Christian Mortensen
Christian Mortensen | |
|---|---|
| File:Christian Mortensen.png | |
| Born | Thomas Peter Thorvald Kristian Ferdinand Mortensen 16 August 1882 Skårup, Skanderborg, Denmark |
| Died | 25 April 1998 (aged 115 years, 252 days) |
| Occupation(s) | Tailor, farmhand |
| Known for | Oldest verified man ever Oldest Danish person ever Oldest emigrant ever |
| Title | Supercentenarian |
Thomas Peter Thorvald Kristian Ferdinand Mortensen (16 August 1882 - 25 April 1998), known as an adult as Christian Mortensen, was a Danish-American supercentenarian.[1] At the time of his death he was 115 years and 252 days old, the longest verified lifespan of any male in history.[2] He was the first undisputed man to reach age 114 (in 1996) and 115 years of age (in 1997) and one of only three verifiably known to reach 115, the other two being Emiliano Mercado del Toro (in 2006) and Jiroemon Kimura (in 2012). Not counting disputed cases, Mortensen remains the 10th oldest verified person in history. In addition to being the oldest person born in Denmark, Mortensen is also distinctive as the oldest person ever of all the Nordic countries, the second-oldest person ever from Europe and the oldest emigrant ever.
Mortensen was baptized in Fruering Church on December 26, 1882.[3] Besides his baptismal record, other records include the 1890 and 1901 census enumerations in Denmark, and church confirmation in 1896.[2]
Biography
Christian Mortensen was born the son of a tailor in the village of Skårup, near the city of Skanderborg Denmark, on August 16, 1882. He began work as a tailor's apprentice in Skanderborg at age 16, in 1898, and later took work as a farmhand.[2]
Mortensen emigrated to the United States in 1903. He traveled while working as a tailor but settled in Chicago where he had relatives. Mortensen worked various trades including as a milkman for Borden's Milk, as a restaurateur, and as a factory worker for the Continental Can Company. He was married for less than ten years, divorced and had no children. He did not remarry.[2][4]
In 1950, Mortensen retired near Galveston Bay, Texas. Then, 28 years later at the age of 96, he moved to a retirement home in San Rafael, California.[2] Mortensen claimed he rode his bicycle to the Aldersly Retirement Community, telling the staff that he was there to stay. Mortensen lived at Aldersly until his death in 1998.[2][5]
Mortensen enjoyed an occasional cigar and insisted that smoking in moderation was not unhealthy. Mortensen preferred a vegetarian diet.[4] He also drank boiled water. Mortensen was legally blind towards the end of his life and spent much of his time in a wheelchair listening to the radio.[6]
On his 115th birthday Mortensen gave his advice for a long life: "Friends, a good cigar, drinking lots of good water, no alcohol, staying positive and lots of singing will keep you alive for a long time."[5]
References
- ^ New York Times, "Christian Mortensen, 115, Among Oldest," 1998-05-03. Accessed 2007-02-16
- ^ a b c d e f Wilmoth, John (1996). "The Oldest Man Ever? A Case Study of Exceptional Longevity" (PDF). The Gerontologist. 36 (6): 783–788. Retrieved 2010-09-09.
{{cite journal}}: Cite has empty unknown parameters:|trans_title=and|month=(help); Unknown parameter|coauthors=ignored (|author=suggested) (help) - ^ Christian Mortensen's birth record (see image) shows his birthplace as the village of Skårup, Denmark, which was located in Sogn Fruering parish, Herred Hjelmslev Hundred, Skanderborg County, which is now part of Skanderborg municipality.
- ^ a b John R. Wilmoth (April 30, 1998). "Tribute to Christian Mortensen, 1882-1998". Department of Demography, University of California, Berkeley. Retrieved 9 September 2010.
- ^ a b Minton, Tori "One of World's Oldest Dies in His Sleep,", San Francisco Chronicle, page A-18, 1998-04-28]. Accessed 2007-02-16
- ^ "The world's oldest folk. What do they know that we don't?". Observer. 10 August 1997.
See also
External links
- Scandinavian obituaries: Dagbladet Template:No icon and Aftonbladet Template:Sv icon
- Aldersly Garden Retirement Community
- Fruering Church article at Danish Wikipedia
- 1882 births
- 1998 deaths
- Verified American supercentenarians
- American people of Danish descent
- Danish emigrants to the United States
- People from Marin County, California
- American vegetarians
- American Protestants
- American Christians
- People from Galveston, Texas
- Blind people from the United States
- People from Chicago, Illinois