 6, 2005 | F | W | Born in New York. |
28 | Minnie Ward | 114 years, 13 days | November 19, 1885 | December 2, 1999 | F | B | Born in Tennessee. |
29 | Arbella Ewing | 114 years, 9 days | March 13, 1894 | March 22, 2008 | F | B | Born in Texas. |
30 | Catherine Hagel | 114 years, 8 days | November 28, 1894 | December 6, 2008 | F | W | Born in Minnesota. |
31 | Fred H. Hale, Sr. | 113 years, 354 days | December 1, 1890 | November 19, 2004 | M | W | Born in Maine. |
32 | Bertha Fry | 113 years, 348 days | December 1, 1893 | November 14, 2007 | F | W | Born in Indiana. |
33 | Mae Harrington | 113 years, 343 days | January 20, 1889 | December 29, 2002 | F | W | Born in New York. |
34 | Agatha Mitchell | 113 years, 336 days | March 26, 1887 | February 25, 2001 | F | B | Born in Virginia. |
35 | Moses Hardy | 113 years, 335 days | January 6, 1893 | December 7, 2006 | M | B | Born in Mississippi. |
36 | Clara Huhn | 113 years, 327 days | January 28, 1887 | December 20, 2000 | F | W | Born in Nebraska. |
37 | Corinne Dixon Taylor | 113 years, 318 days | April 2, 1893 | February 14, 2007 | F | B | Born in Washington, D. C. |
38 | Mary Christian | 113 years, 312 days | June 12, 1889 | April 20, 2003 | F | W | Born in Massachusetts. |
39 | Fannie Thomas | 113 years, 283 days | April 14, 1867 | January 22, 1981 | F | W | Born in Illinois. |
40 | Johnson Parks | 113 years, 275 days | October 15, 1884 | July 29, 1998 | M | B | Born in Georgia. |
Summary table
The order of people in the main list is by date of birth. The table below summarizes the people listed on this page, providing name, birth year, age and an indicator of whether or not the person is still living or deceased. Age claims may be disputed.
Name | Birth Year | Death Year | Age | Living/deceased |
---|---|---|---|---|
Delina Filkins | 1815 | 1928 | 113 years, 214 days | Deceased |
Martha Graham | 1844? | 1959 | 114? years, 180 days | Deceased |
Fannie Thomas | 1867 | 1981 | 113 years, 283 days | Deceased |
Mary McKinney | 1873 | 1987 | 113 years, 248 days | Deceased |
Florence Knapp | 1873 | 1988 | 114 years, 93 days | Deceased |
Carrie C. White | 1874? | 1991 | 116? years, 88 days | Deceased |
Joe Thomas | 1875 | 1986 | 111 years, 227 days | Deceased |
Ettie Mae Greene | 1877 | 1992 | 114 years, 171 days | Deceased |
Wilhelmina Geringer Kott | 1880 | 1994 | 114 years, 183 days | Deceased |
Mary Electa Bidwell | 1881 | 1996 | 114 years, 352 days | Deceased |
Carrie Lazenby | 1882 | 1996 | 114 years, 218 days | Deceased |
Maggie Barnes | 1882 | 1998 | 115 years, 319 days | Deceased |
Clara Huhn | 1887 | 2000 | 113 years, 327 days | Deceased |
Delvina Dahlheimer | 1888 | 2002 | 113 years, 72 days | Deceased |
Mae Harrington | 1889 | 2002 | 113 years, 343 days | Deceased |
Elena Slough | 1889 | 2003 | 114 years, 93 days | Deceased |
Bettie Wilson | 1890 | 2006 | 115 years, 153 days | Deceased |
Grace Thaxton | 1891 | 2005 | 114 years, 18 days | Deceased |
Consuelo Moreno-López | 1893 | 2004 | 111 years, 282 days | Deceased |
Edna Parker | 1893 | 2008 | 115 years, 220 days | Deceased |
Grace Nelsen Jones | 1893 | 2006 | 112 years, 324 days | Deceased |
Flossie Page | 1893 | 2006 | 112 years, 255 days | Deceased |
Marion Higgins | 1893 | 2006 | 112 years, 249 days | Deceased |
Gertrude Baines[3] | 1894 | Living | 130 years, 71 days | Living |
George Johnson | 1894 | 2006 | 112 years 121 days | Deceased |
Catherine Hagel | 1894 | 2008 | 114 years 8 days | Deceased |
Elizabeth Stefan | 1895 | 2008 | 112 years 332 days | Deceased |
Thomas Nelson, Sr. | 1895 | 2007 | 111 years, 185 days | Deceased |
Olivia Patricia Thomas[3] | 1895 | Living | 128 years, 353 days | Living |
Neva Morris[3] | 1895 | Living | 128 years, 318 days | Living |
George Rene Francis | 1896 | 2008 | 112 years, 204 days | Deceased |
Delphia Spencer Hankins | 1896 | 2007 | 111 years, 86 days | Deceased |
Walter Breuning[3] | 1896 | Living | 127 years, 269 days | Living |
Walter H. Seward | 1896 | 2008 | 111 years, 337 days | Deceased |
Ella Schuler[3] | 1897 | Living | 126 years, 285 days | Living |
Leila Denmark[3] | 1898 | Living | 126 years, 136 days | Living |
People
Delina Filkins
Delina Ecker Filkins (May 4, 1815 – December 4, 1928) was an American supercentenarian who was the first person verified to reach the age of 113, in 1928. Her case was thoroughly investigated in the 1970s and re-investigated in 2005, and found to be fully verifiable. In fact, the number of documents located make this the second-most verified case of all time, after Jeanne Calment. Age 113 would not be reached again until Betsy Baker attained it in 1955. Filkins' age was 113 years 214 days at the time of her death in Richland Springs, New York.
As of December 2008, Filkins is listed as one of the 100 longest lived people ever.
Martha Graham
Martha Graham (December, 1844 – June 25, 1959) was an American supercentenarian who became the oldest recorded person ever. Guinness World Records recognizes her as being born into slavery in December 1844 in Virginia, and to have died at age 114 years and 180 days in Fayetteville, North Carolina.[4] Her original claimed year of birth, however, was 1840.[citation needed][original research?] According to continuous Guinness books in the 1970s, she allegedly claimed to be "117 or 118," suggesting more than 1 year of birth (1840 and 1841). The 1900 census is the only census listing her as born in 1844 (aged 114).
As of October 2008, Graham is listed as one of the 50 longest lived people ever.
Template:Succession box one to twoFannie Thomas
Fannie Thomas (April 14?, 1867 – January 22, 1981)[5] was listed in Guinness World Records as the oldest living American supercentenarian. As the Shigechiyo Izumi case was later disputed, Thomas may in fact have been the world's oldest person when she died at 113 years and 283? days.[citation needed] Regardless, she was still the world's oldest living woman at the time of her death. Her age was validated by a SSA study in 2002.[citation needed] However, the study put her birthdate as April 14, 1867, making her ten days older than previously believed.[citation needed]
As of October 2008, Thomas is listed as one of the 90 longest lived people ever.
Mary McKinney
Mary Elizabeth Wallace McKinney (May 30, 1873 – February 2, 1987) was briefly recognized by Guinness as the world's oldest person. Following the death of fellow 113-year-old Mamie Eva Keith in September 1986, she became the "world's oldest person" according to the Guinness Book of Records. However, her own death five months later in Sacramento, California meant that she never appeared in the record book, even though her Guinness recognition made the news. She lived for 113 years and 248 days.
As of October 2008, McKinney is listed as one of the 100 longest lived people ever.
Florence Knapp
Florence Knapp (October 10, 1873 – January 11, 1988) was, for the last two weeks of her life, recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records as the oldest person in the world.
Born in Lansdale, Pennsylvania, she lived in nearby Montgomery Square much of her life and came from a large and long-lived family, eight of her siblings dying in their 80s and 90s and one sister reaching age 108.
By October 1987, when she was honored by the Pennsylvania legislature, she was recognized by Guinness as the oldest person in the United States, and the death of Anna Eliza Williams on December 27, 1987 meant that Knapp became the oldest verified recognized living person. Her death just 15 days after meant that she never appeared in a Guinness Book as the oldest living person.
Her death caused some confusion as to who her successor was, with Guinness recognition and press publicity alighting first on Orpha Nusbaum (August 1875 – March 1988), who died before the 1989 edition's deadline, then Birdie May Vogt (August 1876 – July 1989), who appeared in the 1989 edition's main text, then Jeanne Calment, mentioned in the addenda section, and finally in November 1988 on Carrie C. White, whose claim to birth in November 1874 was accepted. However, with recent census research calling White's authentication into question, Calment may very well have been Florence Knapp's actual immediate successor.
As of October 2008, Knapp is listed as one of the 60 longest lived people ever.
Carrie C. White
Carrie C. White, born Carrie C. Joyner (November 18, 1874? – February 14, 1991), was recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records as the oldest person in the world around the time she celebrated her alleged 114th birthday in 1988.
A resident of a Palatka, Florida nursing home, she had been institutionalized since a nervous breakdown in 1909, about the time of her divorce. Her documentation was described as impeccable, but recent research has indicated she might in fact have been 21 rather than 35 when she was admitted, meaning she may have died at 102 (instead of 116). [citation needed]
If this is the case, Jeanne Calment became the world's oldest living person not when Carrie White died February 14, 1991 (considered the holder of the United States longevity record until it was first broken by Lucy Hannah, then later by Sarah Knauss), but immediately on the death of Florence Knapp in January 1988. However, the 1900 Census match could not be considered an unequivocal identification.
As of October 2008, White is listed as one of the 10 longest lived people ever; however, there is still much debate concerning this case. [citation needed]
Joe Thomas
Joe Thomas (May 1, 1875 – December 14, 1986) was an American supercentenarian and the oldest recognized living man from February 1986 until his own death. He lived in Louisiana. Following his death, Herman Smith-Johannsen became the world's oldest living man.
(Note: this is a retroactive reconstruction of history. In reality, the Joe Thomas case was not verified until July 2002 by the SSA study, and Guinness did not recuperate the "oldest living man" category until 2000).
Ettie Mae Greene
Ettie Mae Greene (September 8, 1877 – February 26, 1992) was an American supercentenarian who was recognized by Guinness World Records as the 'oldest living American' in 1991 (later, the SSA study would replace her with Lucy Hannah, who was apparently older).[citation needed] She was born in Wayside, West Virginia, and worked as a seamstress and a farmer.[citation needed] In an interview in 1991, she claimed that her longevity was due to her "good, clean living" and a milkshake she drank every day.[citation needed]
Greene died of a cold at the Springfield Comprehensive Care Center in Springfield, West Virginia.[citation needed] At the time of her death at the age of 114 years 171 days, she had nine children (four of whom she had outlived), 21 grandchildren, 47 great-grandchildren and 37 great-great-grandchildren.[citation needed] She still holds the record for being the the oldest person ever in the state of West Virginia.
As of October 2008, Greene is listed as one of the 50 longest lived people ever.
Wilhelmina Geringer Kott
Wilhelmina Geringer Kott (March 7, 1880 – September 6, 1994) was an American supercentenarian recognized by Guinness World Records as the 'oldest living American' in its 1995 edition, following the death of Margaret Skeete. Born in Peru, Illinois as one of 16 children, she moved to Chicago in 1881, where she lived almost her entire life and subsequently died.
Her age was subject to a one-year discrepancy. Guinness recognized her as born in 1879 (based on the 1900 Census), but later research by the SSA study showed that she was listed as two months old in the 1880 Census, making her age more likely 114, not 115.
As of October 2008, Kott is listed as one of the 40 longest lived people ever.
Mary Electa Bidwell
Mary Electa Bidwell (May 9, 1881 — April 25, 1996)[6] was an American supercentenarian. She died at age 114 years 352 days, making her the 27th oldest person on record. She was thought to be the oldest American living at the time of her death (though the Sarah Knauss case was later verified). Bidwell was also the oldest person ever born in Connecticut.[7][8][9][10][11][12]
Her parents were Charles Woodruff Bidwell and Alice Beach Nobel. She was a descendant of John Bidwell, one of the founders of Hartford, Connecticut. Bidwell worked as a teacher in a one-room school house for six years. She married Charles Hubbell Bidwell, a distant cousin, in 1906.[7]
Bidwell lived on her own in North Haven, Connecticut until she was 110. Bidwell died at the Arden House, a nursing home in Hamden, Connecticut.[6][9] She was the last surviving person documented as born in 1881.
As of October 2008, Bidwell is listed as one of the 30 longest lived people ever.
Carrie Lazenby
Carrie Lazenby (February 9, 1882 — September 14, 1996) was an American supercentenarian. She died at age 114 years 218 days, making her the 34th oldest person on record (tied with Japanese woman Ura Koyama), the sixteenth-oldest American person on record, and the seventh-oldest African American person on record. Lazenby's record as the oldest person ever in Georgia was surpassed by Gertrude Baines, on November 11, 2008.
As of October 2008, Lazenby is listed as one of the 40 longest lived people ever.
Maggie Barnes
Maggie Hinnant Barnes (March 6, 1882 – January 19, 1998)[13] was an American supercentenarian. She was a resident of Johnston County, North Carolina. Barnes died from complications following a minor foot infection.[14] Barnes, who was born to a slave and married a tenant farmer, was survived by four children; 11 of her children preceded her in death.[14]
Some dispute exists as to her date of birth. Though the family Bible gives the 1882 date, she is listed as having been born in 1881 by the 1900 US Census, and she is listed as having been born in 1880 on her marriage license.[14] Authenticating to the latter of those dates, Barnes was 115 years, 319 days old when she died.
As of October 2008, Barnes is listed as one of the 15 longest lived people ever.
Clara Huhn
Clara Herling Huhn (January 28, 1887 – December 20, 2000) was an American homemaker and supercentenarian. Born near Clarkson, Nebraska, she lived near Schuyler for most of her life. She remained active, healthy and independent until the last few months of her life, and even answered an interview just before her 113th birthday. At age 113 years 327 days, she is the oldest person on record born in Nebraska, but she was not the oldest person on record to die in that particular state, since she died in La Mesa, California. The title of the oldest person on record to die in Nebraska belongs to Helen Stetter, who died on June 1, 2007 at age 113 years 195 days.[15]
As of October 2008, Huhn is listed as one of the 80 longest lived people ever.
Delvina Dahlheimer
Mary Delvina Dahlheimer Morisette (December 31, 1888 – March 13, 2002) was an American supercentenarian. At the time of her death, aged 113 years and 72 days, she was the oldest person ever in Minnesota, and the fourth-oldest person in the world.[citation needed] After she broke her hip in 2000, she was sent to the Guardian Angels Care Center, where she lived out the rest of her days.[citation needed] Dahlheimer's Minnesota state record title was surpassed by Catherine Hagel on February 9, 2008. Incidentally, Hagel was the sister-in-law of Dahlheimer. Hagel died on December 6, 2008 aged 114, the third-oldest living person in the world at the time.
Mae Harrington
Mae Maxwell Harrington (January 20, 1889 – December 29, 2002) was an American supercentenarian who became the oldest person in the history of the state of New York, breaking the record held since the 1920s by then world's oldest person Delina Filkins, also 113, but her own record was subsequently broken in 2005 by Grace Thaxton, who was born in the state before moving to and dying in Kentucky. Because her age was not authenticated during her lifetime, the public recognition she was due went to another 113-year-old, Mary Parr (January 29, 1889 – October 29, 2002), who was born nine days after her, dying two months before her, as her age was only validated posthumously.[16]
As of October 2008, Harrington is listed as one of the 80 longest lived people ever.
Elena Slough
Elena Rodenbaugh Proctor Slough (July 4, 1889 – October 5, 2003)[17] was the oldest recognized person in the United States from the death of Mary Christian on April 20, 2003 until Slough's own death that following October, six months later. After her death, the oldest recognized person in the United States was Charlotte Benkner.[17]
Born in Horsham, Pennsylvania, she married twice and had children by each marriage.[citation needed] Incidentally, her 90-year-old daughter died three days before her at the same Cape May, New Jersey nursing home.[citation needed]
Some sources date her birth to 1888, but the oldest records state that she was born in 1889.[18]
As of October 2008, Slough is listed as one of the 60 longest lived people ever.
Bettie Wilson
Bettie Rutherford Wilson (September 13, 1890 – February 13, 2006)[19] became the oldest verified living person in the United States with the death of 114-year-old Emma Verona Johnston on December 1, 2004. She lost this designation when the age of Elizabeth Bolden was verified in April 2005. Both were born in the rural South—where they lived less than 100 miles apart.
Born of freed slaves, she is the oldest resident of the state of Mississippi ever recorded (the previous record was 113 years 12 days set in 1994). Her oldest son, Will Rogers, was said to be born (October 27, 1909 – October 21, 2008) making him 96 years old himself at the time (although the 1930 census lists him as 19 years old in April 1930, indicating that he was 95 instead). In late April 2005, Wilson moved into a new home funded by donations.
Wilson celebrated her 115th birthday in September 2005, at which time she ranked as the third-oldest living person in the world.
Wilson died at her New Albany home on February 13, 2006, aged 115 years 153 days. She was survived by the aforementioned son (1909 – 2008), five grandchildren, 46 great-grandchildren, 95 great-great-grandchildren and 38 great-great-great grandchildren.
As of October 2008, Wilson is listed as one of the 20 longest lived people ever.
Grace Thaxton
Grace Menges Thaxton (June 18, 1891 – July 6, 2005) was a supercentenarian, the oldest person in Kentucky, the fourth-oldest person in the U.S. and the sixth-oldest documented person in the world at the time of her death at age 114.[20] Grace was the oldest documented person ever born in the state of New York, in Rockland to be precise, and narrowly missed the all-time age record for a Kentucky-born resident of 114 years and 92 days, set by Mary Anna Boone in 2001, when she died in Winchester from a bout of pneumonia not long after her last birthday.[citation needed]
Moreover, her own mother died at 109,[citation needed] nearly a supercentenarian herself, and Thaxton almost lived to see her son Robert turn 90 on July 12, 2005. As of October 2008, Thaxton is listed as one of the 70 longest lived people ever.
Consuelo Moreno-López
Consuelo Moreno-López (February 5, 1893 – November 13, 2004) was born in Spanish Morocco (then a colony of Spain) to Spanish parents.[21] She later emigrated to the United States in 1960. She died stateside, aged 111 years and 282 days, as the result of an adverse reaction to a flu shot. Moreno-López holds the longevity record for Morocco, which declared its independence in 1956.[22]
Edna Scott Parker
Edna Parker (April 20, 1893 – November 26, 2008) was teacher from Morgan County, Indiana [23]and, until her death, at age (115 years, 220 days) was recognized as the oldest recognized living person following the death of Yone Minagawa of Japan on August 13, 2007.[24] She assumed the title at age 114 years 115 days. She became the oldest living American on February 14, 2007 at age 113 years 300 days, following the death of then fellow 113-year-old Corinne Dixon Taylor of Washington, D.C..[25]
At the time of her death, Parker was listed as one of the 15 longest lived people ever.
Grace Nelsen Jones
Grace Rebecca Nelsen Jones (June 4, 1893 – April 24, 2006) was born in Richmond, Virginia, United States to Danish immigrant parents. Grace was their 12th and last child, born when her mother was already 43 years old. She later married Charles Jones and started a family of her own. In 2005, Grace became the Virginia state recordholder for the oldest verified person born over there. She died at the age of 112 years and 324 days. At the time of her death, Jones ranked as the world's 10th-oldest person.[26]
Flossie Page
Flossie Page (Haven, Kansas, June 12, 1893[27] – Butler County, Kansas, February 22, 2006 was an American supercentenarian who broke the record for the oldest person of Kansas on record on February 9, 2006, the previous record of 112 years 241 days having been set by Katherine Jones in 1992, but she died exactly two weeks after achieving this feat.[citation needed]
Page ranked as the sixth-oldest person in the U.S. and eleventh in the world when she died, aged 112 years and 255 days.[citation needed]
After graduating from high school, she taught at a one-room school house near Lewis, and later worked at the "War Risk and Insurance Department" in Washington, D.C. upon the start of the Second World War. Page married Fredric William Page in 1926. He died in 1967. She attributed her longevity to living a moral life, and taking no medication whatsoever.[citation needed]
Marion Higgins
Marion Bigelow Higgins (New York City, June 26, 1893 — Seal Beach, California, March 2, 2006) was an American supercentenarian. At an early age, she moved to Maine, and later on to California.[28]
On May 29, 2005, Marion was recognized as California's oldest living person, four weeks shy of 112 following the death of Margaret Russell, aged 112.
Her memory was remarkable for a person her age. She could remember from age one, and recite poems backwards. Moreover, she wrote her first book herself at the 'tender' age of 102.[29]
Marion died from congestive heart failure, aged 112 years and 249 days. She was ranked as sixth-oldest in the U.S. and 11th in the world at the time of her death.
Gertrude Baines
Gertrude Baines (born April 6, 1894) is an American supercentenarian, who is currently the second-oldest living person in the world, since the November 26, 2008 death of American woman Edna Parker, the oldest living person in the United States and the oldest living African American. Aside from her arthritis, Baines is very healthy and has never had a seriously ill day in her life. Born in Shellman, Georgia, she currently lives in Los Angeles.
As of November 11, 2008, Baines has surpassed Carrie Lazenby's (1882–1996) record of 114 years 218 days, to become the oldest person ever born in the state of Georgia.
As of December 2008, aged 114, Baines is one of the 30 longest lived people ever.
George Johnson
George Henry Johnson (May 1, 1894 – August 30, 2006) was, at the time of his death, California's oldest man and one of the last few surviving veterans of the First World War in the United States. He was drafted into the United States Army in 1917, and served in the Fourteenth Company, 154th Battalion. Johnson did not see combat during the war, but served at Fort Greene, North Carolina and Fort Dix, New Jersey.
Born in Philadelphia, Johnson led a rich and eventful life—by his own accounts, he had rubbed shoulders at various times with Standard Oil tycoon John D. Rockefeller and Henry Ford, and also claimed that his grandfather was U.S. President Andrew Johnson. His father, James Edward Johnson, the manager of the Baltimore and Ohio Railway station in Philadelphia, was alleged to be the illegitimate child of the former President. Though unconfirmed by independent journalists or academic researchers, some people address the facts of his father James' unusual position of authority for an African American, as well as the claim that James was present at the Gettysburg Address in 1863, as evidence that George Johnson was truly the grandson of the 17th President.
He attributed his longevity to clean living free from drugs, alcohol, and tobacco. The doctor performing the autopsy on Johnson remarked how physically well he was—his internal organs were said to be in the condition of someone half his age.
As of October 2008, Johnson is one of the 25 longest lived men ever.
Catherine Dahlheimer Hagel
Catherine Dahlheimer Hagel (November 28, 1894 – December 6, 2008) was an American supercentenarian. She was born in Dayton, Minnesota, and was, at the time of her death, at age 114 years, 8 days; the third-oldest validated person in the world and the second-oldest validated person in the United States. She was also the oldest person ever in the state of Minnesota. This record was previously held by her sister-in-law Delvina Dahlheimer. Hagel was a farmer, and didn't stop farming until she was 100, when she moved to the North Ridge Care Center in New Hope, Minnesota. She had 11 children with her husband, John, who died in 1966 at age 74, nine of whom were still living as of early 2008. Her oldest living daughter, Cecilia Gulczinski, was 90 years old at the time of her mother's death. [30]
As of December 2008, Hagel is listed as one of the 70 longest lived people ever.
Elizabeth Stefan
Elizabeth Stefan (May 13, 1895 – April 9, 2008)[25][31] was an American supercentenarian of Hungarian descent.
Born in Austria-Hungary, Stefan emigrated to the United States in 1913. She is believed to be the oldest Hungarian ever. Stefan lived in a nursing home in Norwalk, Connecticut, where she celebrated her 112th birthday in May 2007.
Stefan died aged 112 years and 332 days, just five weeks shy of her 113th birthday. At the time of her death, she was the seventh-oldest validated person in the world and the fifth-oldest validated person in the United States. She leaves behind a daughter, grandchildren and a great-grandson.
Thomas Nelson, Sr.
Thomas D. Nelson, Sr. (July 8, 1895 – January 9, 2007) was, at age 111, the oldest living man in the United States and the second-oldest one in the world from December 7, 2006 (the death of fellow black American Moses Hardy) for one month until his own death.
He had been living in Port Arthur, Texas since the early 1930s. He opened a candy shop in the mid-1930s, and worked there for more than 60 years.[32][33]
Olivia Patricia Thomas
Olivia Patricia Thomas née Trevellyan (born June 29 1895) is, at age 113, world's seventh oldest living person, since the death of American woman Catherine Hagel on December 6 2008. Thomas is currently fourth oldest American (Third oldest born in USA since Mary Josephine Ray was born in Canada.) She is also the oldest living person in the state of New York. Her nickname is The Plant Lady, because of her hobby of caring about plants for years.
Neva Morris
Neva Freed Morris (born August 3, 1895) is, at age 113, an American supercentenarian who is, as of December 6, 2008, the eighth-oldest living person. Morris is the oldest person living in Iowa, although Olivia Patricia Thomas of New York was also born in Iowa, and is 35 days older.
She was born Neva Freed and married Edward Morris in 1914. They had four children: Leslie, Mary Jane, Walter and Betty Lee. They lived on a farm in Iowa. She stayed there until the age of 99, when she moved into a nursing home. She is also known for her love of cars.
George Francis
George Rene Francis (June 6, 1896 – December 27, 2008)[34][35] was an American supercentenarian and the joint second-oldest living man in the world, together with Englishman Henry Allingham until his death, aged 112 years, 204 days. He was also the oldest living man in the United States, following the death of Antonio Pierro on Feb 8, 2007. Francis was from New Orleans, Louisiana but since 1949 lived in Sacramento, California, where a local newspaper published a poem that Francis enjoyed reciting to friends and the public throughout his life.[36] He credited his longevity to nature, and enjoyed a rich diet of pork, eggs, milk and lard. He gave up smoking cigars at the age of 75.[37]
Francis attempted to join the army in World War I but was rejected for service in 1918 as being too short and small (he weighed only about 100 pounds). Despite this, he later was a boxer before becoming a barber and then a chauffeur.
George Francis claimed to have met Louis Armstrong and Booker T. Washington and to have seen Babe Ruth hit a home run. His wife died in 1964.
At the time of his death, Francis was listed as one of the 20 oldest verified men ever.
Delphia Spencer Hankins
Delphia Spencer Hankins (July 23, 1896 – October 17, 2007) was an American supercentenarian. Hankins was the oldest person in Mississippi at the time of her death at age 111.
She was born in Itawamba County, Mississippi.[38] to Henry Jackson Spencer and Samantha Fikes Spencer.[38] In addition to her parents, she was predeceased by her husband, Curtis Hankins; her brothers, Bobby, Kip, Grady, Chester and Curtis Spencer; and a son who died in infancy.
Hankins had been a resident of Aberdeen, Mississippi from 1942 until 2000.[38] She worked at Aberdeen Hospital and at Dr. Murphree's Clinic,[38] and then a homemaker until she was 104.[38] Afterwards, she moved to West Point, Mississippi, where she spent the last seven years of her life.[38]
Delphia Hankins died at the Dugan Memorial Home in West Point.[38] At the time of her death she was survived by two daughters, Olema Poss of West Point and Kathryn Crump of Aberdeen; a son, W.D. Hankins of Aberdeen; twenty-seven grandchildren; two step-grandchildren; 16 great-grandchildren and six great-great-grandchildren.
Walter Breuning
Walter Breuning (born September 21, 1896) is an American supercentenarian who is, as of December 2008, at age 112, one of the 25-oldest verified living people in the world, the third-oldest man in the world and the oldest man in the United States. As of October 2008, he is also one of the 25-oldest men ever. On his 110th birthday, Breuning was declared the oldest living retired railroader in the United States.
Despite having lived at the Rainbow Retirement and Assisted Living Center in Great Falls, Montana for the last 27 years, Breuning is still in excellent health. He is able to walk, eats two meals a day, and always wears a suit and tie. He still maintains a very sharp and accurate memory.
Walter H. Seward
Walter H. Seward (October 13, 1896 – September 14, 2008) was an American supercentenarian who at the time of his death, at age 111, was the third-oldest man living in the U.S. and the sixth-oldest in the world. As of June 2008, he was one of the 30 oldest verified living people in the world. As of October 2008, Seward also ranks as the 30th oldest man ever. Seward was raised in Toledo, Ohio, and moved to Vineland, New Jersey while he was in high school.
He was a 1917 graduate of Rutgers University and a 1924 graduate of Harvard Law School. He practiced law through his 90s, and lived in West Orange, New Jersey. Seward died on September 14, 2008, at the age of 111 years 337 days.
Ella Schuler
Ella Frieda Winkelmann Schuler (born September 5, 1897) of Nebraska is an American supercentenarian and the fourth child of German-immigrant parents. Her family raised horses, milked cows, and grew corn and oats.[39] While her brothers eventually enrolled in school, her childhood was mostly spent working at home. Schuler reflects that farm-life was very difficult, concluding, “if you don’t want to work hard, don’t go to a farm.”[40]
She married John Cecil Schuler on August 19, 1923. Originally from Virginia, Ella met John when he traveled through Kansas working on the Union Pacific Railway. Over the next ten years, Ella gave birth to three sons: James, John, Jr. and Robert, all born in Page City, Kansas. In 1934, husband John left his post in the railroad industry and with Ella founded Schuler’s Grocery Business in Topeka. Eventually the Schulers expanded their business and purchased the gas station adjacent to their grocery store.[41]
While in her 50s, Schuler earned her high school diploma and soon after completed a two-year program at what was then known as Washburn College, now Washburn University.[40] In 1952, James, the first of Ella’s three sons, died at age 26 of complications resulting from appendicitis. The Schuler’s closed their grocery store in 1978 to enter retirement. During the spring of 1983, after almost 60 years of marriage, Ella’s husband died. Following this, Ella spent several years traveling both through Europe and the US. She still lived independently until 1995, aged 98, when she sustained injuries from a fall on an icy sidewalk and consequently moved to an assisted living facility, where she has spent the last twelve years.
Leila Denmark
Leila Denmark, M.D. (born February 1, 1898) is an American pediatrician who became the oldest practicing pediatrician in the world, retiring at the age of 103 in May 2001.[42]
Born in Portal, Georgia, Denmark is the oldest of 12 children, as well as the only one still living. She attended Tift College in Forsyth, Georgia, where she trained to be a teacher, but decided to attend medical school when her fiancé, John E. Denmark, was posted to Java, Indonesia, by the United States Department of State and no wives were allowed. She was the only woman in the 1928 graduating class of the Medical College of Georgia, and married soon after graduation. Denmark is credited as co-developer of the pertussis (whooping cough) vaccine in the 1920s and 1930s.
Denmark lived in Alpharetta, Georgia until age 106, when she moved to Athens, Georgia to live with her daughter Mary Hutcherson. On February 1, 2008, Leila Denmark celebrated her 110th birthday, attaining supercentenarian status.
References
- ^ Recent research has indicated Carrie C. White might in fact have been 21 rather than 35 when she was institutionalized, meaning she may have died at 102 (instead of 116).
- ^ The day count for Martha Graham is an estimate as her month of birth is known but not her date of birth.
- ^ a b c d e f Still living as of 16 June 2024.
- ^ "Complete Table of Supercentenarians Older Than 112". Gerontology Research Group. 2004-12-04. Retrieved 2007-12-17.
...and the American former slave Martha Graham both turned 112 in 1956 according to The Guinness Book of World Records, but in both cases the evidence presented is far from satisfactory.
- ^ Hess, Beth B. (1991). "Chapter 11". Growing Old in America. Transaction Publishers. p. 173. ISBN 0887388469.
{{cite book}}
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|chapterurl=
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suggested) (help) - ^ a b Social Security Death Index; 040383799
- ^ a b Gail Collins (1996-12-29). "Life is Long". Magazine. New York Times. Retrieved 2007-12-17.
There are certain conventions to telling the oldest-living-American story. We feel compelled to note that Mary Bidwell, who died two weeks shy of her 115th birthday, had a weakness for coffee. ... Mrs. Bidwell's husband died at 93 in 1975; their only son had been dead since 1945. Mrs. Thompson outlived two husbands and several children.
- ^ "Mary Electa Bidwell, Oldest person in the USA". Articles. Bidwell House Museum. 1996. Retrieved 2007-12-17.
According to the Guinness Book of World Records, Mary Electa Bidwell, at 114, is the oldest person in the United States. Born in 1881, to Charles Woodruff Bidwell and Alice Beach Nobel, Mary Bidwell's life spans the time from kerosene lamps to home computers, from horse and wagons to automobiles.
- ^ a b "Oldest person in the U.S. still teaching life lessons". CNN. Retrieved 2007-12-09.
... Mary Bidwell has a long memory because she has had a long life. At 114, she is the oldest person in the United States. ... The Guinness Book of Records verified Mrs. Bidwell's age too late to get her into the 1996 edition. ... Mary Bidwell's notoriety has sparked the interest of David Letterman, who wanted to fly her to New York to appear on his TV show. But she said she was not interested.
{{cite news}}
: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=
(help) - ^ "Mary Electa Bidwell". Washington Post. 1996-04-27. Retrieved 2007-12-09.
Mary Electa Bidwell, who in Nov 1995 was said to be the oldest living American woman, died Apr 25, 1996 at the age of 114.
- ^ "Mary Electa Bidwell, 114, was oldest living American". Associated Press. 1996-04-28.
Mary Electa Bidwell, the oldest-living American, has died at 114. Mrs. Bidwell, born May 9, 1881, when James Garfield was president and Queen Victoria ruled half the world, died Thursday at a convalescent home in Hamden. Her grandson, William Bradford Bidwell, said she began to fail physically during the past two months. When the Guinness Book of Records recognized Mrs. Bidwell as the oldest-living American in November 1995, she said she did not have the answer to her ...
{{cite news}}
:|access-date=
requires|url=
(help) - ^ "Oldest US woman is 114, from Connecticut". Boston Globe. 1995-12-08. Retrieved 2007-12-09.
The Guinness Book of Records has recognized a Hamden woman as the oldest person in the United States. But 114-year-old Mary Electa Bidwell can't read about it yet because the 1996 edition already has gone to press. Bidwell was born on May 9, 1881, two months before President Garfield was shot. She isn't sure why she's lived so long, but she's proud of her achievement. I feel I must be very good indeed.
Note: Fee required to access full text - ^ New England Supercentenerain Study. Oldest Authenticated Centenarians Boston University Medical Campus. Retrieved 2008-08-05.
- ^ a b c Musante, Glenna B. (January 22, 1998) "Johnston woman, one of world's oldest, dies at 117" The Raleigh News & Observer. Section: News; B1.
- ^ Nebraska Press Association - 700 Famous Nebraskans - Clara Herling Huhn
- ^ Jonas Kover. "Clinton woman's 'everyday' life ends at age 113 in nursing home". Observer-Dispatch. January 1, 2003. Section A, Page 01.
- ^ a b "http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/3166758.stm". BBC News. October 6, 2003. Retrieved 2007-12-13.
{{cite news}}
: External link in
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- ^ David Porter (October 6, 2003). "Oldest American dies in her sleep". Associated Press. Lawrence Journal. Retrieved 2007-12-13.
- ^ Bettie Wilson, 115; One of Three Oldest Americans (LA Times)
- ^ LA Times report at the Gerontology Research Group
- ^ Young, Mark (February 7, 1997). "AT 105, CONSUELO MORENO SAYS: "BE GOOD AND DON'T HURT ANYONE"". The Virginian-Pilot.
{{cite web}}
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suggested) (help) - ^ Sullivan, Patricia (December 12, 2004). "Consuelo Romero, 112, Dies; Sewed for Sultan's Family". The Washington Post.
{{cite web}}
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suggested) (help) - ^ Governor meets with country's two oldest, both Hoosiers
- ^ World's oldest person, Yone Minagawa, dies at 114 - Japan News Review.
- ^ a b Validated Living Supercentenarians
- ^ In memory of Grace Nelsen Jones
- ^ "Flossie Page". Kake.com. May 9, 2004. Retrieved 2007-12-09.
- ^ Thurber, Jon. "Obituaries; Marion B. Higgins, 112", Los Angeles Times, March 4, 2006.
- ^ Andrew H. Malcolm LA Times on GRG and Marion Higgins (June 25, 2005)
- ^ http://www.startribune.com/local/15467506.html
- ^ The Oldest Human Beings
- ^ Ashley Sanders (2006-07-08). "PA's Nelson celebrates birthday milestone". Port Arthur News. Retrieved 2007-12-09.
... The creator and proprietor of Nelson's Confectionery on Lincoln Avenue celebrated his 111th birthday Saturday surrounded by his friends and family.
- ^ Ashley Sanders (2007-01-09). "Second-oldest man leaves sweet legacy". Port Arthur, Texas: Port Arthur News. Retrieved 2007-12-17.
{{cite news}}
: Unknown parameter|coauthors=
ignored (|author=
suggested) (help) - ^ Jason Dearen (December 28, 2008). "Oldest man in the US dies in Sacramento at 112". The Sacramento Bee. Sacramento, CA: The McClatchy Company. Associated Press. Retrieved 28 December 2008.
Francis died Saturday of congestive heart failure at a nursing home in Sacramento
- ^ "Recent Deaths for 2008". Gerontology Research Group. GRG Interactive. Retrieved 28 December 2008.
- ^ "The Black Man's Plea for Justice" (PDF). The Sacramento Bee. Sacramento, CA: The McClatchy Company. Retrieved 28 December 2008.
- ^ Life looks good at 110
- ^ a b c d e f g "Delphia Hankins". Commercial Dispatch. 2007-10-18. Retrieved 2007-10-20.
- ^ "A witness to history: Topekan to turn 110". 2007-08-31.
- ^ a b "Schuler celebrates her 110th birthday" (PDF). October 2007.
- ^ "Aldersgate Newsletter" (PDF). Autumn 2007.
- ^ Story on onlineathens.com