Lucy Hannah
Encyclopedia
Lucy Hannah née Terrell was an American supercentenarian
. Hannah is the third-oldest person ever
and the oldest black person ever, as well as the oldest living American at the time of her death. Hannah is also the oldest person never to have been the oldest living person, since she lived at the same time as Jeanne Calment
, the oldest person ever to live.
, Alabama and died in Detroit, where she had moved in the Great Migration
to escape the racial tensions of the Deep South
.
She married John Hannah in 1901 and had eight children, only two of whom were living when Lucy died. Two of her sisters reached 100 and her mother reached 99. Lucy's parents survived slavery and were whipped every day until their freedom. They had many scars both physical and mental. They brought their eight children up to be thankful for their freedom every day. At Lucy's death, her family stated she was 118 at death which is supported by her SSDI
listing, but the case escaped more than local media notice. Further investigation by the Social Security Administration
's "Kestenbaum" study 10 years later proved that her age at death was actually 117 years and 248 days.
(1880–1999), the only American person who has ever eclipsed her longevity
. At the time of her death, Lucy was the oldest person to have ever died (although Calment, then living, had already surpassed Hannah's age at death by five months). Since the cases of Shigechiyo Izumi and Carrie White are disputed Lucy might just have been only second person in human history to make 115, 116 and 117.
Supercentenarian
A supercentenarian is someone who has reached the age of 110 years. This age is achieved by about one in a thousand centenarians....
. Hannah is the third-oldest person ever
Oldest people
This is a list of tables of the verified oldest people in the world in ordinal rank, such as oldest person or oldest man. In these tables, a supercentenarian is considered 'verified' if his or her claim has been validated by an international body that specifically deals in longevity research, such...
and the oldest black person ever, as well as the oldest living American at the time of her death. Hannah is also the oldest person never to have been the oldest living person, since she lived at the same time as Jeanne Calment
Jeanne Calment
Jeanne Louise Calment was a French supercentenarian who had the longest confirmed human life span in history, living to the age of . She lived in Arles, France, for her entire life, and outlived both her daughter and grandson. She became especially well known from the age of 113, when the...
, the oldest person ever to live.
Biography
Hannah was born Lucy Terrell in LindenLinden, Alabama
Linden is a city in and the county seat of Marengo County, Alabama, United States.. The population was 2,424 at the 2000 census.-History:Originally known as the Town of Marengo, it was changed to Hohenlinden in 1823 to honor the county's earliest European settlers, French Bonapartist refugees to...
, Alabama and died in Detroit, where she had moved in the Great Migration
Great Migration (African American)
The Great Migration was the movement of 6 million blacks out of the Southern United States to the Northeast, Midwest, and West from 1910 to 1970. Some historians differentiate between a Great Migration , numbering about 1.6 million migrants, and a Second Great Migration , in which 5 million or more...
to escape the racial tensions of the Deep South
Deep South
The Deep South is a descriptive category of the cultural and geographic subregions in the American South. Historically, it is differentiated from the "Upper South" as being the states which were most dependent on plantation type agriculture during the pre-Civil War period...
.
She married John Hannah in 1901 and had eight children, only two of whom were living when Lucy died. Two of her sisters reached 100 and her mother reached 99. Lucy's parents survived slavery and were whipped every day until their freedom. They had many scars both physical and mental. They brought their eight children up to be thankful for their freedom every day. At Lucy's death, her family stated she was 118 at death which is supported by her SSDI
Social Security Death Index
The Social Security Death Index is a database of death records created from the United States Social Security Administration's Death Master File Extract. Most persons who have died since 1962 who had a Social Security Number and whose death has been reported to the Social Security Administration...
listing, but the case escaped more than local media notice. Further investigation by the Social Security Administration
Social Security Administration
The United States Social Security Administration is an independent agency of the United States federal government that administers Social Security, a social insurance program consisting of retirement, disability, and survivors' benefits...
's "Kestenbaum" study 10 years later proved that her age at death was actually 117 years and 248 days.
Longevity
Lucy Hannah is the third-oldest person ever, after the Jeanne Calment (1875–1997) and Sarah KnaussSarah Knauss
Sarah DeRemer Knauss was an American supercentenarian considered the world's oldest living person by Guinness World Records from April 16, 1998, the date of the death of 117-year-old Canadian Marie-Louise Meilleur, until her own death...
(1880–1999), the only American person who has ever eclipsed her longevity
Longevity
The word "longevity" is sometimes used as a synonym for "life expectancy" in demography or known as "long life", especially when it concerns someone or something lasting longer than expected ....
. At the time of her death, Lucy was the oldest person to have ever died (although Calment, then living, had already surpassed Hannah's age at death by five months). Since the cases of Shigechiyo Izumi and Carrie White are disputed Lucy might just have been only second person in human history to make 115, 116 and 117.
See also
- List of the verified oldest people
- LongevityLongevityThe word "longevity" is sometimes used as a synonym for "life expectancy" in demography or known as "long life", especially when it concerns someone or something lasting longer than expected ....
- Oldest peopleOldest peopleThis is a list of tables of the verified oldest people in the world in ordinal rank, such as oldest person or oldest man. In these tables, a supercentenarian is considered 'verified' if his or her claim has been validated by an international body that specifically deals in longevity research, such...
- SupercentenarianSupercentenarianA supercentenarian is someone who has reached the age of 110 years. This age is achieved by about one in a thousand centenarians....