Elizabeth Bolden
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| Elizabeth Bolden | |
 John Louis "Jack" Bolden, age 74, visits his grandmother, Elizabeth Bolden, age 114 |
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| Born | August 15, 1890 Somerville, Tennessee, United States |
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| Died | December 11, 2006, aged 116 |
Elizabeth "Lizzie" Jones Bolden (August 15, 1890 - December 11, 2006) was an African American woman who, at the time of her death at age 116 years and 118 days, was recognized by Guinness World Records as the world's oldest living person. She was the last remaining documented person born in 1890.
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[edit] Biography
Elizabeth Jones was born in 1890 in Somerville, Tennessee, the daughter of freed slaves.
Lizzie married Lewis Bolden circa 1908, and their first child, a son, Ezell, was born on September 21, 1909. She had seven children in total, only two of whom were still alive as of 2006: Queen Esther Rhodes, 89, and Mamie Brittmon, 86. At the time of her 116th birthday in August 2006, Lizzie had 40 grandchildren, 75 great-grandchildren, 150 2nd-great-grandchildren, 220 3rd-great grandchildren and 75 4th-great grandchildren. [1]
In her final years she resided in a Memphis, Tennessee nursing home and was described by her family as unable to communicate, and they thus requested that media attention (such as interviews and visits) be limited. During her reign as world's oldest person titleholder, Bolden was rarely seen in public.
She was photographed for two different books in early 2005, and was featured in Jet magazine in May 2005 and the Memphis Commercial Appeal in June 2005. For her 116th birthday, new photographs were released for the first time in almost a year, and her family said that she was looking forward to her big day [2].
[edit] Age records
Elizabeth Bolden was verified in April 2005 as being the oldest documented resident of the United States since the death of Emma Verona Johnston the previous December. She displaced Bettie Wilson, who had previously been the oldest known American.
Lizzie Bolden regained the oldest living person title following the August 27, 2006 death of María Capovilla [3]. This was officially confirmed on September 17, 2006 by Guinness World Records. She had previously held the title from the August 30, 2005 death of Hendrikje van Andel. However, on December 9, 2005, María Capovilla was announced as authenticated older. Bolden became only the second person to hold the title for two terms, the first one being worldrecord holder Jeanne Calment.
In July 2006, Bolden entered the list of the all time top ten oldest verified people. At the time of her death she was the 8th oldest person ever documented.
In the 1900 U.S. Census, she is recorded as being nine years old and born in August 1890, and in the 1910 U.S. Census she is recorded as 19 years old, already married with a child. With the destruction of the Fayette County, Tennessee records in a 1925 fire, the family had guessed that she was born in 1891, but investigation proved she was a year older.
When Elizabeth Bolden died, the Los Angeles based Gerontology Research Group and Guinness World Records named the successor of the title of the world's oldest living person as Emiliano Mercado del Toro of Puerto Rico, who held the title for a little over a month before dying at 115.
[edit] Trivia
- Elizabeth was born in the year that Idaho and Wyoming became the 43rd and 44th U.S. states respectively, the year that Dwight D. Eisenhower was born and Vincent Van Gogh and Sitting Bull died.
- Elizabeth was already married with a child in 1910, the year that Mark Twain died and Halley's Comet came by for the last time prior to 1986, when she turned 96.
- Elizabeth Bolden is not to be confused with acquitted murder suspect Lizzie Borden. Bolden was almost 2 years old when the axe murders occurred.
- Elizabeth Bolden was featured in a skit on the Late Show with David Letterman, which mentioned her death, and then congratulated Regis Philbin as the new oldest living person. [4]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- Lizzie Bolden featured on David Letterman
- CBS News - Memphis Woman Turns 116
- The Associated Press - Memphis woman listed as world's oldest dies at 116
- CNN - Oldest woman dies at age 116
- Sun-Sentinel - Memphis woman listed as world's oldest dies at age 116
- Blackamericaweb - Elizabeth Bolden, America’s oldest woman and daughter of freed slaves, dies at 116
| Preceded by María Capovilla |
Oldest Recognized Person in the World August 27, 2006 – December 11, 2006 |
Succeeded by Emiliano Mercado del Toro |
| Oldest Recognized Woman in the World August 27, 2006 – December 11, 2006 |
Succeeded by Julie Winnefred Bertrand |
