Gerontology Research Group
Table C - World's Oldest Person (WOP) Titleholders Since 1955
Revision #10: As of August 29, 2017  
Delina Filkins (May 4, 1815-Dec. 4, 1928) was the first validated person to reach age 113. Her record was not surpassed until the 1980s.
bold=new age record      
# Birthplace Name Born Died Age Race Sex Deathplace When Oldest Length of Reign Reign Length Age at Accession Case added to GRG Tables
Years Days Years Range Age Range Years Days (In years) Years Days (as world's oldest person; only for retroactive case additions)
1 England (UK) Betsy Baker Aug. 20, 1842 Oct. 24, 1955 113 65 W F U.S. (NE) ?-1955 ?-113 N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A.
2 England (UK) Jennie Howell Feb. 11, 1845 Dec. 16, 1956 111 309 W F U.S. (CA) 1955-1956 110-111 1 53      1.14 110 255 Aug. 29, 2017
3 Denmark Anne Marie Carstenson Jan. 24, 1849 Mar. 30, 1958 109 65 W F U.S. (NE) 1956-1958 107-109 1 104      1.28 107 327 N.A. (less than 110)
4 U.S. (IN) Nancy Ryan Sept. 5, 1849 Oct. 17, 1958 109 42 W F U.S. (IN) 1958 108-109 0 201      0.55 108 206 N.A. (less than 110)
5 Netherlands Christina Backs-Karnebeek Oct.  2, 1849 Oct.  7, 1959 110 5 W F Netherlands 1958-1959 109-110 0 355      0.97 109 15 original 1999 list
6 Norway Marie Olsen May  1, 1850 Nov. 24, 1959 109 207 W F Norway 1959 109 0 48      0.13 109 159 N.A. (less than 110)
7 U.S. (MI) Mary Kelly June  7, 1851 Dec. 30, 1964 113 206 W F U.S. (CA) 1959-1964 108-113 5 36      5.10 108 170 Feb.  7, 2011
8 England (UK) Elizabeth Kensley May 12, 1855 Mar.  6, 1965 109 298 W F England (UK) 1964-1965 109 0 66      0.18 109 232 Apr. 27, 2007
9 U.S. (TX) William Fullingim July  7, 1855[1] Aug.  6, 1965 110 30 W M U.S. (OK) 1965 109-110 0 153      0.42 109 242 Sept. 16, 2012
10 England (UK) Hannah Smith Jan.  7, 1856 Jan. 10, 1966 110 3 W F England (UK) 1965-1966 109-110 0 157      0.43 109 211 July 20, 2006
11 England (UK) John Turner June 15, 1856 Mar. 21, 1968 111 280 W M England (UK) 1966-1968 109-111 2 70      2.19 109 209 N.A. (less than 110)
12 South Africa Johanna Booyson Jan. 17, 1857 June  16, 1968 111 151 W F South Africa 1968 111 0 87      0.24 111 64 original 1999 list
13 Czechoslovakia Marie Bernatkova Oct. 22, 1857 May  4, 1969 111 194 W F Czechoslovakia 1968-1969 110-111 0 322      0.88 110 238 original 1999 list
14 England (UK) Ada Roe Feb.  6, 1858 Jan. 11, 1970 111 339 W F England (UK) 1969-1970 111 0 252      0.69 111 87 original 1999 list
15 Spain Josefa Salas Mateo July 14, 1860 Feb. 27, 1973 112 228 W F Spain 1970-1973 109-112 3 47      3.13 109 181 N.A. (less than 110)
16 England (UK) Alice Stevenson July 10, 1861 Aug. 18, 1973 112 39 W F England (UK) 1973 111-112 0 172      0.47 111 232 original 1999 list
17 N. Ireland (UK) Elizabeth Watkins Mar. 10, 1863 Oct. 31, 1973 110 235 W F N. Ireland (UK) 1973 110 0 74      0.20 110 161 original 1999 list
18 Japan Mito Umeta Mar. 27, 1863 May 31, 1975 112 65 O F Japan 1973-1975 110-112 1 212      1.58 110 218 original 1999 list
19 Japan Niwa Kawamoto Aug.  5, 1863 Nov. 16, 1976 113 103 O F Japan 1975-1976 111-113 1 169      1.46 111 299 original 1999 list
20 U.S. (MO) Sophia De Muth [2] June 30, 1866 Dec.  2, 1977 111 155 W F U.S. (MO) 1976-1977 110-111 1 16      1.04 110 139 original 1999 list
21 France Marie-Virginie Duhem Aug.  2, 1866 Apr. 25, 1978 111 266 W F France 1977-1978 111 0 144      0.39 111 122 original 1999 list
22 U.S. (IL) Fannie Thomas Apr. 14, 1867 Jan. 22, 1981 113 283 W F U.S. (CA) 1978-1981 111-113 2 272      2.75 111 11 original 1999 list
23 France Augustine Teissier Jan.  2, 1869 Mar.  8, 1981 112 65 W F France 1981 112 0 45      0.12 112 20 original 1999 list
24 U.S. (NH) Nellie Spencer Aug.  24, 1869 Nov. 13, 1982 113 81 W F U.S. (NJ) 1981-1982 112-113 1 250      1.68 111 196 July 12, 2002
25 U.S. (MO) Emma Wilson May 12, 1870 Oct. 13, 1983 113 154 W F U.S. (MO) 1982-1983 112-113 0 334      0.92 112 185 July 12, 2002
26 U.S. (VA) Mathew Beard[3] July  9, 1870 Feb. 16, 1985 114 222 B M U.S. (FL) 1983-1985 113-114 1 126      1.35 113 96 July  1, 2003
27 Germany (now Poland) [4] Augusta Holtz Aug.  3, 1871 Oct. 21, 1986 115 79 W F U.S. (MO) 1985-1986 114-115 1 247      1.68 113 197 Sept. 17, 2012
28 U.S. (CA) Mary McKinney May 30, 1873 Feb.  2, 1987 113 248 W F U.S. (CA) 1986-1987 113 0 104      0.28 113 144 original 1999 list
29 England (UK) Anna Eliza Williams June  2, 1873 Dec. 27, 1987 114 208 W F Wales (UK) 1987 113-114 0 328      0.90 113 245 original 1999 list
30 U.S. (PA) Florence Knapp Oct. 10, 1873 Jan. 11, 1988 114 93 W F U.S. (PA) 1987-1988 114 0 15      0.04 114 78 original 1999 list
31 France Jeanne Calment [5] Feb. 21, 1875 Aug.  4, 1997 122 164 W F France 1988-1997 112-122 9 205      9.56 112 324 original 1999 list
32 Canada (Que) Marie-Louise Meilleur Aug. 29, 1880 Apr. 16, 1998 117 230 W F Canada (ONT) 1997-1998 116-117 0 255      0.70 116 340 original 1999 list
33 U.S. (PA) Sarah Knauss Sept. 24, 1880 Dec. 30, 1999 119 97 W F U.S. (PA) 1998-1999 117-119 1 258      1.71 117 204 original 1999 list
34 England (UK) Eva Morris Nov.  8, 1885 Nov.  2, 2000 114 360 W F England (UK) 1999-2000 114 0 308      0.84 114 52 Mar.  3, 2000
35 France Marie Bremont Apr. 25, 1886 June  6, 2001 115 42 W F France 2000-2001 114-115 0 216      0.59 114 191 original 1999 list
36 U.S. (MI) Maud Farris-Luse Jan. 21, 1887 Mar. 18, 2002 115 56 W F U.S. (MI) 2001-2002 114-115 0 285      0.78 114 136 May 13, 2001
37 England (UK) Grace Clawson [6] Nov. 15, 1887 May 28, 2002 114 194 W F U.S. (FL) 2002 114 0 71      0.19 114 123 June 13, 2002
38 Cape Verde (Portugal)[7] Adelina Domingues Feb. 19, 1888 Aug. 21, 2002 114 183 W F U.S. (CA) 2002 114 0 85      0.23 114 98 N.A.
39 U.S. (NY) Mae Harrington Jan. 20, 1889 Dec. 29, 2002 113 343 W F U.S. (NY) 2002 113 0 130      0.36 113 213 Mar. 31, 2003
40 Japan Yukichi Chuganji Mar. 23, 1889 Sept. 28, 2003 114 189 O M Japan 2002-2003 113-114 0 273      0.75 113 281 N.A.
41 Japan Mitoyo Kawate May 15, 1889 Nov. 13, 2003 114 182 O F Japan 2003 114 0 46      0.13 114 136 2000
42 Puerto Rico Ramona Trinidad Iglesias-Jordan[8] Aug. 31, 1889 May 29, 2004 114 272 W F Puerto Rico 2003-2004 114 0 198      0.54 114 74 Mar. 20, 2004 8.
43 Ecuador Maria Esther de Capovilla[9] Sept. 14, 1889 Aug. 27, 2006 116 347 W F Ecuador 2004-2006 114-116 2 90      2.25 114 258 Dec.  9, 2005 9.
44 U.S. (TN) Elizabeth Bolden Aug. 15, 1890 Dec. 11, 2006 116 118 B F U.S. (TN) 2006 116 0 106      0.29 116 12 Apr. 22, 2005
45 Puerto Rico Emiliano Mercado Del Toro Aug. 21, 1891 Jan. 24, 2007 115 156 H M Puerto Rico 2006-2007 115 0 44      0.12 115 112 Dec.  7, 2004
46 U.S. (NC) Emma Tillman Nov. 22, 1892 Jan. 28, 2007 114 67 B F U.S. (CT) 2007 114 0 4      0.01 114 63 Dec. 31, 2005
47 Japan Yone Minagawa Jan.  4, 1893 Aug. 13, 2007 114 221 O F Japan 2007 114 0 197      0.54 114 24 Sept. 15, 2004
48 U.S. (IN) Edna Parker Apr. 20, 1893 Nov. 26, 2008 115 220 W F U.S. (IN) 2007-2008 114-115 1 105      1.29 114 115 Apr.  1, 2005
49 Portugal Maria de Jesus Sept. 10, 1893 Jan.  2, 2009 115 114 W F Portugal 2008-2009 115 0 37      0.10 115 77 Sept. 11, 2004
50 U.S. (GA) Gertrude Baines Apr.  6, 1894 Sept. 11, 2009 115 158 B F U.S. (CA) 2009 114-115 0 252      0.69 114 271 Sept. 10, 2006
51 Japan Kama Chinen May 10, 1895 May  2, 2010 114 357 O F Japan 2009-2010 114 0 233      0.64 114 124 Sept. 20, 2008
52 France Eugenie Blanchard Feb. 16, 1896 Nov.  4, 2010 114 261 W F France (St. Barts) 2010 114 0 186      0.51 114 75 Aug.  9, 2007
53 Brazil Maria Gomes Valentim [10] July  9, 1896 June 21, 2011 114 347 W F Brazil 2010-2011 114 0 229      0.63 114 118 May 18, 2011
54 U.S. (TN) Besse Cooper Aug. 26, 1896 Dec.  4, 2012 116 100 W F U.S. (GA) 2011-2012 114-116 1 166      1.45 114 299 Nov.  8, 2006
55 Italy Dina Manfredini Apr.  4, 1897 Dec.  17, 2012 115 257 W F U.S. (IA) 2012 115 0 13      0.04 115 244 Oct. 23, 2007
56 Japan Jiroemon Kimura Apr. 19, 1897 June 12, 2013 116 54 O M Japan 2012-2013 115-116 0 177      0.48 115 242 Oct. 16, 2007
57 Japan Misao Okawa Mar.  5, 1898 Apr.  1, 2015 117 27 EA F Japan 2013-2015 115-117 1 293      1.80 115 99 Sept. 14, 2011        
58 U.S. (AR) Gertrude Weaver July  4, 1898 Apr.  6, 2015 116 276 M[11] F U.S. (AR) 2015 116 0 5      0.01 116 271 July  4, 2014        
59 U.S. (GA) Jeralean Talley May 23, 1899 June 17, 2015 116 25 B F U.S. (MI) 2015 115-116 0 72      0.20 115 318 Apr.  4, 2012        
60 U.S. (AL) Susannah Mushatt Jones July  6, 1899 May 12, 2016 116 311 B F U.S. (NY) 2015-2016 115-116 0 330      0.90 115 346 Aug. 19, 2010
61 Italy Emma Morano Nov. 29, 1899 Apr. 15, 2017 117 137 W F Italy 2016-2017 116-117 0 338      0.92 116 165 Feb. 4, 2010
62 Jamaica (BWI) Violet Brown Mar. 10, 1900   117*   B F Jamaica (BWI) 2017- 117- 0* 136*    0.37*    117 36 July 26, 2014
  *still living August 29, 2017    
Average Reign Length:          1.02 [12]
Race Categories
W=White
B=Black
EA=East Asian
M=Multiracial
H=Hispanic
For historical versions of Table C, please see below:
#1 (Feb. 17, 2007):
https://grg.org/Archives/C1.htm
#2 (Sept. 11, 2007):
https://grg.org/Archives/C2.htm
#3 (June 2, 2009):
https://grg.org/Archives/C3.htm
#4 (June 18, 2011):
https://grg.org/Archives/C4.htm
#5 (Sept. 17, 2012):
https://grg.org/Archives/C5.htm
#6 (Nov. 15, 2013):
https://grg.org/Archives/C6.htm
#7 (Apr. 13, 2015):
https://grg.org/Archives/C7.htm
#8 (Jun. 29, 2015):
https://grg.org/Archives/C8.htm
#9 (May 13, 2016):
https://grg.org/Archives/C9.htm
[1]
Chris Law:
William Fullingim was possibly born in 1854, according to the 1860 and 1900 censuses. He claimed birth in 1855, which was backed by the 1870 census and the SSDI records.
[2]
Chris Law:
Support for the Shigechiyo Izumi claim from Japan (June 29, 1865?-February 21, 1986) was withdrawn by Guinness World Records, effective Sept. 14, 2010.
[3]
Chris Law:
The Mathew Beard case was accepted by the SSA study as age 114, based on an early census match to SS-5 records. The circumstantial census match was not unequivocal, thus he is not on the "skeptics list." Mr. Beard claimed to be 116.
[4]
Chris Law:
The location of Augusta Holtz's birthplace in 1871 was in Germany, in the province of Posen. It was transferred to Poland after the end of WWI.
[5]
Chris Law:
Guinness World Records support for the Carrie White claim (Nov 18 1874?-Feb 14 1991), initially accepted in 1989, withdrawn in 2012, effective Sept 13.
[6]
Chris Law:
Guinness World Records support for the Kamato Hongo claim (Sept 16 1887?-Oct 31 2003), initially accepted in 2002, withdrawn in 2012, effective Sept 13.
[7]
Chris Law:
Cape Verde in 1888 was a Portuguese colony; independence was achieved in 1975.
[8]
Chris Law:
Documents for Ramona Trinidad Iglesias-Jordan were not submitted and accepted until Mar. 20, 2004. Charlotte Benkner (born Nov 16 1889 in Germany; lived in the US) held the title in the interim. Benkner died May 15, 2004.
[9]
Chris Law:
Documents for Maria Capovilla not submitted until Aug 27, 2005; her case was officially accepted by GWR on Dec. 9, 2005. Interim titleholders were Hendrikje Van Andel-Schipper of the Netherlands (June 29 1890-Aug 30 2005) and Elizabeth Bolden of the United States (Aug 15 1890-Dec 11 2006). Bolden would re-gain her title in late 2006.
[10]
Chris Law:
Documents for Maria Gomes Valentim not submitted until May 9, 2011, and her case was officially accepted by GWR on May 18, 2011. Interim titleholders were Eunice Sanborn of the U.S. (July 20 1896-Jan 31 2011) and Besse Cooper of the US (born Aug 26 1896). Besse Cooper would regain the title a month later.
[11]
Chris Law:
Gertrude Weaver was "culturally African American". Her family stated that her recent ancestry included white and Native American as well.
[12]
Chris Law:
Betsy Baker is not included in the calculation of average length of title reign as the length of her reign is not stated in Table C.