American supercentenarians are citizens or residents of the United States who have attained or surpassed 110 years of age. By January 2015, the Gerontology Research Group (GRG) had validated the longevity claims of 782 American supercentenarians. The oldest living American is Naomi Whitehead (born in Georgia on September 26, 1910, and residing in Greenville, Pennsylvania), aged . The longest-lived American ever was Sarah Knauss, of Hollywood, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, who died on December 30, 1999, aged 119 years and 97 days. The oldest validated American man ever is Danish-born Christian Mortensen, who immigrated to the United States at age 21 in 1903. The oldest validated American-born man ever is Walter Breuning.

Gerontology researcher Robert Young, then-affiliated with the Gerontology Research Group, noted in 2008 that African-Americans are disproportionately represented among validated American 115+ year-olds, explicitly reviewing the evidence in favor of cases such as Elizabeth Bolden, Maggie Barnes, and Bettie Wilson.

100 oldest known Americans ever Below is a list of the 100 longest-lived American supercentenarians, according to the GRG and reliable sourcing.

Rank Name Sex Birth date Death date Age Birthplace Place of death or residence 1 Sarah Knauss September 24, 1880 December 30, 1999 Pennsylvania Pennsylvania 2 María Branyas Morera March 4, 1907 August 19, 2024 California Spain 3 Delphia Welford September 9, 1875 November 14, 1992 Mississippi Tennessee 4 Susannah Mushatt Jones July 6, 1899 May 12, 2016 Alabama New York 5 Gertrude Weaver July 4, 1898 April 6, 2015 Arkansas Arkansas 6 Elizabeth Bolden August 15, 1890 December 11, 2006 Tennessee Tennessee 7 Besse Cooper August 26, 1896 December 4, 2012 Tennessee Georgia 8 Easter Wiggins June 1, 1874 July 7, 1990 Mississippi Mississippi 9 Jeralean Talley May 23, 1899 June 17, 2015 Georgia Michigan 10 Edith Ceccarelli February 5, 1908 February 22, 2024 California California 11 Naomi Whitehead September 26, 1910 Living Georgia Pennsylvania 12 Ella Miller December 6, 1884 November 21, 2000 Tennessee Virginia 13 Maggie Barnes March 6, 1882 January 19, 1998 North Carolina North Carolina 14 Dina Manfredini April 4, 1897 December 17, 2012 Italy Iowa15 Christian Mortensen August 16, 1882 April 25, 1998 Denmark California 16 Hester Ford August 15, 1905 April 17, 2021 South Carolina North Carolina 17 Edna Parker April 20, 1893 November 26, 2008 Indiana Indiana 18 Margaret Skeete October 27, 1878 May 7, 1994 Texas Virginia 19 Bernice Madigan July 24, 1899 January 3, 2015 Massachusetts Massachusetts 20 Gertrude Baines April 6, 1894 September 11, 2009 Georgia California 21 Emiliano Mercado del Toro August 21, 1891 January 24, 2007 Puerto Rico Puerto Rico 22 Bettie Wilson September 13, 1890 February 13, 2006 Mississippi Mississippi 23 Iris Westman August 28, 1905 January 3, 2021 North Dakota North Dakota 24 Marie-Josephine Gaudette March 25, 1902 July 13, 2017 New Hampshire Italy 25 Susie Gibson October 31, 1890 February 16, 2006 Mississippi Alabama Thelma Sutcliffe October 1, 1906 January 17, 2022 Nebraska Nebraska 27 Edna Kern October 14, 1900 January 20, 2016 California Nevada 28 Elizabeth Francis July 25, 1909 October 22, 2024 Louisiana Texas 29 Augusta Holtz August 3, 1871 October 21, 1986 Prussia Missouri 30 Bessie Hendricks November 7, 1907 January 3, 2023 Iowa Iowa 31Katie Hatton December 18, 1876 January 24, 1992 Texas Texas 32 Maud Farris-Luse February 21, 1887 March 18, 2002 Michigan Michigan 33 Antonia Gerena Rivera May 19, 1900 June 2, 2015 Puerto Rico Florida 34 Mary Bidwell May 9, 1881 April 25, 1996 Connecticut Connecticut 35 Hazel Plummer June 19, 1908 May 25, 2023 Massachusetts Massachusetts 36 Ophelia Burks October 25, 1903 September 27, 2018 Louisiana Louisiana 37 Ella Gantt November 30, 1886 October 28, 2001 Georgia Georgia 38 Eliza Underwood March 15, 1866 January 27, 1981 North Carolina District of Columbia 39 Mary Josephine Ray May 17, 1895 March 7, 2010 Canada New Hampshire 40 Goldie Steinberg October 30, 1900 August 16, 2015 Moldova New York 41 Ramona Trinidad Iglesias Jordan September 1, 1889 May 29, 2004 Puerto Rico Puerto Rico 42 Delphine Gibson August 17, 1903 May 9, 2018 South Carolina Pennsylvania 43 Mary Royster April 15, 1875 December 28, 1989 Virginia North Carolina 44 Bonita Gibson July 4, 1911 March 10, 2026 Kansas Michigan 45 Neva Morris August 3, 1895 April 6, 2010 Iowa Iowa 46 Mary Ana Long February 18, 1905 October 16, 2019 Kentucky Kentucky 47 Blanche Cobb September 8, 1900 May 1, 2015 Georgia Florida 48 Mila Mangold November 14, 1907 July 2, 2022 Nebraska California 49 Myrtle Dorsey November 20, 1885 June 25, 2000 Ohio Ohio 50 Carrie Lazenby February 9, 1882 September 4, 1996 Georgia Illinois 51 Walter Breuning September 21, 1896 April 14, 2011 Minnesota Montana 52 Eunice Sanborn July 20, 1896 January 31, 2011 Louisiana Texas 53 Grace Clawson November 15, 1887 May 28, 2002 United Kingdom Florida 54 Wilhelmina Kott March 7, 1880 September 6, 1994 Illinois Illinois Adelina Domingues February 19, 1888 August 21, 2002 Cape Verde California 56 Lucy Mirigian August 15, 1906 February 12, 2021 Armenia California 57 Charlotte Benkner November 16, 1889 May 14, 2004 Germany Ohio 58 Ilse Meingast March 14, 1912 August 23, 2026 Germany California 59 Ettie Mae Greene September 19, 1877 February 26, 1992 West Virginia West Virginia 60 Dominga Velasco May 12, 1901 October 11, 2015 Mexico California 61 Irene Frank October 1, 1881 February 28, 1996 Texas Missouri 62 Georgia Ella Jordan September 18, 1880 February 9, 1995 Georgia Virginia 63 Olivia Patricia Thomas June 29, 1895 November 16, 2009 Iowa New York Alelia Murphy July 6, 1905 November 23, 2019 North Carolina New York 65 Irene Dunham December 16, 1907 May 1, 2022 Michigan Michigan 66 Nina Willis January 14, 1909 May 17, 2023 Georgia Georgia Pearl Berg October 1, 1909 February 1, 2024 Indiana California 68 Anna Henderson March 5, 1900 July 1, 2014 Georgia Pennsylvania 69 Emma Verona Johnston August 6, 1890 December 1, 2004 Iowa Ohio Mamie Rearden September 7, 1898 January 2, 2013 South Carolina Georgia Erna Zahn April 14, 1908 August 9, 2022 Wisconsin Minnesota 72 Bettie Chatmon April 30, 1884 August 16, 1998 Louisiana Texas Lessie Brown September 22, 1904 January 8, 2019 Georgia Ohio 74 Odie Matthews December 28, 1878 April 14, 1993 Texas Arizona 75 Mary Harris May 13, 1911 August 22, 2025 New York Tennessee 76 Florence Knapp October 10, 1873 January 11, 1988 Pennsylvania Pennsylvania Elena Slough July 4, 1889 October 5, 2003 Pennsylvania New Jersey 78 Mary Anna Boone February 10, 1887 May 13, 2001 Kentucky Kentucky 79 Minnie Whicker July 24, 1906 October 22, 2020 Arkansas California 80 Delma Kollar October 31, 1897 January 24, 2012 Kansas Oregon 81 Ila Jones August 21, 1903 November 10, 2017 Georgia Georgia 82 Maggie Renfro November 14, 1895 January 22, 2010 Louisiana Louisiana 83 Emma Tillman November 22, 1892 January 28, 2007 North Carolina Connecticut Anna Stoehr October 15, 1900 December 21, 2014 Iowa Minnesota 85 Leila Denmark February 1, 1898 April 1, 2012 Georgia Georgia 86 Adele Dunlap December 12, 1902 February 5, 2017 New Jersey New Jersey 87 Naomi Conner August 30, 1899 October 18, 2013 Texas Texas Ora Holland December 24, 1900 February 11, 2015 Missouri Oklahoma 89 Winnie Felps October 10, 1911 November 20, 2025 Texas Texas 90 Ellen Goodwill February 2, 1907 March 2, 2021 Kentucky Michigan 91 Grace Thaxton June 18, 1891 July 6, 2005 New York Kentucky 92 Soledad Mexia August 13, 1899 August 30, 2013 Mexico California 93 Minnie Ward November 19, 1885 December 2, 1999 Tennessee Massachusetts 94 Arbella Ewing March 13, 1894 March 22, 2008 Texas Texas 95 Catherine Hagel November 28, 1894 December 6, 2008 Minnesota Minnesota 96 Emma Otis October 22, 1901 October 25, 2015 Washington Washington 97 Ellen Jurick July 15, 1895 July 13, 2009 Pennsylvania Michigan 98 Catherine Ferrell October 10, 1912 Living North Carolina North Carolina 99 Fred Harold Hale December 1, 1890 November 19, 2004 Maine New York 100 Miriam Carpelan July 8, 1882 June 22, 1996 United Kingdom California Elsie Thompson April 5, 1899 March 21, 2013 Pennsylvania Florida

Biographies

Delphia Welford Delphia S. Welford (September 9, 1875November 14, 1992) was an American supercentenarian claimed to have been born on September 9, 1881; however, research conducted by the Gerontology Research Group between 2016 and 2023 concluded that she was actually born in 1875, and that she was born in Okolona, Mississippi. LongeviQuest has subsequently conducted similar research and a similar analysis and reached an identical conclusion, with Delphia Welford having four documents (two US Census entries and two Mississippi state census entries) from 1880 to support her claimed age and with additional documents (Mississippi school census entries) from 1885 and 1892 that decisively rule out the possibility of an identity switch with a younger sibling and that either support or almost support (produce a final age one or two years younger than) her claimed age.

Welford's parents were Richard and Heddie Welford. The family moved to Humboldt, Tennessee, when she was a teenager.FamilySearch page for Delphia Welford, with links to her official documentation (censuses, etc.). She had one son, Leo Mathis, in the late 1890s. Welford never married and spent the rest of her life in Humboldt. She was a homemaker and a member of the Lane Chapel C.M.E Church.

Welford died at Parkview Manor Health Care Center in Humboldt, on November 14, 1992, at the age of 117 years, 66 days. She had been the oldest person ever from the United States after surpassing the age of Easter Wiggins on October 16, 1991. Welford would continue to hold this distinction until November 30, 1997, when Sarah Knauss lived past her final age.

Mary Bidwell Mary Electa Bidwell (May 9, 1881 – April 25, 1996) was an American supercentenarian. She died aged 114 years and 352 days and is the oldest person on record ever to die in Connecticut.

Her parents were Charles Woodruff Bidwell and Alice Beach Nobel. She was a descendant of John Bidwell, one of the founders of Hartford, Connecticut. Bidwell worked as a teacher in a one-room schoolhouse for six years. She married Charles Hubbell Bidwell, a distant cousin, in 1906. Bidwell lived on her own in North Haven, Connecticut, until she was 110. Bidwell died at the Arden House, a nursing home in Hamden, Connecticut.

Maggie Barnes Maggie Pauline Barnes (née Hinnant; March 6, between 1880 and 1882 – January 19, 1998) was an American supercentenarian. She was born to a former slave and married a tenant farmer. Barnes died on January 19, 1998, in Johnston County, North Carolina, of gangrene.Musante, Glenna B. (January 22, 1998) "Johnston woman, one of world's oldest, dies at 117" The Raleigh News & Observer. Section: News; B1.

Her exact year of birth has been disputed. Though the year 1882 is written in her family bible, her marriage license claims that she was born in 1880.

Adelina Domingues Adelina Domingues (February 19, 1888 – August 21, 2002) was a Cape Verdean American supercentenarian who was the world's oldest person from the death of 114-year-old British-American woman Grace Clawson on May 28, 2002, to her own death less than three months later. Domingues was born in Cape Verde. Domingues's Italian father was a harbor pilot by profession, and her mother was Portuguese by ethnicity.Adelina Domingues, 114; Oldest Person in the U.S. Los Angeles Times, August 24, 2002. She married in 1907, and moved to the United States that year. Her husband died from cancer in 1950. Domingues was a missionary from the Church of the Nazarene in Cape Verde and other parts of Africa, and also a religious preacher when she lived in Massachusetts, as well as an expert seamstress.