Ann Nixon Cooper
Encyclopedia
Ann Louise Nixon Cooper (January 9, 1902 – December 21, 2009) was a centenarian
mentioned in United States President-elect Barack Obama
's November 2008 election speech as a representative of the change in status African Americans had undergone during the past century and more in America. Before that, she was a noted member of the Atlanta African-American community and an activist for civil rights
.
, on January 9, 1902, and raised in Nashville
. She moved to Atlanta, Georgia
, in her early twenties with her husband, Albert Berry Cooper, a dentist, and they had four children together. During that time, she served more than fifty years in public work on the board of Gate City Nursery Association and also helped found the Girls Club for African American Youth. Because there were no integrated Boy Scout
troops in 1930's Atlanta, she wrote to the Boy Scouts in New York for help in starting Troop 95, Atlanta's first Boy Scout troop for African Americans.
When her husband died, Martin Luther King, Jr.
sent Cooper a telegram; she also met with Coretta Scott King
and saved photographs of the occasion. Cooper first registered to vote on September 1, 1941. Though she was friends with elite black Atlantans like W. E. B. Du Bois, John Hope Franklin
and Benjamin Mays
, she didn't exercise her right to vote for years, because of her status as a black woman in a segregated
and sexist society.
During the 1970s, she served as a tutor to non-readers at Ebenezer Baptist Church. She also served on the Friends of the Library Board, serving at one time as vice president of the board. In 1980 she received a Community Service Award from Channel 11
for being one of the organizers of the black Cub Scouts and serving as the first den mother for four years.
She was also awarded the Annie L. McPheeters Medallion for community service from the Auburn Avenue Research Library on African American Culture and History in 2002.
, 113-year-old Beatrice Farve
, 112-year-olds Maggie Renfro
and George Francis, 110-year-olds Virginia Call and Onie Ponder
, and 109-year-olds Nettie Whittington and Amanda Jones (all voted for Obama); and 112-year-olds Eunice Sanborn, Besse Cooper
, and Walter Breuning
(all indicated they likely voted for McCain) and 109-year-old Gertrude Noone
(who voted for McCain).
Ann Nixon Cooper died on December 21, 2009, three weeks before what would have been her 108th birthday.
Census research suggests she may have been a year younger than claimed; the 1910 census lists her as 7 years old in April 1910. Given a January birthdate, this suggests birth in 1903.
Centenarian
A centenarian is a person who is or lives beyond the age of 100 years. Because current average life expectancies across the world are less than 100, the term is invariably associated with longevity. Much rarer, a supercentenarian is a person who has lived to the age of 110 or more, something only...
mentioned in United States President-elect Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
's November 2008 election speech as a representative of the change in status African Americans had undergone during the past century and more in America. Before that, she was a noted member of the Atlanta African-American community and an activist for civil rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
.
Biography
Cooper was born in Shelbyville, TennesseeShelbyville, Tennessee
Shelbyville is a city in Bedford County, Tennessee, United States. It had a local population of 16,105 residents at the 2000 census. Shelbyville, the county seat of Bedford County, was laid out in 1810 and incorporated in 1819...
, on January 9, 1902, and raised in Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
. She moved to Atlanta, Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
, in her early twenties with her husband, Albert Berry Cooper, a dentist, and they had four children together. During that time, she served more than fifty years in public work on the board of Gate City Nursery Association and also helped found the Girls Club for African American Youth. Because there were no integrated Boy Scout
Boy Scout
A Scout is a boy or a girl, usually 11 to 18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement. Because of the large age and development span, many Scouting associations have split this age group into a junior and a senior section...
troops in 1930's Atlanta, she wrote to the Boy Scouts in New York for help in starting Troop 95, Atlanta's first Boy Scout troop for African Americans.
When her husband died, Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King, Jr. was an American clergyman, activist, and prominent leader in the African-American Civil Rights Movement. He is best known for being an iconic figure in the advancement of civil rights in the United States and around the world, using nonviolent methods following the...
sent Cooper a telegram; she also met with Coretta Scott King
Coretta Scott King
Coretta Scott King was an American author, activist, and civil rights leader. The widow of Martin Luther King, Jr., Coretta Scott King helped lead the African-American Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s.Mrs...
and saved photographs of the occasion. Cooper first registered to vote on September 1, 1941. Though she was friends with elite black Atlantans like W. E. B. Du Bois, John Hope Franklin
John Hope Franklin
John Hope Franklin was a United States historian and past president of Phi Beta Kappa, the Organization of American Historians, the American Historical Association, and the Southern Historical Association. Franklin is best known for his work From Slavery to Freedom, first published in 1947, and...
and Benjamin Mays
Benjamin Mays
Benjamin Elijah Mays was an American minister, educator, scholar, social activist and the president of Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia from 1940 to 1967. Mays was also a significant mentor to civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr...
, she didn't exercise her right to vote for years, because of her status as a black woman in a segregated
Racial segregation in the United States
Racial segregation in the United States, as a general term, included the racial segregation or hypersegregation of facilities, services, and opportunities such as housing, medical care, education, employment, and transportation along racial lines...
and sexist society.
During the 1970s, she served as a tutor to non-readers at Ebenezer Baptist Church. She also served on the Friends of the Library Board, serving at one time as vice president of the board. In 1980 she received a Community Service Award from Channel 11
WXIA-TV
WXIA-TV, virtual channel 11.1 , is the NBC-affiliated television station in Atlanta, Georgia. Popularly known by its 11 Alive moniker, WXIA is owned by the Gannett Company in a duopoly with MyNetworkTV affiliate WATL...
for being one of the organizers of the black Cub Scouts and serving as the first den mother for four years.
She was also awarded the Annie L. McPheeters Medallion for community service from the Auburn Avenue Research Library on African American Culture and History in 2002.
Age issue
When featured in Obama's 2008 speech, Ms Cooper was 106 years old. Some news outlets erroneously reported her as "oldest voter" even though there were several older voters, including then-114-year-old Gertrude BainesGertrude Baines
Gertrude Baines was an American supercentenarian, who became the oldest recognized living person according to Guinness World Records on January 2, 2009, until her own death on September 11, 2009, at age 115 years 158 days...
, 113-year-old Beatrice Farve
Beatrice Farve
Beatrice Farve was an American supercentenarian who was, at age 113, the world's second-oldest verified person. She was also the second-oldest person in the United States, and the second-oldest African American, all behind California resident Gertrude Baines...
, 112-year-olds Maggie Renfro
Maggie Renfro
Maggie Mae Renfro was an American supercentenarian who was, at 114, the third-oldest living person in the United States and the oldest person in Louisiana until her death on January 22, 2010...
and George Francis, 110-year-olds Virginia Call and Onie Ponder
Onie Ponder
Onezima Cecelia "Onie" Ponder was an American supercentenarian. At the age of 112 years, 119 days, she was the 21st oldest person in the world at her death on December 31, 2010 and the oldest living person in the U.S state of Florida.- Family :Onezima Cecelia "Onie" Ponder was born in Ocala,...
, and 109-year-olds Nettie Whittington and Amanda Jones (all voted for Obama); and 112-year-olds Eunice Sanborn, Besse Cooper
Besse Cooper
Besse Berry Cooper is an American supercentenarian. After the death of the Brazilian supercentenarian Maria Gomes Valentim on June 21, 2011, Cooper became the world's oldest living person...
, and Walter Breuning
Walter Breuning
Walter Breuning 1896 2011) was an American supercentenarian. He was the last known surviving man who was born in 1896. Breuning is the oldest undisputed American-born man on record. He was the last verified American man born in the 19th Century. At the time of his death, Breuning was the third...
(all indicated they likely voted for McCain) and 109-year-old Gertrude Noone
Gertrude Noone
Gertrude Evelyn Noone was an American supercentenarian and also the oldest American military veteran until she died in September 2009...
(who voted for McCain).
Ann Nixon Cooper died on December 21, 2009, three weeks before what would have been her 108th birthday.
Census research suggests she may have been a year younger than claimed; the 1910 census lists her as 7 years old in April 1910. Given a January birthdate, this suggests birth in 1903.